Located in the UK
Located in the USA
Located in Europe
- Peter Bruun
Halløj i firmaet (2012)
- Edition Wilhelm Hansen Copenhagen (World)
Libretto: Jesper Bræstrup Karlsen
- 1111/1000/perc/acn/vn.va.vc
- S, Ms, T, Bar, B
- 1 hr 45 min
- Jesper Bræstrup Karlsen
Programme Note
About ON THE JOB
ON THE JOB is about quite ordinary people at work. With an office as the setting, in the midst of a raging financial crisis, they fight the battles, large and small, of working life and existence in general. While they do so, they give a running commentary on their own and the others’ actions, emotions and motives in direct contact with the audience, who are also intimately present in the office all the time. In other words the characters are under direct pressure from the audience. We are thus offered comic and intimate insights into our characters: we know these people – we are these people.
It may be hard to see it – for at first glance everything looks very civilized – but this opera is about power in all its shades. Operas are often about power in national and international politics, but exactly the same mechanisms come to expression in the many ordinary everyday situations “at the office”. Here, every day, each person fights a battle of life and death; a battle for love, for sex, recognition, wealth, security, for the power to dominate others, for survival and reproduction. In our office the characters are social animals: the hierarchy of the flock, for better or for worse, defines who they are and not least who they are allowed to be – in themselves and in the group. The characters ARE their jobs, and in working life the primal human emotions and relations are most strongly expressed as – for example – envy, sexism, racism, pettiness, political differences, self-sacrifice, love, lechery, ordinary stupidity and all the others – and then in the end it is all about being your own commodity, about being dependent on selling your labour in a capitalist society.
On the Job – synopsis
Monday.
We are in an open-plan office at Blue Sky, a firm that supplies toiletries. It is Monday and the working week threatens. It has been a hard weekend for some, but the manager of the office, Claus Joachim Otto Svendsen Junior, introduces the office staff to the audience. Claus himself thinks he is God’s gift to the business world. The two salesmen, Bjarne and Kristoffer, begin to argue, and Kristoffer goes over to Tina at Reception. Kristoffer is rather interested in Tina and invites her for a beer after work. But since Tina cannot go, Kristoffer vents his frustration on Bjarne by clipping his jacket to an office chair.
Tuesday.
The bookkeeper Vera tells the audience about her passion for tango and goes off to a meeting at Head Office. Kristoffer meets Tina and shows her that he has put a big slimy fish in Claus’s desk drawer. When Claus arrives he demands compensation for his spoiled jacket from the day before and gets it from Kristoffer. But soon Claus discovers the fish in the drawer, and with this in his hand he chases Kristoffer all over the office. Amidst the tumult Lene Burnett, an executive manager from Head Office, arrives. To Claus, Lene Burnett reveals that the financial crisis requires the group to close offices, that cuts are planned and that it could be this office that closes unless their results improve very soon. Right away, the rumour spreads, and Claus calls a staff meeting where he promises everyone that there will be no question of closing their particular office. To save his own skin and perhaps get a
promotion, Bjarne phones Lene Burnett and tells her about Claus.
Wednesday.
Tina has problems with her boyfriend. To improve the performance of the office Claus now summons them for a course on “How I can optimize my working potential”, and soon they all have to go around making noises like their favourite animals. Since they have to develop themselves and talk about their dreams, Tina says that she would like to go to university. Kristoffer says he wants to be a writer, but he also lets slip that he dreams about Tina. She has to tell him that she already has a boyfriend. Kristoffer has to leave the course. When Bjarne, who is in the Home Guard and has to go on night manoeuvres, changes into his uniform, Kristoffer grabs the chance to pour something in his water-bottle. The course has
come apart at the seams, and Claus sits quietly playing an advertising jingle for Blue
Sky.
Thursday.
Very early, Bjarne arrives back from his night exercises desperate to relieve himself and goes straight to the toilet. Kristoffer and Tina arrive and Kristoffer apologizes for the day before and says he has poured a laxative in Claus’s water-bottle. Now Lene Burnett calls and is furious that Claus has leaked the plan for the cuts. Claus is given a last chance to improve himself and the office. Claus realizes that it is Bjarne who has called Lene and talked behind his back. Claus locates Bjarne on the hidden camera that he has installed illegally in the toilets. Now an utterly devastated Bjarne comes out of the toilet and understands that it was Kristoffer who had poured laxative in his water-bottle. He threatens to shoot Kristoffer, but doesn’t have time before he has to run for the toilet again. A shocked Kristoffer declares his
great love for Tina, but is told that Tina and her boyfriend have decided to get married.
