Interview: ARNE BEEKER of FANNY AND ALEXANDER at Landestheater Linz

It's getting busier at our theatres, rehearsals, opening nights, the lights coming back on, and our beloved theatres back. Arne Beeker, Linz's very own Dramatic Adviser, texted me after a rehearsal of FANNY AND ALEXANDER, the latest work of Gisele Kverndokk (music) and Øysten Wiik (book and lyrics), based on Ingmar Bergman's 1982 movie, about how special this show is going to be. According to the writer's previous collaboration with the Landestheater Linz, the critically acclaimed Around the World In 80 Days (Winner Best Musical 2016/2017; German Musicals Prize) set a high bar for FANNY AND ALEXANDER.

We are curious about this new upcoming production, as only Stephen Sondheim created a musical based on one of Ingmar Bergman's movies. (A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC) All eyes are on Linz and their successful collaboration with Kverndokk and Wiik.

BWW: After 80 Days Around the World, FANNY AND ALEXANDER is the second collaboration with the Norwegian creators. Who came up with the idea for FANNY AND ALEXANDER?

ARNE BEEKER: Many years ago, Øystein and Gisle had the original idea to adapt FANNY AND ALEXANDER for the musical stage. They worked for years to get the rights from the Ingmar Bergman Foundation. As they are a well-known and high-profile writing team in opera and musical theatre in the Scandinavian and German-speaking countries as well as Great Britain and the U.S., they succeeded at last with their request. This was about four years ago.

They have known Matthias Davids, Artistic Director for Musical Theatre at Landestheater Linz, for many years, as he directed several of their world premieres: FRENDELAUS (Sans Famille) at Norske Teatret Oslo, MARTIN L. at Domstufenfestspiele Erfurt, AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS at Musiktheater Linz. Furthermore, I (under the name Roman Hinze) I (co-)translated AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, THE NAME OF THE ROSE (Erfurt), an unpublished biographic musical, and the upcoming TROLLS AMONG US (Luisenburg-Festspiele Wunsiedel) for Gisle and Øystein.

So, they trust the Linz team very much and asked us if we are interested in putting on the world premiere production of FANNY AND ALEXANDER. After a promising workshop in Norway in 2018, we decided to schedule the production for spring 2020 in Linz. After three fulfilling rehearsal weeks, Corona put an end to this production. Finally, two years later hopes are high to present the piece in its full beauty on the stage of Schauspielhaus Linz starting in April 2022.

BWW: Linz is not afraid of putting on Musicals with a more dramatic plot, like the recent production of TITANIC. Musical Theatre, especially in the German-Speaking area, is often seen as Entertainment only. Isn't it time to stop categorizing Art in U or E culture because art is art, isn't it?

ARNE BEEKER: In Linz, we stopped categorizing from the beginning of our work here in November 2012. We love Entertainment, and, honestly, think that theatre should always be entertaining, even when it's dramatic. At least since Sondheim, everybody should know that musicals can be about each subject in the world: revue dancers and mass murderers, showboats and sinking ships, Roman slaves and American assassins. And musicals can be funny and sad, sparkling and contemplative, pop, classic and modern opera-like. And we want to show them all!

BWW: Your excitement for FANNY AND ALEXANDER is overwhelming. Tell us what this show is about, what makes it unique, and what are audiences expecting?

ARNE BEEKER: FANNY AND ALEXANDER tell so many stories we learn something new in each rehearsal. It's about family, making theatre, growing up, love, sex-addiction, depression, bigoted religious beliefs, domestic abuse, Jewish mysticism set in a Swedish town at the beginning of the 20th century. Øystein and Gisle have transported the magic of Ingmar Bergman's film into a dense, sparkling musical score, arranged by Gisle himself for a classic orchestra in ultra-rich colors.

There are three children's parts, and especially the one of Alexander is very challenging. We didn't want to take a choirboy of Wiener Sängerknaben or the Florianer choir, as we knew that our Alexanders must be very natural and special, they must have some sort of charisma, and they must be able to manage the major singing and dialogue tasks. The two boys of the 2020 production had their voice break since then (and grew about half a meter), so we had to look for new boys. About one year ago, we tested many children and are very happy now with Gabriel Federspieler and Matthias Körber.

