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Wijbrand Schaap

Cultural journalist since 1996. Worked as theatre critic, columnist and reporter for Algemeen Dagblad, Utrechts Nieuwsblad, Rotterdams Dagblad, Parool and regional newspapers through Associated Press Services. Interviews for TheaterMaker, Theatererkrant Magazine, Ons Erfdeel, Boekman. Podcast maker, likes to experiment with new media. Culture Press is called the brainchild I gave birth to in 2009. Life partner of Suzanne Brink roommate of Edje, Fonzie and Rufus. Search and find me on Mastodon.

Door Altamira 2042 besef je hoe machteloos we staan tegen de waanzin van de vooruitgang. #whereisdomphillips #whereisbrunopereira #hf22

Hoe speel je een regenwoud? Ik heb me ooit laten vertellen dat het regenwoud vooral snachts oorverdovend lawaai maakt. Op 7 juni kreeg ik dat ook te horen in de installatie Altamira 2042, dankzij het Holland Festival. De Braziliaanse kunstenaar, annex documentairemaakster Gabriela Carneiro da Cunha wist in die voorstelling het geluid van de tropen voelbaar te maken. In een… 

Read More "Door Altamira 2042 besef je hoe machteloos we staan tegen de waanzin van de vooruitgang. #whereisdomphillips #whereisbrunopereira #hf22

Sami Yusuf overwhelms packed Concertgebouw with cinematic music spectacle

It's quite something, what Sami Yusuf brings to the stage: his own accompanying group of seasoned pros, the heavenly voices of Cappella Amsterdam and the traditionally Mediterranean sounds of the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra. Together, this results in a sound experience that moves from calm ponds with a gurgling fountain, to dry steppes winds, raging seas and overwhelming mountains. There could effortlessly be a... 

Read More "Sami Yusuf overwhelms packed Concertgebouw with cinematic music spectacle

Holland Festival opens with Queen Angelique Kidjo's African dance party #HF22

Yemi Alade. What a woman. Never heard of her until 3 June, the opening of the Holland Festival's anniversary edition. She was one of the guests of Angelique Kidjo, the Benin-born African singer who is one of the two associate artists of the country's most prestigious festival this year. And Yemi Alade, star from Nigeria, threw her full... 

Read More "Holland Festival opens with Queen Angelique Kidjo's African dance party #HF22

Rotterdamse cultuurwethouder zegt onafhankelijk adviesorgaan de wacht aan. Op basis van partijdig onderzoek. 

‘Wij hebben uitsluitend aangename, betrokken mensen ontmoet met het hart op de goede plek voor de Rotterdamse cultuur.’ Zo luidt de laatste zin van een rapport van het Utrechtse adviesbureau Rijnconsult over de toekomst van de Rotterdamse Raad voor Kunst en Cultuur (RRKC). Op basis van dat onderzoek heeft wethouder Said Kasmi (D66) deze week besloten de RRKC per 1… 

Read More "Rotterdamse cultuurwethouder zegt onafhankelijk adviesorgaan de wacht aan. Op basis van partijdig onderzoek. 

The cultural sector would do well to listen a little better to the audiences that are now staying away. 

Today in Trouw a few useful tips to culture bringers. They are responses to the reader question a few days back, about why the halls remain empty in our museums, concert halls and theatres. Five responses are included, and each one is excellent. They also show something, and that is that the eagerness, with which the halls are vacated by the directors... 

Read More "The cultural sector would do well to listen a little better to the audiences that are now staying away. 

Een nieuwe blik op nobelprijswinnend meesterwerk mag geen woord uit dat meesterwerk gebruiken.

In het Franse taalgebied heeft iedereen l’Étranger (De Vreemdeling) van Albert Camus gelezen. Het boek uit 1942, dat veel Nederlanders ook hebben gelezen, al was het maar omdat het lekker dun is voor de leeslijst Frans, verhaalt over een witte Franse inwoner van Algerije, een zogenaamde pied-noir, die zo overtuigd is van de absurditeit van het leven dat hij een… 

Read More "Een nieuwe blik op nobelprijswinnend meesterwerk mag geen woord uit dat meesterwerk gebruiken.

SPECIAL! Holland Festival 2022 shows us how indifferent we are about the past #hf22

Just for fun, name one literary or cultural classic Dutch work that you are sure people around you know about. And I mean a work, like a book or a play, that pops up every few years in the lists, on our stages, in our cinemas. Something that everyone, even now, is on... 

Read More "SPECIAL! Holland Festival 2022 shows us how indifferent we are about the past #hf22

Germany increases culture budget by 7 per cent. But still lags behind the Netherlands.

