"The Eternal Teenager Inside of Me"

GREIN ARTICLE Karitas M. Bjarkadóttir

TRANSLATION Brynjarr Þór Eyjólfsson

MYND PHOTO Sædís Harpa Stefánsdóttir

“The Eternal Teenager Inside of Me” An Interview with Dominique Gyða Sigrúnardóttir

There is no doubt that a lot of people are familiar with Dominique Gyða Sigrúnardóttir, and some may have even seen her along the corridors of the university or been in classes with her. But Dominique is not simply a master’s student in Creative Writing; she is also a talented actress and director. Dominique graduated from LHÍ, the Iceland University of the Arts, with a degree in drama in 2015 and has since taken on various projects, primarily revolving around young people. Nowadays, she is working in cooperation with sexologist Sigga Dögg and the National Theatre on a performance for young people – a project with the working title Trúnó. I sat down with Dominique to find out more about the project and her career.

Photo: Sædís Harpa Stefánsdóttir

KMB Can you tell me about this project with the National Theatre?

DGS The goal of Trúnó is to get young people around high school age – let’s say about 15-20 years old – to tell us what they want to see discussed in the National Theatre that would be relevant for their age group. This is an age group that doesn’t go to the theatre often, unfortunately – partly because there’s not much out there that’s made specifically to appeal to them – and we wanted to change that. Sigga Dögg and I are accepting these suggestions and will end up further developing 1-3 ideas that we’ll choose. We are aiming to have some kind of framework for the project by the end of the season. Even as of now, the project is at an exciting place since there’s no limit to the form Trúnó could take in the end. This could be a stand-up, a play, a monologue. We are totally open to all sorts of ideas and want to create something new, for and about young people, on their terms.

KMB But why you and Sigga Dögg? How did you two end up doing this together?

DGS We barely knew each other before this project came into existence, but a year ago the National Theatre advertised for new Icelandic projects for children and we each sent an idea, both with a rebellious mindset because they weren’t for children. I went in that direction and just said: “What about the teenagers?”, then mentioned my interest in making a new Icelandic project for young people using the methods of “devised theatre”. I was invited to a meeting at the National Theatre, and so was Sigga Dögg, and we each presented our ideas separately. A lightbulb went on for the committee that we would suit each other well. Sigga Dögg has done some amazing work and has tons of experience teaching young people sex education, while I am a trained actor and have been directing young people. So when they introduced us to each other, we were sure that we could put our heads together and do something cool. That’s what we’re aiming to do.

KMB Can you also talk about what you have been doing since you graduated from LHÍ?

DGS Of course. I graduated in 2015, and after that I went to work a bit in cinematography. I was more or less Ragnar Bragason’s apprentice for about half a year, helping prep and shoot the TV series Fangar (Prisoners). I learned a lot there and became determined to make cinematography a part of my life, together with theatre arts. Directing has always fascinated me, and I felt like I was in my element there. After that, I went on to direct Listafélag Verzlunarskólans, which was one of the most fun things I’ve ever done. Then I went up north to Akureyri to act with the theatre group there and then came back to direct another play for Verzló, which the troupe collaboratively created and performed, and it was extremely successful. Next, I worked on the movie Woman at War, managing the casting and assisting the director, Benedikt Erlingsson. But working with young people was calling to me. Perhaps there’s something of an eternal teenager inside of me; I find it unbelievably fun to work with people in this age group. There are so many possibilities, these young people are still being formed, they try all sorts of stuff, walk different paths, and are engaged. It’s a certain energy that draws you in. Maybe I even get a kick from working with such energetic people who are still figuring out who they are. Perhaps rather a bit like myself.

“It’s a certain energy that draws you in. Maybe I even get a kick from working with such energetic people who are still figuring out who they are. Perhaps rather a bit like myself.“

KMB Do you wish to continue on this path and go deeper? Or do you want to try something new?

DGS I am finishing up my master’s project, which is a full-length screenplay. I’m planning on applying for funding through the Icelandic Film Fund in order to develop the project. And of course, another dream is that Trúnó will go well and that the framework that we turn in this spring will be something that the National Theatre has an interest in investing in further. We would then pick things up again in the fall and open up auditions for people in this age group to perform in the project. And that’s the dream, that this project will make it all the way, since it had to be split in two due to COVID-19.

KMB Now I’m curious, why do you think that young people are so often overlooked? My teenage sister, for example, complains about the lack of Icelandic-language books for teenagers.

DGS I think part of it is this fear that something you do won’t fit in because young people’s interests are always changing. You can very quickly fall out of the loop about what’s considered interesting or cool if you don’t keep up. But I think that everyone is at least a bit curious about this age group, since it is, in most cases, a very exciting time. Everyone can relate to their inner teenager, if only they get the opportunity to do so. I remember, for example, that in one of the performances of Skömm, which is the latter work that I directed, there were nationally known men who shall remain nameless who sat in the room and teared up. It brought up memories for them from this age as this is a time of your life that sticks with you. The things that you learn, the relationships you have with your friends and those closest to you. Even President Guðni Th. came up to me afterwards and said that he’d seen himself in one of the characters on stage.

KMB Right, so each of us has an inner teenager just waiting to come out, then?

DGS Exactly! And it’s amazing that the National Theatre is open to this project. They’re not just investing in this age group, this is also an opportunity for parents, teachers, older people who are around this age group to come and learn something new, understand better what is going on with these individuals today. What they’re thinking, what they long for, and what they fear. This is an important conversation, so why not use the theatre for it?

Suggestions were accepted until 1 February, but Dominique wants to draw attention to the auditions that will be held in the fall and encourages young people born between 2000 and 2005 to be on the lookout for them.