Initiated by the theatre company eKleKtisK teaterproduKtion, The Gorey Experiment/ Gorey på tværs took its name after the cartoonist Edward Gorey and an idea for a performance project. Four artists wanted to collaborate on the development of their idea, using an experiment as a springboard. The four artists were dramaturg Sandra Buch, choreographer Dorte Petersen, set designer Nicolai Hart Hansen, and composer Czeslaw Mozil. They wanted to explore the artistic possibilities of a non-hierarchical and interdisciplinary collaboration. They were interested in finding out what tools they needed to explore each art form’s characteristics and how they can intermingle in a democratic way. Facilitated by Barbara Simonsen from Laboratoriet, the experiment tested three models focusing on non-hierarchical, practical cooperation but – equally important – had the purpose of making visible the interplay between the four different art forms, and the contribution made by each to the common product. This led to reflections on the essentials of the different art forms, the ability of the individual artist to cooperate, “dramaturgy” as a form of art, and the advantages and disadvantages of working democratically and without a director.