Ayn Rand was haunting Dutch theatre as early as 2006.

Ivo van Hove has not only a play made based on Ayn Roland's novel of ideas The Fountainhead. In 2006, the artistic director of Toneelgroep Amsterdam even wanted to base a whole new design of the theatre system on it. Eight years later, we can see that only the negative aspects of Van Hove's vision have been realised.

"The book is a whirlwind and won't let you go. It juxtaposes the thinking of the artist with that of the opportunist. And then I thought, let me be Howard Roark once. Let that be today. How would Howard Roark the man who is an architect like a priest think about theatre in the Netherlands and its future?" Speaking is Ivo van Hove, during his opening address of the annual Theatre festival. The year is 2006, a year in which no cuts to culture are imminent, but there is once again a reflection on a new organisational structure of the theatre in the Netherlands. Two years later, all those meetings and committees would come up with the 'Basic Infrastructure', which would be demolished again two years later by the first Rutte cabinet.

So, in this innocent year of 2006, Ivo van Hove is reading The Fountainhead, on the advice of an unnamed directorial assistant, who told him "you should read this because it is very important, especially for you". Captivated, Van Hove not only became motivated to make a stage adaptation of it. Entirely in line with the ideas of greatness of Ayn Rand and her characters, Van Hove decided to draw up a manifesto, his '9 points plan':

We summarise it for you:

1: There should be a focus on true talent, because there were too many talentless and chanceless scribblers on the margins that disturbed the view of true greatness. Companions, the guardians of that true greatness, needed to be given a role in finding and guiding those true talents.

2: Colleges had to select more strictly. Those without talent should not be able to finish school, let alone be admitted. By extension, all those small groups and collectives that still existed in those years had to merge with and merge into larger ensembles, with strong leaders, as soon as possible.

3: The production houses, now all disbanded, needed to work more closely with the big companies, because it was again there that the real vision and decisiveness to take talent forward resided.

4: Senior talent must be nurtured. Long before ageing became an issue, Van Hove argued that all this focus on young and fresh talent should not come at the expense of old and experienced talent.

5: Big names must be above discourse for at least 15 years "It is absurd, unrealistic, exhausting and wasteful of energy that the existence of the Concertgebouw Orchestra or the Holland Festival, the Nederlands Dans Theater, the Stedelijk Museum or Toneelgroep Amsterdam should be called into question every four years. It is unthinkable in Britain, France and Germany, even in Belgium."

6: Only theatre in the big cities (except Utrecht), creating strong centres that have a positive effect on the little ones in their neighbourhood.

7: "If the companies in the big cities want to be deeply connected to their city, they must have a home of their own. An artist wants audience, let us remove the locks between these two."

8: "Art, through its capacity for abstraction, layering of meanings, can confront us with the complexity of the world. Theatre as a bridge builder allowing peaceful coexistence of cultures. But no assimilation, no compromise theatre."

9: "For me, "internationalising "is now really a "must" for Amsterdam. I find the meagre, occasional international theatre offerings in Amsterdam a great loss. This needs attention and space and therefore money. Just do it!"

Van Hove closed his State of the Union concluded with a plea to go off the beaten track: "Would it not be a breakthrough if, over the next few weeks and months, a deepening, amending, corrective essay on each of the above were to be written in our leading newspapers and magazines. And that something also emerges from that, that it matters, has value."

Eight years later, we have to conclude that the Rutte 1 Cabinet apparently listened carefully to Ivo van Hove. Then they implemented everything in The Hague where it would cost the government less money, and abolished everything where an extra effort was required from the government. Remains a world of artists who all stand in their own power with Ayn Rand in hand. Unfortunately, that is also about the only thing left to them.

The Fountainhead is still going extensive tour. Van Hove's speech can be read here: State of the Theatre 2006 . what do you think: did Van Hove's plans make sense?