Now Claus reveals that Bjarne has told tales about him to Lene Burnett. Bjarne begs and pleads not to be fired, and gains sympathy, especially from the women, so Claus cannot fire him.
Friday.
A little Friday party is in progress. Claus is not there, he is at a meeting at Head Office. Kristoffer and Bjarne make peace, and Vera plucks up courage and dances with Bjarne. Kristoffer and Tina try to hold each other to their dreams of education and writing.
Now Claus comes back and can tell them that they are all fired. But not himself. Since he owns shares in the firm the management has had no choice but to promote him. He is happy, the others are furious and sad, but also feel free to some extent. Claus tries to get the party going again. Tina goes home, but comes back again shortly afterwards: she has made a decision to start a relationship with Kristoffer. They all sing a song about their work.
CHARACTERS
CLAUS JOACHIM OTTO SVENDSEN JR.
C. 40. Head of this department of Blue Sky Toilet Articles. Claus inherited his father’s toiletry firm, Svendsen Toilet, and when they were taken over by Blue Sky, Claus followed with them. Claus think he is the world’s best boss.
BJARNE HANS NIKOLAISEN
45, key account manager (salesman) and team leader for the department. Bjarne is very active in the Home Guard and believes in calm, order and diligence.
KRISTOFFER SELLIK
33, key account manager (salesman). Kristoffer started as an office trainee in the old firm, Svendsen Toilet, but has quietly and steadily drifted along into Blue Sky. He is bored and dreams of a different life. Rather fancies Tina.
VERA SYNNE KOLMOEN
50, accountant (bookkeeper), Norwegian, asthmatic. Vera loves tango and spends most of her leisure time dancing, while dreaming of murky Argentinean harbour dives and swarthy men with glowing eyes.
TINA ANDERSEN
31, receptionist. In reality it is Tina who makes sure the office functions, and she knows it. She does not feel especially appreciated in her work. Tina thinks Kristoffer is fun, but she has a boyfriend.
LENE BURNETT
38, supervisor, executive manager. From this city, but educated in London, where she also married money as a young woman. A partner in Blue Sky and a hard-nosed career woman. May have had a relationship with Claus.
Synopsis written by Jesper B. Karlsen.
ON THE JOB is about quite ordinary people at work. With an office as the setting, in the midst of a raging financial crisis, they fight the battles, large and small, of working life and existence in general. While they do so, they give a running commentary on their own and the others’ actions, emotions and motives in direct contact with the audience, who are also intimately present in the office all the time. In other words the characters are under direct pressure from the audience. We are thus offered comic and intimate insights into our characters: we know these people – we are these people.
It may be hard to see it – for at first glance everything looks very civilized – but this opera is about power in all its shades. Operas are often about power in national and international politics, but exactly the same mechanisms come to expression in the many ordinary everyday situations “at the office”. Here, every day, each person fights a battle of life and death; a battle for love, for sex, recognition, wealth, security, for the power to dominate others, for survival and reproduction. In our office the characters are social animals: the hierarchy of the flock, for better or for worse, defines who they are and not least who they are allowed to be – in themselves and in the group. The characters ARE their jobs, and in working life the primal human emotions and relations are most strongly expressed as – for example – envy, sexism, racism, pettiness, political differences, self-sacrifice, love, lechery, ordinary stupidity and all the others – and then in the end it is all about being your own commodity, about being dependent on selling your labour in a capitalist society.
On the Job – synopsis
Monday.
We are in an open-plan office at Blue Sky, a firm that supplies toiletries. It is Monday and the working week threatens. It has been a hard weekend for some, but the manager of the office, Claus Joachim Otto Svendsen Junior, introduces the office staff to the audience. Claus himself thinks he is God’s gift to the business world. The two salesmen, Bjarne and Kristoffer, begin to argue, and Kristoffer goes over to Tina at Reception. Kristoffer is rather interested in Tina and invites her for a beer after work. But since Tina cannot go, Kristoffer vents his frustration on Bjarne by clipping his jacket to an office chair.
Tuesday.
