Maren E. Bjørseth becomes the new director for The Play about Saint Olav

We have high ambitions for the development of the game heritage at Stiklestad towards the national jubilee in 2030. It is therefore a great pleasure to announce that Maren E. Bjørseth will take over the director's chair for the Game of St. Olav in 2026!

Maren E. Bjørseth is a graduate of the Royal Academy of the Arts in the Netherlands. In 2012, she received the Ton Lutz Award for best direction for her graduation performance Een poppenhuis (A Doll's House). She has worked in the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. In Norway, she has worked at Det Norske Teatret, the Nationaltheatret and Trøndelag Teater, among others. She was nominated for the Hedda Award for best direction in both 2021 and 2025. In the period 2022-2025, she directed the Elden music theatre in Røros. In addition to her work as a director, she is the artistic director of the Norwegian Drama Festival.

Maren E. Bjørseth and Nina Wester. 

Artistic director Nina Wester is proud to share the big news: "I am very happy that Maren has agreed to direct the Play about St. Olav in 2026. She is one of the country's most exciting and innovative directors. In addition, she has experience with plays after having directed Elden several times, and knows what such a format requires. It is also great to be able to present a director who grew up in Trøndelag and knows the play from her time on the drama line at Inderøya. I am very much looking forward to collaborating with Maren and the artistic team she will be joining."

Bjørseth himself says the following: "It is with great awe and a mixture of joy and fear that I have agreed to direct the play. I look forward to getting to know all the actors, both on and off stage. The meeting between professionals and volunteers is always incredibly rewarding, and has been very important for my own development from a young age. I am really looking forward to becoming part of the gang at Stiklestad and hope we can create a fantastic performance together."

Director of the Arven Museums, Heidi Anett Øvergård Beistad, is looking forward to the collaboration with Bjørseth: "Part of the power of the play is that it always develops in the encounter with new artistic perspectives. I am really looking forward to getting to know and experiencing Maren's version of The Play about St. Olav."

SNK will return to the details of who will be part of Bjørseth's artistic team. However, we can already reveal that Torodd Wigum will continue as musical director.