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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.

Dog poo ban

Scheissegate III: Poopsmith Goecke says no sorry, but NDT thinks it's best

'If an NDT dancer had done this, they would have been thrown out on the street immediately.' Much anger and incomprehension on the Instagram account of leading Nederlands Dans Theater, after the company announced it was continuing its collaboration with Marco Goecke. Goecke, an associate choreographer with the The Hague company for many years, was discredited for leaving a reviewer from the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung... 

Read More "Scheissegate III: Poopsmith Goecke says no sorry, but NDT thinks it's best
Mega pack of poop bags

Scheissegate II: Albert Verlinde finds Hannover poop incident 'kind of funny'

'We all shouldn't make it too big a deal.' Dixit musical producer Albert Verlinde, this afternoon (14 February) in the Max programme Villa VdB on Radio 1. He is referring to the commotion in Germany - and the Netherlands - over the mistreatment of a dance critic by star choreographer Marco Goecke. Verlinde: 'I actually liked it.' With this... 

Read More "Scheissegate II: Albert Verlinde finds Hannover poop incident 'kind of funny'

Dog shit after negative review of NDT piece 'In The Dutch Mountains'. NDT: "acting is contrary to our values"

'In "In the Dutch Mountains", Marco Goecke's new ballet evening with the virtuoso Nederlands Dans Theater in The Hague, the audience is alternately driven mad and killed by boredom.' Dixit Wiebke Hüster, dance critic of the Frankfürter Algemeine, one of Germany's largest quality newspapers. The critic did not have a good word to say about the premiere, last Thursday, in The Hague. Marco Goecke,... 

Read More "Dog shit after negative review of NDT piece 'In The Dutch Mountains'. NDT: "acting is contrary to our values"
Poster Lucie in the Sky with Diamonds

So can a recorder. Go to Lucie in the Sky with Diamonds, by Amsterdam Sinfonietta.

Dankzij Bas Hoeflaak staat de blokfluit weer even in de belangstelling. De slappe lach veroorzakende scene gaat inmiddels de wereld rond, mede door het verre van virtuoze fluitspel van de amateurfluitist met stalen gezicht. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIkVov28ePo Dankzij een minstens even grappige speling van het lot zat ik woensdagmiddag bij een ‘vriendenrepetitie’ van Amsterdam Sinfonietta, druk bezig met de komende tournee met… 

Read More "So can a recorder. Go to Lucie in the Sky with Diamonds, by Amsterdam Sinfonietta.
Still from the documentary White Balls on Walls by Sarah Vos

White Balls on Walls: fascinating image of a museum in panic

There is quite a stir among mostly people of certain (white) colour and age about a documentary now playing in movie houses. In White Balls on Walls, maker Sarah Vos shows how the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam has to get used to a new era in which old self-evidences are shaking to their foundations. The uproar revolves mainly around the artworks created by established... 

Read More "White Balls on Walls: fascinating image of a museum in panic
still from the vpro series our man with the taliban, with Thoams erdbrink talking to a taliban fighter in an orchard

How much demonic power does the artist have?

What would the world look like if art had had the power that book burners and iconoclasts have attributed to it over the centuries? In the fascinating documentary series 'Our Man with the Taliban', Thomas Erdbrink takes a rather perilous journey through an Afghanistan abandoned by the 'civilised' West. We see a world where book burners and iconoclasts... 

Read More "How much demonic power does the artist have?
Culture Monitor logo

Dramatic decline in self-employed in cultural sector - Culture Monitor shows growth among architects and designers

Of the 1910 self-employed people still working behind the scenes of the performing arts in 2019, only 1090 will be left in 2022. So what we suspected turns out to be true: technicians have gone up onto the roof to install solar panels and heat pumps, audience workers found a destination in healthcare. Although the Culture Monitor does not capture this migration, it is clear 

Read More "Dramatic decline in self-employed in cultural sector - Culture Monitor shows growth among architects and designers
New results of in-depth marketing research by Boekwerk KVB

CPNB annual figures: in search of the S10 of Dutch-language literature

'Dutch-language music has been unabatedly popular for years in a variety of genres; from pop to hip-hop, competing with English-language music. That's where you see what you can achieve with attention. The same can happen with books.' This quote by author Gustaaf Peek, recorded in a press release from the Authors' Union, is quite inspiring. The press release, in which the advocate of 1,750 Dutch writers... 

Read More "CPNB annual figures: in search of the S10 of Dutch-language literature
Photo of presentation with participants Cathelijne Broers, Renée Steenbergen and Rien van Gendt.

4 coming revolutions involving art and money.

The Dutch government distrusts citizens. And that stands in the way of a healthy art sector. This emerged on 17 January during a well-attended symposium at Amsterdam's Veem House. The occasion was the essay published in book form by Renée Steenbergen, who also published articles on this site. At the event, co-organised by Veem and Platform Beeldende Kunst, many makers were... 

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Podium Gift Card 2023

Podium gift card sales in Corona year 2022 already back to 2013 level.