It is obviously good news: the German federal culture minister is increasing the budget for culture by 148 million euros to 2.3 billion. At a time when cultural funding, especially in the 'developed West', has been steadily declining (since 2010), such an increase is of course wonderful. For the Dutch, who point out with some regularity how well the arts are doing in Germany: per head of... 

Read More "Germany increases culture budget by 7 per cent. But still lags behind the Netherlands.

Boukje Schweigman offers best way out of two years of lockdown stress

Kunnen we vanaf nu afspreken dat we alle DJ’s vervangen door echte drummers? Ik bedoel, wat ik meemaakte bij de première van Eros, het nieuwste project van Schweigman&, was zo overweldigend, dat ik me niet meer kan voorstellen dat ik ooit op een drummachine uit mijn dak ben gegaan. Twee levende drummers, spatgelijk en tegelijkertijd afzonderlijk de sterren uit de… 

Read More "Boukje Schweigman offers best way out of two years of lockdown stress

Er is een diepe crisis in het Vlaamse theater. Toneelhuis verkeert in zwaar weer.

In Vlaanderen, of liever gezegd, in de culturele hoofdstad ervan, Antwerpen, wankelt de theatersector. Het Toneelhuis, eind jaren negentig opgericht als fusie tussen de legendarische Blauwe Maandag Compagnie en stadsgezelschap KNS, is na het vertrek van Guy Cassiers in een crisis geraakt. Het verliest nu, na een vernietigend advies, meer dan de helft van zijn subsidie. De Vlaamse overheid stopt… 

Read More "Er is een diepe crisis in het Vlaamse theater. Toneelhuis verkeert in zwaar weer.

NRC asked when Wagner would be cancelled. At the Holland Festival, we get an answer to that question, via Schauspielhaus Zurich #HF22

'For me, the world of Wotan equals the world of Putin.' Christopher Ruping, director of Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen to be shown in Amsterdam in June, makes no bones about it: 'Siegfried [central character of Wagner's monster production, ws] is a very problematic character. He kills the dragon without asking questions. We give the dragon... 

Read More "NRC asked when Wagner would be cancelled. At the Holland Festival, we get an answer to that question, via Schauspielhaus Zurich #HF22

Theatre group Alum and Raymi Sambo Create performance on slavery history.

Who should apologise for the history of slavery and what happens when apologies are made? Theatre group Aluin and Raymi Sambo Makes are jointly creating the theatre performance Ik zeg toch sorry about the history of slavery. The premiere is next June during Oerol. After the summer, a theatre tour will follow from September to December 2022. I say sorry anyway is an exciting fusion... 

Read More "Theatre group Alum and Raymi Sambo Create performance on slavery history.

(Update) Nicolas Stemann on his version of 'der Besuch' at the Holland Festival: 'We do take such women very seriously these days.' #HF22

Update 11 May 2022

The comparison with the Derksen affair cited in this article no longer holds true as of this date, as the TV personality has been restored to full glory by the television station that previously 'cancelled' him. From Monday, 16 May, he will return to his old role as a 'grumpy old man' in Today Inside. See the link here.

Read More "(Update) Nicolas Stemann on his version of 'der Besuch' at the Holland Festival: 'We do take such women very seriously these days.' #HF22

Ben Frost shoots at elusive state violence with 130-decibel musical bullets #HF22

Once upon a time, Ben Frost started out as a composer of laden ambient music. Not necessarily upbeat, more contemplative and just a little depressing of the kind that can be used to add some colour to a dip. Take the piece "You, Me and the End of Everything," which can be found on YouTube. Compared to the score of The Murder of Halit Yozgat,... 

Read More "Ben Frost shoots at elusive state violence with 130-decibel musical bullets #HF22

Yara Piekema, Earth star in disarming play about Bob, who invented the world. 

Ok. Eén keer zal ik het zeggen. Dat Yara Piekema de dochter van Harry Piekema is. Je weet wel: die man die eigenhandig die Zaanse Grootgrutter een menselijk gezicht gaf. Harry was al een grote in het Utrechtse, en nu blijkt hij stiekem, jaren geleden, een nog grotere het leven gegeven te hebben: Yara Piekema, niet langer de dochter van,… 

Read More "Yara Piekema, Earth star in disarming play about Bob, who invented the world. 

Press officers and journalists, an intimate love affair, or high-level battle?

In the best-read newsletter of cultural Netherlands (on average 60 per cent open and 12 per cent click links, where the national average for peers is 30 and 2 per cent respectively), I wrote recently that the news, that visits to theatres and museums have not yet returned to precorona levels, seemed to come as a surprise to some. I mentioned... 