Another rare casting duty: For the role of Ismael, Gisle wanted a mezzo-soprano. But we did not want to put a woman in a trouser's role on stage, so we looked out for a young countertenor. With Alois Mühlbacher, we were able to cast one of Austria's most-promising countertenors for our musical, which he plays between a Matthäus-Passion in Los Angeles and some baroque music festivals in Magdeburg and Salzburg. It's amazing to see him integrated in our own musical Linz Musical Ensemble and the guest performers.

BWW: Linz is well known for outstanding musical productions for quite some time. Please give us some insights into your work. What is key to a successful season?

ARNE BEEKER: Oh, this is complicated. We started in 2012 with completely new construction at a state-subsidized theatre in Austria: We have had a fix ensemble of at first seven, now twelve first-class soloists, and have played four to six musicals per season on four stages of different sizes, from the BlackBox Lounge with 120 seats up to the Musiktheater with 1100 seats. We cooperate with the other four departments of Landestheater Linz (opera, dance, straight plays, and young theatre), with the opera choir and the extra choir, and with the renowned Bruckner Orchester Linz. So, we can do more things than a town's theatre normally is able to do.

But what's the key to a successful season, you ask... I think there is more than one key element: First of all, we just play musicals we would like to see on stage ourselves. I like to think, that audiences realize from what they see that people onstage and backstage love the shows they do. Secondly, a season's program must give audiences a good mixture of show and serious theatre, tradition and avant-garde, laughter and tears. And a third key element is that you must form an ensemble from versatile performers who like what they do, work hard for the common goal, and like to play big roles but small roles, too.

BWW: You are also well known for your translations for many shows past and present. Let us talk about the importance and responsibility when you begin with the transformation. How long does it take to dive into the plot and start the adaptation?

ARNE BEEKER: When I start to translate a musical, I have often seen the show before, or I know at least the plot or source material. Let's take an example, why not FANNY AND ALEXANDER? I saw the film many years ago. When Øystein and Gisle asked me to translate their work together with Elke Ranzinger (who's a translator from all Scandinavian languages, while my focus lies on the adaptation of lyrics), I watched the film again, I watched the long TV version of F&A, I read Bergman's script (which is not a typical film script, but more a novel) and some secondary literature about the making and interpretation of the film. Based on Elke Ranzinger's word-for-word translation of Øystein's musical libretto, I began to put German words to Gisle's music, trying to respect Øystein's rhythm and rhyme, of course. After about two months, I had completed a first draft of the lyrics. Then Elke and I had several rounds of heavy discussion about details of the translation. Elke can be very obsessed with detail, so much that I became aggressive from time to time. At the same time, I knew that the result would become much better after Elke has killed many of my darlings.

So how long does it take? Hard to tell, as I still sit in rehearsals, listen to the singers, and think: Wow, this is bad, I must come up with something new.

BWW: I have been asking creatives which story (book, play, or movie), in their opinion, should be told as a Musical. I got a lot of surprising and interesting answers. (To my surprise, I got the same answer more than once, from different parts of the world*) Have you got something in mind you are interested in, transforming it into a Musical?

ARNE BEEKER: I happen to have two concrete plot ideas, but I would be mad to tell you about them! Of course, I hope to sell those ideas to our favorite writing teams in order to see them as full-scale musicals on the Linz stage in a few years. So, I'm sorry, no answer from me on this question, as long as we haven't closed the adaptational rights...

BWW: Before you got into Musical Theatre, you have been a Physics Teacher and, in your dissertation, rumor has it, a quote from INTO THE WOODS can be found. Of course, we want to know which reference found its way into your dissertation and why?

ARNE BEEKER: Haha, with an easy Google search, you could have found the answer! The introduction of my thesis, of course, is preceded by the motto "Into the woods | It's time to go," etc. And after many pages of mathematical formulas and crazy nonlinear physics diagrams, the conclusion starts with: "No more questions, please | No more tests | Comes the day you ask, 'What for?' | Please, no more."

We are looking forward to FANNY AND ALEXANDER and all the shows you have in mind. Thank you for your time and your insights. No more questions! ( but only for now)