A burst of joy!

The best-loved comedy of all time took the stage at Tjarnarbíó in autumn 2025, produced by Silfurskeiðin.

It was a true honour to lead a group of young actors through the creative process that resulted in this vibrant production. How could I say no when two young, newly graduated actors had such an ambitious idea for their debut production and were ready to take it on with no money at all? I agreed on condition that Magnús Thorlacius and Eyja Sigríður Gunnlaugsdóttir join me, and together we formed a directing team to steer this big project.

We began the process on Midsummer Night at Kolstaðir in Borgarfjörður, where the group came together and rolled in the dew. Then came a workshop where Grotowski’s experimental theatre methods, Roy Hart’s voice work and Anne Bogart and Mary Overlie’s Viewpoints set the tone. The summer went into learning lines, and in August we met again and began staging. Ragnheiður Steindórsdóttir gave invaluable help with diction – essential if the play is to reach the audience. It was a great joy to work with Þórarinn Eldjárn’s translation, which he generously lent us.

Another wordsmith made a strong contribution when Króli joined us and wrote lyrics for the show’s closing song, Nakin í dögginni (Naked in the Dew).

The premiere was a festive occasion: the President of Iceland attended and sang along with the company after the show. It was immediately clear that the joy on stage spread to the audience, and the result was a real burst of joy. Audiences and critics alike praised the production, and we had to close to full houses once we had exceeded our performance quota at Tjarnarbíó.