Jonna van den Berg

1.         How and when did you start working at Dutch National Opera & Ballet?
 
I joined Dutch National Opera & Ballet in March 2021 as AVM Producer. At this time, we were still partly in lockdown, and so most of our content had to be produced for online, creating extra pressure for our department. I was then hired to handle the technical coordination of that. Prior to that, I worked mainly as a freelancer in film and TV production for eight years, as a (post) production manager. In March 2023, I was promoted to Head of the Audio, Video and Media department.

2.         What makes your craft / job so special within DNO&B and what makes it so special to yourself?
 
From the outset, the AVM department was focused primarily on audio. In the meantime, our department has grown considerably and we have expanded our technical knowledge of all things audio and video, and thereby our in-house capabilities. The variety within the department, and the specific skillset everyone in my team brings with them, makes for a very unique working environment. At the same time, the work we do can be quite invisible because it does not all revolve around the stage, and the challenge for me is to bring what we do more to the foreground.

3.         What is your favorite production seen from your craft’s / job’s perspective? Do you have any special memories of that production?
 
For me personally, Don Giovanni will always be special. This was the first opera I had ever seen, when I shadowed one of the stage managers at Dutch National Opera & Ballet in 2006, and the overture will always be one of my favourites. From a craft perspective, I have very fond memories of Tosca. This was one of my first performances that involved everything - live sound support, a trailer and a behind-the-scenes video, as well as a multi-camera DVD registration and finally a live radio broadcast. All very different trades, clearly showing what my department is capable of.