Costume Dramaturgies – the dramaturgy of things in performance

The focus of this artistic research is on how costume performs and on the dramaturgy that emerges when we have an untraditional starting point and centre of gravitation for a performance – namely a costume.  

The research is a continuation of the artistic research project Costume Agency (2018-2023) exploring the agency of costume and how costume can form a starting point for performance. Affiliated at Oslo National Academy of the Arts, the main researchers were Christina Lindgren and Sodja Lotker. 

Costume Agency reveled that costume is a valid and highly relevant starting point. All participants found methods unpacking the costumes potential and developed distinct and original performances. The costumes showed a wide span in diversity, and the performances likewise. The performances challenged traditional categories of form and genres. 

This current research aims to focus and deepen one dimension, namely the dramaturgy of costume in performance. By doing this, we believe that the relevance of the research and knowledge created, will be broader. According to Synne Behrndt and Cathy Turner, the term `dramaturgy´ applies to the general composition of a work, and could be described as its `composition´, `structure´, or `fabric´. We want to explore how to capture the composition, structure or fabric of a performance where things – the costume garments– are at the center of gravitation.

   
Photo: Johan Palme/SKH

As a continuation of Costume Agency, the ambition is to dive further in-depth into the dramaturgy of things. The study of how things have ‘things-power’ (Bennett 2010, 3) informs our research. Bennett writes that “the ethical responsibility of an individual human now resides in one’s response to the assemblages in which one finds oneself participating” (Bennett 2012, 37). Understanding dramaturgy as an assembly or composition of things, shifts the human perspective and empowers non-human things –like costume, props and light– in performance. Our claim is that dramaturgy of things is an under-researched area in the performing arts; in costume design as well as in dramaturgy. We believe that knowledge is important for all artists working within the performing arts. We want to contribute with our artistic research to this field. Our research questions are: How to describe the dramaturgy of things in performance? How can we as humans interact with the non-humans – the costume garments – and observe what meaning emerges? What do we attend to in the process of forming the dramaturgy? What do we attend to in the process of observering and describing the dramaturgy?

One main activity is the workshop, taking place August 18th till 22nd 2025, where we apply our method Costume Jam Sessions—experimenting and improvising with costumes. Costume Jam Sessions last 25 minutes and consists of a chain of single interactions with the costume. The method is an devising method, informed by the Costume Agency Workshop # 2 Devising Garment. During the sessions the participants explore, observe, and reflect on the dramaturgies that emerges. Dramaturgy is seen as both a tool in the proces of forming the performance, and as a tool to describe the form of the performance, as result. The participants reflect in writing, drawing, or other expressions, and discuss their observations on the dramaturgy. Each particiapant is encouraged to form their own expression for the dramaturgy that emerges, therefore this project embraces multi-perspectival and polyvocal expressions, with the ambition of gaining an joined, expanded understanding of dramaturgies of things in performance. The members of the core group will work on their individual research on dramaturgy, and discuss in groups their findings. To contextualize the research and challenge our perspectives we will draw on theories of new materialism, feminism, somatics, phenomenology, eco-scenography, among others. The results (video excerpts, texts and other forms of reflections) will be published on Research Catalogue, and shared in conferences nationally and internationally.

PARTICIPANTS Core research group: Christina Lindgren (NO) Project leader. Assistant Professor performing arts at Stockholm University of the Art. Project leader. Charlotte Østergaard (DK) Costume designer/textile artist, affiliated researcher at Lund University. Liv Kristin Holmberg (NO) Musician/ performance artists and researcher, based in Berlin. Sodja Lotker (CZ) Dramaturg, course leader Master Course in Alternative and puppet theatre DAMU, Prague. Co-researcher of Costume Agency. Sally Dean (UK/ USA) Costume designer, dancer and choreographer, currently PhD-candidate in costume design at Oslo National Academy of the Arts. Participants of the workshop Costume dramaturgies, the dramaturgy of things in performance, Stockholm University of the Arts August 18th till 22nd 2025, in addition to the core group: Alejandro Bonnet (SE/FR) Department of Mine Acting, Stockholm University of the Arts Franziska Bork Petersen (DK) Department of Arts and Cultural Studies. Copenhagen University Ingvild Rømo Grande (NO) PhD fellow, Department of Art and Media Studies. Norwegian University of Science and Technology Josephine Rydberg (SE) PhD fellow. Department of Film & Media, Stockholm University of the Arts Natálie Rajnisová (CZ) PhD fellow. The Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Susan Marshall (IT/UK) Costume designer. Fashion Institute of Technology in Milano Thomas Brennan (US/SE) Department of Film and Media, Stockholm University of the Arts Tove Sahlin (SE) Department of Mine Acting, Stockholm University of the Arts Åsa Johannisson (SE) Department of Mine Acting, Stockholm University of the Arts

Stockholm University of the Arts

2025-2026

• Costume Agency Artistic Research project (2018-2023) 
• Critical Costume 2020 Conference and Exhibition  
• The workshop august 2025