Cv: Director and Adaptation:

 

Romeo and Juliet by W. Shakespeare (co-director with Agnar Jón Egilsson);

Reykjavik City Theatre, Young Vic London, The Playhouse (West End, Recklinghausen, Stavanger, Tampere, Gdansk...

 

Woyzeck by George Buchner;

Barbican Theatre London, Reykjavik City Theatre, Het Muziktheater Amsterdam, Ludwigshafen Germany, Salamanca Spain...

 

Metamophosis by Franz Kafka (co-directed and adapted with David Farr);

Lyric Hammersmith London, National Theatre of Iceland...

 

Love the Musical (co-written with Vikingur Kristjánsson);

Reykjavik City Theatre, S-Korea (March 08), Lyric Hammersmith (May 08)...

 

Gisli debuted as a director with his circus-inspired version of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. An exuberant production punctuated by back flips, somersaults, trapeze work and aerial dexterity, it premiered at the Reykjavik City Theatre in November 2002, winning two prestigious Icelandic Theatre Awards the following year.

David Lan, artistic director at the Young Vic spotted it’s uniqueness and brought it to the legendary Young Vic Theatre in London in October 2003, winning rave reviews from the English press.

 

In 2004 it transferred to the Playhouse in London’s West End, where critics and audiences alike continued to shower it with accolades.

 

Romeo and Juliet has been performed in Germany, Norway, Finland and Poland.

In October 2005, a new version of Georg Buchner’s Woyzeck, adapted and directed by Gisli, with an original score and lyrics by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, opened at London’s Barbican Theatre as part of their Young Genius series. The water-themed production left critics gasping for superlatives and was named theatre show of the year by Time Out magazine.

 

In November 2006 he co-adapted, directed and played the part of Gregor Samsa in a new version of Kafka’s Metamorphosis at the Lyric Theatre in London’s Hammersmith. Again collaborating with Nick Cave and Warren Ellis who scored the music for the production. Again the critics hailed the production.
Amongst others The Guardian gave it full five stars and The Daily Telegraph called it an 85 minute masterpiece. The production was nominated for an Evening Standard Award.

Love the Musical is Gisli´s fourth production as a director. It is an original idea from Gisli, written by himself and Vikingur Kristjansson.

The production is Reykjavik’s biggest box office hit at the moment having received excellent media and audience reviews.

Gisli is an Associate Director of the Young Vic Theatre.

Cv: Actor
Gísli Örn Gardarsson was born in Iceland, but grew up in Oslo.

 

He graduated from the Academy of Arts in Reykjavik in 2001. Gísli is a co-founder of Vesturport,

 

Gísli has played Romeo in "Romeo and Juliet" at the Young Vic Theatre in London and in the West End.

 

He played Walser (the male lead) in Knee High's critically  acclaimed adaptation of Angela Carter's novel, "Nights At The Circus", which  was staged in London and elsewhere in England.

 

He played the part of Gregor Samsa in Kafka's "Metamorphosis" at the Lyric Theatre in London's Hammersmith.

 

He played the part of Conductor 71 in Knee High´s "A Matter of Life and Death" at the National Theatre in London.

 

SELECTED FILMS:

- MANHUNT , Tv series ( MANNAVEIÐAR), 2007 Björn Brynjólfsson
- COUNTRY WEDDING (Sumarbrúðkaup), 2007 Valdís Óskarsdóttir
- PARENTS (FORELDRAR), 2007 Ragnar Bragason (Iceland)
- CHILDREN (BÖRN), 2006 Ragnar Bragason (Iceland)
- BEOWULF & GRENDEL, 2005 Sturla Gunnarsson (Canada/Iceland/UK)
- DRAMARAMA (VILLILJÓS), 2001Ragnar Bragason, Dagur Kári (Iceland)