Nice message from the Theatre and Concert Visit Promotion Foundation: last year, we went out again quite often after the lockdowns, and also gave each other a unique experience as a gift quite often. 138,000 stage visits were gifted. That earned the SPTC a nice 6.6 million. That means the Pokadoka (Podium Gift Card) included an average gift of 48 euros.... 

Read More "Podium gift card sales in Corona year 2022 already back to 2013 level.
Created with Midjourney AI, via the prompt: dog staring picasso style

Beware the new myths of anti-woke

Scored a new bullshit bingo card, today. 'Art must no longer tingle, I quit'. Big headline in a quality newspaper, with below it the terrible story of gallery owner Jeanette Dekeukeleires of Gallery Art Kitchen. The 60-year-old says she is quitting her job because nothing more is allowed. (Read the story here) For instance, she received complaints from young people about the famous PSP poster with that naked woman.... 

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Stray elephant is kindly welcomed by the herd

Culture Press now has its own server on Mastodon. Read why here.

This site became big thanks to Twitter and Facebook. We were also created at roughly the same time. In 2009, Twitter was just getting off the ground a bit, and the Netherlands still thought Hyves was going to be all the rage, while Belgium was already on Facebook. Anyway, tl;dr: social media was still fun. Only in the years that followed did... 

Read More "Culture Press now has its own server on Mastodon. Read why here.
Midjourney AI makes this at the prompt 'people giving donations to a journalist'

These 28 unique stories generated the most donations in 2022!

As you know, Culture Press is an important voice in cultural news coverage. We were founded in 2009, at a time when all newspapers and broadcasters were reducing their arts editorships, and many zzp arts journalists were on the street. Publishers no longer wanted to pay for what they called 'low-hanging fruit' (reviews, interviews, announcements). Culture Press jumped into that gap, and in the nearly 14... 

Read More "These 28 unique stories generated the most donations in 2022!
created by Midjourney AI with the prompt: black female artist exposition

The art world is still white and male.

The website where the Dutch umbrella organisation of museums, the Museum Association, keeps track of audience and number of people employed by its members was unreachable today. Perhaps that is because today the leading website Artnet also came out with revealing figures on the arts sector in the US. The report, titled The Burns Halperin Report, includes an overview of the... 

Read More "The art world is still white and male.

'Don't shoot the rapper!' - The 3 things I learnt from No Man's Land 2022 #nml22

1: The artificial distinction between pros and amateurs encourages exploitation. In the Netherlands, 115 writers can live off the sale of their books. The rest of the people who call themselves writers do so as a side income. In pop music, the figures won't be much different. Writers with a few euros earning on their Lira statement will not... 

Read More "'Don't shoot the rapper!' - The 3 things I learnt from No Man's Land 2022 #nml22

Nerd podcast Live: Marijn Lems, Erik Snel and Bran Remie on the value of audience and the need for criticism

Culture Press' new series of geek podcasts is about how to make theatre connect with your audience, and what happens when professional viewers continue to watch in their own way. And it's about the ambitions of 'the region'. So we also talk to Bran Remie, author and creator of the successful Enschede theatre series 'Huize Enschede', elsewhere on... 

Read More "Nerd podcast Live: Marijn Lems, Erik Snel and Bran Remie on the value of audience and the need for criticism

Rumours are true: theatre can tap new audiences through local roots. Head to Enschede to see it.

Before, when I used to write about theatre for a national morning paper, my travel schedule was partly determined by the reach the paper had in a particular region. So, if I necessarily wanted to write about a theatre performance in Enschede, about Enschedean states, my chief's question was: how many subscribers do we have in Twente? So usually it didn't get there 

Read More "Rumours are true: theatre can tap new audiences through local roots. Head to Enschede to see it.

Hoe winnen we de ironie terug van extremisten? 

Wie in het werk van de mij tot nu toe volslagen onbekende schilder Rein Dool iets anders dan ironie ziet (zoals de schilder het ook heeft beschreven in een item op tv), heeft niet goed opgelet bij colleges literatuur- en kunstgeschiedenis. Rein Dool schilderde in 1974 een portret van het toenmalige College van Bestuur van de Leidsche Universiteit. We zien… 

Read More "Hoe winnen we de ironie terug van extremisten? 

Monday debate day. Follow our famous pointing updates live! (not just via the birther network) #tkculture

We grew up with it: live tweets from the heart of our democracy. Now, of course, debates on culture in recent years have been a bit different from what we expect now. There is no longer a need to fight over the reputation of the arts, as there was during all debates until a year ago. What is it about now? Energy, thinking... 

Read More "Monday debate day. Follow our famous pointing updates live! (not just via the birther network) #tkculture

We are all fluid. Alum makes tangible in Metamorphoses II how comforting that is

Marietje d'Hane Scheltema, her name be praised. How corny I used to think she was, with her neat rhymes with which she managed to transform classical Greek and Roman drinking bouts into Kralings-judged bake sale parties. And how wrong I could be. Because how well her translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses works in the hands of the people at Alum. