Hallgrim Hansegård
Encyclopedia
Hallgrim Hansegård is a Norwegian choreographer and dancer whose background is rooted in his traditional halling dance training and contemporary dance
.
Hallgrim Hansegård was born in 1980 in the mountains of Valdres into a family of miners and shephards. He began dancing and playing traditional violin at the age of seven, learning the art of up to 90 years old masters in his valley. Since the age of 10 he has been touring as a dancer, and his choreographic works have been performed in 27 countries all over the world.
With a background in Norwegian traditional dance he has been developing a new choreographical style for contemporary dance including Capoeira
and break dance
. He works in the formats of aerial dance, site specific ecosophical stage arts, indoor dance and interdiciplinary arts.
He was educated at the Academy of Digital Arts in Florence
from 2000 to 2003 and Film Arts in Kabelvåg
from 2003 to 2005. He is known as the founder and of the Frikar Dance Company
.
Hansegård made his international breakthrough with an animation film at the Venice Biennale
in 2003 (Tarantrance). In 2005 he won 3rd prize at Superdok. In 2007 he won the award as Folk Music Artist of the Year in Norway. In 2009 he won the award for best choreography at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009
, among 43 countries in the most seen entertainment TV program in the world.
In 2010 he premiered "Jamsiis" at Bergen International Festival Youtube: Jamsiis. This was a highly personal contribution to the Nordic contemporary dance scene, based on his roots in traditional dances. Jamsiis opened up a public discussion about the boundaries of contemporary dance in Norway. NRK (the Norwegian Broadcasting) writes:
In 2009 Hansegård directed Tidarå, an outdoor full night dance performance under a waterfall with 22 dancers and musicians. The production collected contemporary and traditional dancers in a research for a unique contemporary dance technique. "Tidarå" is part of FRIKARs ecosophical productions. Hansegård directed also Yr in 2009 together with violin virtous Ragnhild Hemsing, premiere at the Bergen International Festival
.
In 2008 Hansegård was censored by the Roman Catholic Church
in Naples
for his non conventional interpretation of Peer Gynt, NRK: Bukkerittet. In the years 2005 to 2007 Hansegård directed "Undergrunnsfargo", "Isolations", "Laus", "Kruk", "The snuff grinders" and "Bastard".
He also participated in Dansefeber
, the Norwegian version of So You Think You Can Dance
, in 2006. In 2008, his dancing was digitalized for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game
(MMORPG) Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
.
“Maybe the most outstanding and inspiring artist at Bergen International Festival…” Bergens Tidende
“New-thinking choreographer with a strong will to do his own thing and blessedly uninhibited as far as exceeding boundaries is concerned” Dance critic Karen Frøsland Nystøyl, The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation
“Natural talent.” Sidsel Pape, free-Lancer dance critic
“About to obtain a solid name in the world of dance – well deserved!” Nordlys
“Hallgrim Hansegård brings to contemporary dance a fresh and slightly rough expression.. Innovative, playful and experimental.” Dance critic Silje Birgitte Folkedal, Bergens Tidende
Contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of concert dance that employs compositional philosophy, rather than choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement...
.
Career
Described by National Geographic as “wildly inventive” Hallgrim Hansegård has by the age of 30 established his own company and expressive style which has performed in 27 countries. Though his works often are meeting points between different cultures, his research cares about what is pure nature in what we associate with cultural behavior. The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporations dance critic describes Hansegård as a “New-thinking choreographer with a strong will to do his own thing and blessedly uninhibited as far as exceeding boundaries is concerned. It’s very exciting to see folk dance in dialogue with contemporary dance.”Hallgrim Hansegård was born in 1980 in the mountains of Valdres into a family of miners and shephards. He began dancing and playing traditional violin at the age of seven, learning the art of up to 90 years old masters in his valley. Since the age of 10 he has been touring as a dancer, and his choreographic works have been performed in 27 countries all over the world.
With a background in Norwegian traditional dance he has been developing a new choreographical style for contemporary dance including Capoeira
Capoeira
Capoeira is a Brazilian art form that combines elements of martial arts, sports, and music. It was created in Brazil mainly by descendants of African slaves with Brazilian native influences, probably beginning in the 16th century...
and break dance
Break Dance
Break Dance is a Commodore 64 computer game that relies on players making dancing moves that resemble the classic game Simon says.-Gameplay:...
. He works in the formats of aerial dance, site specific ecosophical stage arts, indoor dance and interdiciplinary arts.
He was educated at the Academy of Digital Arts in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
from 2000 to 2003 and Film Arts in Kabelvåg
Kabelvåg
Kabelvåg is a village in Vågan municipality on the southern shore of Austvågøy island, one of the Lofoten island group in the county of Nordland, northern Norway....
from 2003 to 2005. He is known as the founder and of the Frikar Dance Company
Frikar Dance Company
FRIKAR dance company is a Norwegian dance company for contemporary and traditional dance specialized on the connection between dance and nature.-Biography:...
.