The bookkeeper Vera tells the audience about her passion for tango and goes off to a meeting at Head Office. Kristoffer meets Tina and shows her that he has put a big slimy fish in Claus’s desk drawer. When Claus arrives he demands compensation for his spoiled jacket from the day before and gets it from Kristoffer. But soon Claus discovers the fish in the drawer, and with this in his hand he chases Kristoffer all over the office. Amidst the tumult Lene Burnett, an executive manager from Head Office, arrives. To Claus, Lene Burnett reveals that the financial crisis requires the group to close offices, that cuts are planned and that it could be this office that closes unless their results improve very soon. Right away, the rumour spreads, and Claus calls a staff meeting where he promises everyone that there will be no question of closing their particular office. To save his own skin and perhaps get a
promotion, Bjarne phones Lene Burnett and tells her about Claus.
Wednesday.
Tina has problems with her boyfriend. To improve the performance of the office Claus now summons them for a course on “How I can optimize my working potential”, and soon they all have to go around making noises like their favourite animals. Since they have to develop themselves and talk about their dreams, Tina says that she would like to go to university. Kristoffer says he wants to be a writer, but he also lets slip that he dreams about Tina. She has to tell him that she already has a boyfriend. Kristoffer has to leave the course. When Bjarne, who is in the Home Guard and has to go on night manoeuvres, changes into his uniform, Kristoffer grabs the chance to pour something in his water-bottle. The course has
come apart at the seams, and Claus sits quietly playing an advertising jingle for Blue
Sky.
Thursday.
Very early, Bjarne arrives back from his night exercises desperate to relieve himself and goes straight to the toilet. Kristoffer and Tina arrive and Kristoffer apologizes for the day before and says he has poured a laxative in Claus’s water-bottle. Now Lene Burnett calls and is furious that Claus has leaked the plan for the cuts. Claus is given a last chance to improve himself and the office. Claus realizes that it is Bjarne who has called Lene and talked behind his back. Claus locates Bjarne on the hidden camera that he has installed illegally in the toilets. Now an utterly devastated Bjarne comes out of the toilet and understands that it was Kristoffer who had poured laxative in his water-bottle. He threatens to shoot Kristoffer, but doesn’t have time before he has to run for the toilet again. A shocked Kristoffer declares his
great love for Tina, but is told that Tina and her boyfriend have decided to get married.
Now Claus reveals that Bjarne has told tales about him to Lene Burnett. Bjarne begs and pleads not to be fired, and gains sympathy, especially from the women, so Claus cannot fire him.
Friday.
A little Friday party is in progress. Claus is not there, he is at a meeting at Head Office. Kristoffer and Bjarne make peace, and Vera plucks up courage and dances with Bjarne. Kristoffer and Tina try to hold each other to their dreams of education and writing.
Now Claus comes back and can tell them that they are all fired. But not himself. Since he owns shares in the firm the management has had no choice but to promote him. He is happy, the others are furious and sad, but also feel free to some extent. Claus tries to get the party going again. Tina goes home, but comes back again shortly afterwards: she has made a decision to start a relationship with Kristoffer. They all sing a song about their work.
CHARACTERS
CLAUS JOACHIM OTTO SVENDSEN JR.
C. 40. Head of this department of Blue Sky Toilet Articles. Claus inherited his father’s toiletry firm, Svendsen Toilet, and when they were taken over by Blue Sky, Claus followed with them. Claus think he is the world’s best boss.
BJARNE HANS NIKOLAISEN
45, key account manager (salesman) and team leader for the department. Bjarne is very active in the Home Guard and believes in calm, order and diligence.
KRISTOFFER SELLIK
33, key account manager (salesman). Kristoffer started as an office trainee in the old firm, Svendsen Toilet, but has quietly and steadily drifted along into Blue Sky. He is bored and dreams of a different life. Rather fancies Tina.
VERA SYNNE KOLMOEN
50, accountant (bookkeeper), Norwegian, asthmatic. Vera loves tango and spends most of her leisure time dancing, while dreaming of murky Argentinean harbour dives and swarthy men with glowing eyes.
TINA ANDERSEN
31, receptionist. In reality it is Tina who makes sure the office functions, and she knows it. She does not feel especially appreciated in her work. Tina thinks Kristoffer is fun, but she has a boyfriend.
LENE BURNETT
38, supervisor, executive manager. From this city, but educated in London, where she also married money as a young woman. A partner in Blue Sky and a hard-nosed career woman. May have had a relationship with Claus.
Synopsis written by Jesper B. Karlsen.