Costume Dramaturgies
(2026)
author(s): Christina Fossaas Lindgren, Charlotte Østergaard
published in: Stockholm University of the Arts (SKH)
With the artistic research project Costume Dramaturgies we explore the dramaturgy that emerges when performance takes an unconventional starting point: a costume – a thing. By approaching dramaturgy as an assembly of things, we shift perspective from the human to the non-human, giving agency to costume, props, and light in performance. We argue that the dramaturgy of things remains an under-researched area in the performing arts.
The one-year project is funded by Stockholm University of the Arts and brings together 12 researchers from costume design, dramaturgy, mime acting, LARP, film direction, theatre studies, scenography, and performance art. This multi-perspective, poly-vocal approach aims to generate a nuanced understanding of dramaturgy of things, and includes workshops based on devising methods—most notably the Costume Jam Session, where participants interact with costumes through chains of action, followed by reflection on the dramaturgy that emerges. The project is a continuation of the artistic research project Costume Agency.
CHARMS — re-imagining the body in motion: the embodied armoured flesh and the biomechanics research lab
(2025)
author(s): MARIANA Barrote
published in: RUUKKU - Studies in Artistic Research
In this study I elaborate on how Charms unfolds as a plastic experimentation rooted in an initial vision of the body. It is grounded in a reimagined body image, constructed from other imagined bodies, such as the anatomical flayed figure and protective devices. This study explores the notion of the body turned upside down —both literally and conceptually — reconfigured through an armor-like structure in which flesh paradoxically assumes the role of an external layer. The resulting image is of a body that is both armored and exposed, charged with contradictions that disrupt binary oppositions such as inside/outside, alive/dead, human/animal, and powerful/fragile. This hyperbolic Charms, constructed from two distinct costumes, is offered for visual contemplation, recurring within contemporary visual culture as a manifestation of the scientific body still subjected by imagination and visceral sensation. The work, a multichannel video installation, also investigates the body’s capacity to generate imaginaries through movement, employing measurement tools from the biomechanics research laboratory to visualize this dynamic relationship.
Sustainability in Performing Arts Production
(2024)
author(s): Johanna Garpe, Camilla Damkjaer, Markus Granqvist, Gunilla Pettersson Thafvelin, Anna Ljungqvist, Anders Larsson, Synne Behrndt, Mihra Lindblom, Anja Susa, Anders Aare, Anders Duus, Jon Refsdal Moe
published in: Stockholm University of the Arts (SKH)
The purpose of this project is to explore how we can minimize the climate impact through the way we plan, produce, and support performing arts productions.
The overarching research question was: How can we continue to create relevant and innovative performing arts with a smaller climate impact?
The faculty in performing arts at Stockholm University of the Arts worked with Harry Martinson's Aniara from their various disciplines.
