SEANCE was conceived one summer evening when Karoline Kruger, Veslemoey Ruud Zwart, Sigvart Dagsland and Harald Zwart went ghost hunting in the old abandoned "Køber-House" on the Island of Hankø in the Oslo Fjord. A place where in the 30's there were spiritual seances and said to be a murder. The evening ended in a rush of fear and creativity, and resulted in this fresh, and original musical.
SEANCE is written by movie-director Harald Zwart, based on the true story about the greatest murder mystery in Scandinavia in the 1930's. A young woman, Ingeborg Thoeger (Ingeborg Køber) a medium, was accused of murdering her father after predicting his death . The case was never solved. Was Elisabeth an innocent medium or a dangerous killer? The story is told through her defense lawyer, William Sorensen, who himself was harboring a big secret. A snap-shot of the patriarchal society, of Norway in the 30's set in an Ibsenesque, gripping love story of two people who would've been perfect for one another had they met under different circumstances.
Producer Veslemoey Ruud Zwart had the original idea of turning this murder mystery into a musical, and has secured the rights to all the underlying material about this famous case. Veslemoey operates on two continents with offices in both Oslo and Los Angeles.
Original music by Karoline Kruger and Sigvart Dagsland, two of the most renowned singer/songwriters in Norway.
Lyrics by Mike McGurk who's credits include all the top selling albums in Norway the last 20 years.
Associate Producer Allison Robbins is a writer and a producer, with a long tradition within Musical Theatre. Allison has contributed greatly to the sophistication of the dialogue and drama of the piece.
SEANCE ON STAGE
SEANCE was performed at Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Other Palace, Sept 2018 as a three day workshop. All shows were sold out and audiences participated in focus groups to help improve the piece. The stage version was Directed by Philip Wilson. The event was sponsored by Chuck Tipton.
SEANCE was also performed as a pure concert version in the well known music festival “Festspillene” in Bergen, Norway.