I open the autumn program for Dramaten, (Stockholm’s leading theatre) and I am confronted by a sea of faces each one a more glittering star than the next. The names of playwrights, plays, genres, the realm of ideas all are eclipsed by the fame of the actors and actresses. Celebrity is clearly more important than content.
We are really excited by our autumn program that we will kick off on September 4th with the video exhibition Vittnesmål (Testimony) curated by Magdalena Dziurlikowska & Richard Dinter.
Celebrations of national pride usually revolt me with their invention of nationhood as a form of nostalgia and their parading of ersatz symbols of so called collective culture. Worse! They also create a forum for nationalist extremism and the normalisation of bigotry hidden behind a pathetic patriotism.
If the saccharine tabloid sentimentality of the forthcoming royal Swedish marriage has you singing Sex Pistol lyrics or mumbling about Cromwell, Danton and Jefferson. If you feel that the word love has been hijacked by yellow press mock sensationalism and begin to fear that nationalist sentimentality may never end. There is hope. Check out http://www.lovetensta.se/.
Multicultural, a word that should be confined to history. Overused, poorly used and used as gloss, the word is most often applied as an excuse for not wanting to tackle straight on issues of ethnicity and diversity, particularly those including potential conflict.
Facebook
del.icio.us
Digg
Twitter
LinkedIn
.jpg)