Read More "Press officers and journalists, an intimate love affair, or high-level battle?

Farewell performance 'I'm not here for a while' by Moniek Merkx must be seen

How beautiful art for children can be when a real artist is involved. When themes like death, falling in love, loneliness and exclusion are made palpable in such a beautiful way that you step outside with a deeper feeling about life? With theatre-maker Moniek Merkx, you can. A year ago, she stepped down as artistic director of... 

Read More "Farewell performance 'I'm not here for a while' by Moniek Merkx must be seen

Tamar van den Dop legendary in slightly over-explained version of Judith Herzberg's Passion Trilogy 

That you are suddenly back in 1996 at Black Snow, the television series in which actress Tamar van den Dop managed to hook an entire generation of viewers at the time. Since then, her raven-black curls have turned into a glittering cloud of silver, but those who go to see Het Nationale Theater's Leedvermaak trilogy suddenly see that young Tamar again. A miracle of talent in... 

Read More "Tamar van den Dop legendary in slightly over-explained version of Judith Herzberg's Passion Trilogy 

This evening of poets by Tsead Bruinja offers prospect of a better future

Babeth Fonchi Fothchind. Onthou die naam, want ze gaat groot worden, als ze het niet al was, maar dan buiten mijn zicht. Kan gebeuren, met al die bubbels en vinkjes waartussen we ons een weg door het leven banen. In juni 2022 komt haar debuutbundel uit, en dan kun je het zelf lezen. Ik zag haar op een dinsdagavond tijdens… 

Read More "This evening of poets by Tsead Bruinja offers prospect of a better future

Tiago Rodrigues directs Isabelle Huppert in The Cherry Garden at the Holland Festival: 'From Chekhov, the best friend of all actors in the world, we play every note.'

'For the first time in my life, I had the opportunity to play all the notes written by Chekhov. It was an intellectual and artistic challenge to really work with Chekhov. I could really let Chekhov be one of the authors of the play, which is very unusual for me. After all, I'm used to writing plays to... 

Read More "Tiago Rodrigues directs Isabelle Huppert in The Cherry Garden at the Holland Festival: 'From Chekhov, the best friend of all actors in the world, we play every note.'

NBD-Biblion on reviewing algorithm: 'A simple explanation does not do justice to reality'.

On this website (and still read here), we posted a post that we had had artificial intelligence (AI) write all the way through for fun. The post looked real, had even included some relevant-looking information from the internet and made up some names that provided quotes. Brilliant, on the one hand, but also a bit scary. Rightly made... 

Read More "NBD-Biblion on reviewing algorithm: 'A simple explanation does not do justice to reality'.

theatre group Amsterdam revives thanks to De Warme Winkel (so not an April fool after all)

Update April 2022: Turns out it's not an April fool's joke, so all the beats we were holding back at first turned out to be unnecessary. Since 2018, Toneelgroep Amsterdam no longer exists, as does the capital's Stadsschouwburg. Together they have since formed 'Internationaal Theater Amsterdam', because that better suits the global ambitions of Ivo van Hove's Amsterdam city theatre. It was thus... 

Read More "theatre group Amsterdam revives thanks to De Warme Winkel (so not an April fool after all)

Kwatta bids impressive farewell with beautiful 'Metamorphoses'

We always want to do the best, but usually fail horribly. Whether this is our habitual way of thinking, or whether we owe that idea to Ovid, we will never know. We can, however, say that the literary work 'Metamorphoses', published by Roman Ovid in the first year of our era, is the single most influential book of the... 

Read More "Kwatta bids impressive farewell with beautiful 'Metamorphoses'

Midshipman hit by a snip. SMART by Matzer learns what driving apps are doing

Which sentence stuck with us? The question to the audience comes from Madeleine Matzer after the performance of 'Smart'. It is a rather loaded question, as the play is about very direct loss. When a child has just died in a stupid accident, every sentence you remember is worth gold. The blunt accident that the subject... 

Read More "Midshipman hit by a snip. SMART by Matzer learns what driving apps are doing

'We need art to talk to lunatics' - Holland Festival presents anniversary programme

We can already chalk up Angélique Kidjo as one of the most disarming appearances at the 2022 Holland Festival. The Benin-born singer is this year's associate artist, together with German director Nicolas Stemann. On Wednesday 9 March, she performed as a commanding speaker at the press conference with which the Holland Festival opens its public relations offensive each year. It was a... 

Read More "'We need art to talk to lunatics' - Holland Festival presents anniversary programme

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