Hansegård made his international breakthrough with an animation film at the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
in 2003 (Tarantrance). In 2005 he won 3rd prize at Superdok. In 2007 he won the award as Folk Music Artist of the Year in Norway. In 2009 he won the award for best choreography at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009
Eurovision Song Contest 2009
The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the 54th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and was hosted by Russia after their win in 2008. It took place between 12 and 16 May 2009 at the Olympic Indoor Arena in Moscow, Russia....
, among 43 countries in the most seen entertainment TV program in the world.
In 2010 he premiered "Jamsiis" at Bergen International Festival Youtube: Jamsiis. This was a highly personal contribution to the Nordic contemporary dance scene, based on his roots in traditional dances. Jamsiis opened up a public discussion about the boundaries of contemporary dance in Norway. NRK (the Norwegian Broadcasting) writes:
JAMSIIS, Hallgrim Hansegårds new production, is the most exciting I have seen here. It’s very exciting to see traditional dance in dialogue with contemporary dance. Hansegård is branching out and opening up new territory here. He has come down a path that I think is very important to go. That Hansegård is a dancer with strong will to do his own thing and blessedly uninhibited as far as exceeding boundaries is concerned is something the Norwegian dance community should be happy about… At the same time that he approaches contemporary dance, he opens doors. If he succeeds in making contemporary dance accessible to a wider audience than today’s, the genre of contemporary dance should learn to endure a ‘halling-roundkick’ or two.
In 2009 Hansegård directed Tidarå, an outdoor full night dance performance under a waterfall with 22 dancers and musicians. The production collected contemporary and traditional dancers in a research for a unique contemporary dance technique. "Tidarå" is part of FRIKARs ecosophical productions. Hansegård directed also Yr in 2009 together with violin virtous Ragnhild Hemsing, premiere at the Bergen International Festival
Bergen International Festival
Bergen International Festival is an annual international music and cultural festival in Bergen, Norway. The festival is the largest in the Nordic countries in its genre and has a large number of activities in music, dance, literature, visual arts, folklore etc...
.
In 2008 Hansegård was censored by the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
for his non conventional interpretation of Peer Gynt, NRK: Bukkerittet. In the years 2005 to 2007 Hansegård directed "Undergrunnsfargo", "Isolations", "Laus", "Kruk", "The snuff grinders" and "Bastard".
He also participated in Dansefeber
Dansefeber
Dansefeber is the Norwegian version of So You Think You Can Dance. It was broadcast on TVNorge and was hosted by Kjetil Tefke and Henriette Lien . Adil Khan was the winner in 2006 and Hanna Mjåvatn the winner in 2007....
, the Norwegian version of So You Think You Can Dance
So You Think You Can Dance (U.S. TV series)
So You Think You Can Dance is an American dance competition and reality show that airs on Fox in the United States.The series first premiered on July 20, 2005, and was created by American Idol producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe and is produced by 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions...
, in 2006. In 2008, his dancing was digitalized for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game
MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
(MMORPG) Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures is a fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by a Norwegian computer video game developer company, Funcom, and is published by Eidos Interactive for the PC platform...
.
Choreographies / productions
- "AP" (2010)
- "JAMSIIS" (2010)
- "Wall dance" (2010)
- "TidarÅ" (2009)
- "YR" (2009)
- "Fairytale" (2009)
- "Mjølk" (2009"
- "Bukkerittet" (2008)
- "THE SNUFF GRINDERS" (2007)
- "KRUK!" (2007)
- "Bastard" (2007)
- "LAUS" (2006)
- "Isolations" (2005)
- "Undergrunnsfargo" (2005)
Critiques
“Wildly Inventive, thrilling performance.” National Geographic“Maybe the most outstanding and inspiring artist at Bergen International Festival…” Bergens Tidende
“New-thinking choreographer with a strong will to do his own thing and blessedly uninhibited as far as exceeding boundaries is concerned” Dance critic Karen Frøsland Nystøyl, The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation
“Natural talent.” Sidsel Pape, free-Lancer dance critic
“About to obtain a solid name in the world of dance – well deserved!” Nordlys
“Hallgrim Hansegård brings to contemporary dance a fresh and slightly rough expression.. Innovative, playful and experimental.” Dance critic Silje Birgitte Folkedal, Bergens Tidende
Awards
Hansegård has been the recipient of several awards:- 2011: Norwegian champion in halling dance, winner of Jørn Hilme-stemnet and the first battle in halling dance, «FRIKAR-tevlinga»
- 2010: Ambassadeur of International Dance Day
- 2009: Award for «Best choreography» at the Eurovision 2009 among 43 European countries
- 2009: Name of the Year, Rural Norway
- 2009: Ambassadeur of Valdres
- 2007: Award for «Artist of the year», The Norwegian Folk Music Awards.
- 2005: 3rd place, SUPERDOK, for the documentary film "Opse"
- 2005: Torleiv Bolstads prize for young musicians
- 2003: Student of the Year, l`Accademia delle arti digitali, Firenze, Italy