PERSONHOOD

At a time when our lives are continuously tracked, monetised, and influenced by forces beyond our control, PERSONHOOD asks urgent and unsettling questions: What does it mean to be human? What agency do we have? How do we navigate a world where billionaires dream of immortality while we struggle with basic social interactions?

In this commissioned work by Irish composer and vocalist Jennifer Walshe, the Oslo Sinfonietta surrounds and challenges accordionist Andreas Borregaard in an immersive and multi-layered performance. Borregaard doesn’t just play his instrument—he follows cryptic choreographies, watches films embedded with subliminal messages, moves objects in endless patterns, and even drinks strangely coloured smoothies. The result is a performance that oscillates between a scientific experiment, a theatrical investigation, and an avant-garde meditation on selfhood.

The work, initiated by Borregaard himself, is closely linked to his artistic PhD project at the Norwegian Academy of Music, which explores the role of the performer’s body beyond traditional musicianship. How is a piece like this rehearsed? How do you engage an audience without relying solely on music? What happens when a musician steps beyond their instrument and into the realm of movement, theatre, and raw physical expression?

Both an institutional research project and a live artistic exploration, PERSONHOOD blurs the boundaries between experiment and experience. It is an uncompromising, deeply original work that pushes the limits of both the sinfonietta and the soloist—challenging not just the performers, but the very idea of performance itself.

While you wait for the event, explore the project's website.

Ticket link coming very soon!