NEW KING AND GUDRUN IN THE PLAY ABOUT SAINT OLAF!
Stiklestad National Cultural Center (SNK) and the Arven Museums are pleased to announce that Morten Svartveit and Natalie Bjerke Roland will play King Olav Haraldsson and Gudrun in the Play of Saint Olav 2026.
Nina Wester, artistic director, has the following comments about the two newcomers:
“I am very happy that we have managed to land two very strong actors for the lead roles in next year's play. Morten Svartveit has distinguished himself in recent years with roles in both film and television, and Natalie Roland Bjerke has had success on the theatre stage, including as the lead in Evita at Oslo Nye Teater. Now they are playing together in the play Europavisjonar at Det Norske Teatret, where Morten takes on the role of Zelenskij and Natalie as Trump. So you could say that there will be a kind of summit at Stiklestad this summer.”
Maren Bjorseth, director, expresses the following about his assessment of Gudrun and the King:
"The first person I thought of as Gudrun was Natalie Bjerke Roland. She has a stage presence that is completely unique and her voice is magical. For the 2026 play, she will be important in giving life to a vulnerable, but also powerful Gudrun. Morten Svartveit has a natural authority and openness that will be important in portraying the king. Both of these have an openness, curiosity, security and warmth that will be important for the 2026 play."
I am incredibly looking forward to bringing these two, and many more, to Stiklestad this summer. Together with the actors at Stiklestad, our team wants to focus on the people and the encounters between them.”
"We warmly welcome Morten Svartveit and Natalie Roland to Stiklestad and look forward to seeing them on the amphitheater stage this summer," says Ingegerd Eggen, museum director at Stiklestad National Cultural Center. "Audiences visiting the Play of Saint Olav in 2026 can enjoy both artistic experiences and increased seating comfort as the old wooden benches will now be replaced with chairs in the Stiklestad amphitheater," adds Eggen.
The play about Saint Olav will be performed on July 25, 26, 28 and 29, 2026. The play is part of the Olsokdagene in Stiklestad, which is held July 24-29. It has previously been announced that Bjørn Eidsvåg will play the opening concert for the festival.
Morten Svartveit is known from both TV, film and theater.
He has been employed at the Norwegian Theatre since 2013, and has acted in films and TV series such as Porn, Heimebane, The Boys on the Roof, Love, The Gold Transport and others.
“It is a great honor to be asked to play the role of king at Stiklestad this summer.
"It will be an exciting task that I am looking forward to taking on, together with talented colleagues, a fantastic artistic team, and not least all the dedicated volunteers on and around the game who will be involved in making this a complete experience," says Morten.
Photo: Øyvind Malum/SNK
Natalie Bjerke Roland is a musical artist from the Oslo Academy of Music Theatre (2015-2018). She made her acting debut in 2018 in The Nutcracker at Trøndelag Teater. From 2023 she was associated with Oslo Nye Teater, and had her big breakthrough on the theater stage as the title role in Evita. Natalie has also had several roles on the TV screen, including the main role of Ada in the TV2 series Fling (2023). In the NRK series Hybris (2023) she played the role of Lilja, and in Rådebank (2021) she played Maria.
Natalie says the following about the Gudrun role: "It is incredibly exciting to make my acting debut as Gudrun in The Play of Saint Olav. I am looking forward to diving into a work that revolves around such a central event in Norwegian history. In addition, it will be an exciting and educational challenge, both in terms of singing and acting skills. I am really looking forward to new meetings and spending the summer in pleasant Trøndelag!"
Photo: Øyvind Malum/SNK