The Birkebeiner Game
The Birkebeiner Game was a Norwegian winter play that was performed in February. It was performed for the first time in 2017. It was performed at the farm Mesna near Lillehammer and Sjusjøen. The Birkebeiner Game was a historical play. The year is 1205, and Norway is ravaged by civil war. On one side are the poor Birkebeiners, and on the other side are the baglers, who are supported by the Danes and the rich papacy. When the Birkebeiner king Håkon Sverresson dies, many believe that the bloodlines in the royal line have been broken, that there is no new heir. But the king has an illegitimate son, Håkon Håkonsson, who could be the next king of the Birkebeiners. After keeping the boy hidden on the farm Folkenborg in Østfold for almost two years, his mother Inga from Varteig and her supporters want to smuggle him out and take him to Nidaros, to claim Norway's throne for the Birkebeiners. But the road to Nidaros goes through Opplandet, where the baglers control several areas. On Christmas Eve 1205, they arrive in Hamar. And this is where the play's story begins. The farm Mesna, today's playing ground, is located in the area where the King's son was transported from Hamar and over the mountains to Østerdalen.
The plot of the Birkebeiner game
It's Christmas Eve. But on a forest road somewhere in Opplandet, two horsemen come galloping, followed by a sleigh. In the sleigh sits Inga from Varteig, fleeing from the baglers. With her she has her child, little Håkon Håkonsson – illegitimate child and only descendant of King Håkon Sverreson, grandson of King Sverre, and the Birkebeiners' only hope in the battle for the throne of Norway. They are on the run from Borg, where Inga's family, the Vartings, have joined forces with the baglers and Bishop Ivar Skjalge. The riders are the Birkebeiners Skjervald Skrukka and Erlend from Husabø. With them in the sleigh they have the faithful Thron priest, who has taken care of the royal child while Inga had to hide from her family. They hope to find shelter on one of the Birkebeiners' farms nearby.
At the farm of the governors Fridrek Slafse and Gjavald Gaute, the refugees are received. When it becomes clear who the child is, Fridrek and Gjavald agree to hide them until the boy can be taken to the Birkebeiners' headquarters in Nidaros and claim the throne. Skjervald Skrukka is reunited with his wife Ylva, who is starting to have enough of Skjervald's Birkebeiner mission. She has already lost one man in the civil war – Skjervald's brother Ståle. Suddenly, two Birkebeiner soldiers appear: the warrior Torstein Skjevla, and with him he has Ståle, who everyone thought was dead. Eventually, Ståle realizes that Ylva has remarried. There have been big changes on the farm...
The Birkebeiner Game will be held in 2027
After a break of several years, the Birkebeiner play is back, in one of the country's largest outdoor arenas for theatre. This is an action-packed winter drama for the whole family. The place is Mjøsparken in Brumunddal.
Read more about the Birkebeiner Game
Thank you for borrowing the photos taken by photographer Ian Brodie
