Klemet

Environmental theater scene in Hemnes, Norway for a play about the dramatic life of the Sami Klemet turning the whole valley into a shaman drum. Around year 1900 Klemet was living in between the Okstindan glacier on the mountains and the farmers in the valley. He was a Sami, torn between living the traditional nomadic Sami way of life and the life of the farmers. Klemet was a decendant of a noide /(shaman) family. Despite living as an outcast under a rock “heller”, his memory among the farmers is still very strong. Not many years ago the “heller” was blown to pieces in an act of cultural sabotage. The environmental drama of the Klemet theater play aims into the psychological liberation of the valley. The whole community was playing a part, either as actors or producers of the play. Klemet lived with his wife and children under a rock in a nest built of moss, trees and grass following the local knowledge of the Sami environmental building techniques. His rock, the “heller”, was one of many in the valley left behind by the retreating Okstindan glacier during the ice-age. Klemets rock even had running water – a stream conveniently running from the glacier above. The scenography moves freely in-between land-art and theatre following Klemets life, which was a constant environmental drama tied with the visual and subconscious layers of nature and human nature as part of nature. The stage opens up in different layers: the natural stage is the surrounding mountains, farms and the river running down from the glacier. This natural setting is focusing on a temporary collage of a constructed stage setting with elements from Klemet’s life and the life of the villagers. All the construction materials used in play are recycled from the valley.