Delft, Sunday 7 June - For the past two weeks, the whole of Delft has been transformed into a stage. From mill to living room and from bouldering hall to yoga studio. At 30 locations in the city, 23 makers played their shows. From surprising premieres to moving performances and wonderful encounters: we enjoyed ourselves. On Sunday 7 June, the Delft Fringe Festival closed with the presentation of the audience award. Visitors left their votes and chose the winner: The Falling club with the performance Rogers, just Just Rogers.
This newly formed collective of international dance artists who want to show the silently meaningful impressed audiences deeply. Combining knowledge from dance, circus and performance art, The Falling Club creates performances on the borderline between uncertainty and confidence, boredom and excitement, floating and falling.
A pleasant vulnerability
Griffioen: “This year, the performances seem to be made from a pleasant vulnerability, whether physical or thematic. Creators show a raw reality and at the same time search for an answer or for closure. As a result, they have allowed audiences to open their eyes on the one hand, while at the same time providing a space for conversation. Think about the loss of a best friend, adoption, complicated life choices or being a vegan investigating the meat industry. But a countermovement is also making its appearance, taking the normal as its starting point, magnifying office life and asking absurd questions. This mix of themes and performances is exactly what makes Delft Fringe Festival so especially rich.”
Winner Delft Chamber Music Festival Award
Besides the audience award, the Delft Chamber Music Festival Award was also traditionally presented. This year, this jury prize for young musical talent went to Max Bruins and Femke Hulsman. They performed with Prometheus / Epimetheus a poetic musical theatre performance about hope and its dark side. Nino Gvetadze, artistic director Dutch Chamber Music Festival Award: “Max Bruins & Femke Hulsman brought singing, theatre and storytelling together with remarkable skill and professionalism, creating an experience of rare intimacy and genuine emotional engagement.” Max Bruins winning this award will earn him a playing spot at Delft Chamber Music Festival 2027.
Big themes, but recognisable
The makers at this year's Delft Fringe Festival did not shy away from big themes, such as a violent war past, mourning, adoption, translocation, mental health and migration.
They are themes that have lasted for centuries in theatre, but have lost none of their power.They are themes that have lasted for centuries in theatre, but have lost none of their power. The makers knew how to carry their weight without crushing the audience. Whether they opted for the grand gesture or just the quiet, small details. Invariably, they knew how to bridge the gap between the unknown and the recognisable. The result were encounters that lingered somewhere, and conversations that went beyond the performance itself.
About Delft Fringe Festival
What started as a modest project in 2011 has grown into a full-fledged performing arts festival with a major role in the Dutch cultural landscape. For a fortnight in late May and early June, performances fill Delft's most beautiful historical sites. And outside the festival, we are active all year round.
Delft Fringe Festival gives new makers room to grow within a professional environment and in front of a real audience. Because new talent deserves a stage. And the audience deserves makers who have something to say: young people with stories that touch, surprise and paint an honest portrait of the world as it is now.
Edition 2027: 26 May to 6 June
The opening of the next edition of Delft Fringe Festival will take place on Wednesday 26 May 2027, at 19:30, at Theater de Veste.
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