The Hedda Festival : Performing arts and democracy building

Jan Fredrik Hovden

Jan Fredrik Hovden is a sociologist, raised in Hovdebygda in Sunnmøre.

His academic work mostly deals with how social inequality – and especially social class distinctions – characterizes Norwegian social conditions – and vice versa.

Jan Fredrik has studied internal differences in social elites (including Norwegian art elites, political and administrative elites and journalists), social inequality in recruitment to important areas of society through secondary school and the higher education system, and the same inequality in the population's relationship to, use of and participation in society through media, culture and politics.

He has also studied changes in students' cultural lifestyles over more than twenty years, the Scandinavian immigration debate since 1970, conducted comparative studies of journalists around the world through participation in the Worlds of Journalism project, studied Nordic journalism students' aspirations and role understanding, discussed the concept of quality in the arts field, studied cultural journalists and created prosopographies of foreign journalists, mapped the social structure of dreams, and more.

Nasra Ali Omar

Nasra Ali Omar is a musician and cultural leader, and the new general manager of Transcultural Arts Productions (TrAP).

She has worked in the organization since October last year, leading a three-year pilot project at TrAP Tromsø, where she has been a key driver for cultural diversity, collaboration and new art projects.

Nasra is a board member of Music Norway, helped establish Tromsø World Festival, and sits on the Arts Council as head of the professional committee for recording and publishing support for music. She also has extensive experience as a project manager and arts and culture producer from the Northern Norway Festival and Tromsø International Film Festival.

Nasra herself says that she chose cultural administration and bureaucracy over the practitioner path in order to contribute to the work of influencing change in structures that stand in the way of participation and access to cultural arenas.

As inspiration and backdrop for her commitment, she uses her own experiences as a performing artist, growing up in Northern Norway and the Arctic, and living in a refugee family interested in culture.

Mine Nilay Yalcin

Mine Nilay Yalcin is a Norwegian/Turkish director, playwright and performer based in Oslo.

Throughout her artistic career, Mine has focused on class struggle, cultural class struggle, and diversity. She has been concerned that everyone should have access to performing arts and that everyone must be represented.

Mine has worked both at institutions, in the independent performing arts field with their own projects, and taught at the NBX theatre school for a number of years.

In 2021, Mine graduated with a master's degree from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts with the project "Sirkus Grønland" and the master's thesis "With the outside as a starting point" - a title that both points to standing outside the Norwegian performing arts field, and to using public space, the street, to be able to express herself freely.

In 2018, Mine began street theater as a method to be able to work more freely with her own art form and to reach a different performing arts audience than those who usually go to the theater.

Her first street production was called "Asfaltpuls – paranoia like hell at sunset", a street performance that toured the "street corners" of Oslo and worked to reach young people who were stigmatized by the Norwegian media. The performance is still touring.

In 2022, Mine wrote and directed the performance "BLIKK", which premiered at Kloden theatre. BLIKK is about staring, hidden bullying, hanging out and violence against women.

Mine's latest street project is called "Sirkus Grønland", a street performance about one of the most diverse areas in Oslo.

Gazi Ozcan

Gazi Özcan is the head of department at the Intercultural Museum in Oslo. He is a historian of religion and is responsible for operations and programs, knowledge development, exhibitions, teaching, tours and other types of outreach at the museum.

Gazi is also a board member of the International Council of Museums Norway (ICOM).

Mishell Akhtar Shakar

Mishell Akhtar Shakar is the learning environment coordinator at Kuben High School, chairman of the board of Minotenk and board member of Kloden theater.

With a background in pedagogy, child welfare pedagogy and social work, Mishell has specialized in themes within child welfare institutions and school environments. She has worked closely with vulnerable children and young people since 2001.

Mishell works to counter exclusion among young people, give a powerful voice to vulnerable groups, build resilience and minimize the risk of radicalization. She provides guidance, implements social programs and provides psychosocial support to young individuals in vulnerable life situations.