Associations
Norsk teater- og orkesterforening (The Norwegian Association of Theatres and Orchestras, NTO) serves both as an employers’ organization and as a professional support network for Norwegian theatres and orchestras. In 2006, its membership consists of 29 different theatres, including the Black Box Theatre in Oslo and the BIT Teatergarasjen (Bergen International Theatre Garage) in Bergen as well as nine orchestras. The Danse- og Teatersentrum (National Association for Performing Arts, DTS) is an organization dedicated to promoting the interests of the independent dance and performing arts companies. In 2006 membership of the DTS comprises 78 groups and companies. The two organizations share office premises (Storgt.10B, NO-0155 Oslo), and jointly publish a web-based news service about the performing arts (www.scenekunst.no, currently in Norwegian only).
Norsk Skuespillerforbund (The Norwegian Actors' Equity Association) is an independent organization whose purpose is to protect the artistic, judicial and financial interests of actors in Norway. Founded in 1898, the association is one of the world’s oldest trade unions for actors and the only national association in Norway to represent professional actors within theatre, film, television, radio and related fields of work.
Norske Dansekunstnere (Norwegian Dancers) is an association for dancers, choreographers and educationists, while the Senter for Dansekunst (Norwegian Center for the Art of Dance) promotes the art of dance, provides information to the media and the public and serves as a centre for expertise and advisory services.
Norske Dramatikeres Forbund (The Norwegian Playwrights’ Association) is an independent writers’ organization whose purpose is to protect the artistic and financial interests of Norwegian playwrights and to promote contemporary Norwegian drama. Founded in 1938, the association’s membership currently encompasses approximately 230 individuals who write for stage, screen, radio and television.
Drama schools
At present there are two state institutions that train actors: the National Academy of Dramatic Art and the Norwegian Theatre Academy in Fredrikstad.
The National Academy of Dramatic Art is part of the Oslo National Academy of the Arts. The Norwegian Theatre Academy in Fredrikstad is part of Østfold University College.
The National Academy of Dramatic Art offers a three-year Bachelor’s course in acting, and normally accepts 10 new students a year. Prospective students are assessed on the basis of a three-part audition that is arranged between February and June. Those who are accepted start their studies the following August.
The academy also offers a three-year Bachelor’s course in stage management, and a subsequent one-year course in directing. Three new students are accepted every third year after an entrance examination. The next round will be in 2008.
A new three-year Bachelor’s course in scenography started in the autumn of 2005. This course is offered in collaboration between the Academy in Oslo and the Norwegian Film School at Lillehammer University College.
The Norwegian Theatre Academy offers a three-year Bachelor’s course in visual and physical theatre. The academy has two main lines of study: one for scenographers and one for actors. Applications are received from many different countries, and half the academy’s present students are from abroad.
The private drama school Nordisk Institutt for Scene og Studio (NISS) offers professional training for actors and courses in sound and lighting. The private International Theatre Academy Norway (TITAN) offers courses in writing, directing, producing and acting. TITAN has been approved by the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education, and from the autumn of 2006, it will offer two-year courses.