ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE

Orsoq, seal blubber, is a material charged with a wide range of historical, cultural, political, and social meanings – themes that Jessie Kleemann has explored since 2005 in a series of performances. These works examine the dual colonial gaze on blubber as both a seductive commodity and a repulsive food source. Kleemann also uses the blubber as an image of the body’s physicality, strength, and decay.

The work has mutated and unfolded in many different forms—through performance, words, numbers, and places—so the version presented at the Toaster Performance Biennial at Husets Teater will be a new iteration.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

For three decades, Jessie Kleemann (GL/DK) has been a prominent figure on the contemporary art scene with her original approach to video art, experimental theatre, and performance art. Her work is rooted in the complex relationships between Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland, where she was born and raised, and Denmark, where she lives today. In her practice, she incorporates objects from traditional Inuit culture, from colonial history, and from contemporary Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland. Kleemann challenges stereotypes and the notion of an unspoiled Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland. In the autumn of 2023, she had her first major solo exhibition at a Danish museum, Statens Museum for Kunst (SMK), where works spanning her entire artistic practice were presented.

TOASTER PERFORMANCE BIENNALE

In April 2026, Toaster presents Denmark’s first international performance biennale, taking place across Den Frie and Husets Teater.

The biennale offers a current portrait of the performance field within both visual art and performing arts – and the many intersections between them – which are rapidly evolving nationally as well as internationally. The focus is state of the art: taking the temperature of the field right now.

Experience more than 20 performances, including 10 entirely new works created specifically for the biennial. The artists range from established performance practitioners to emerging talents – sometimes within the same work.

The programme encompasses works rooted in dance, text, costume, sound, light, music, and space. Performance is here and now – it is the time we live in, and the time we choose to spend together.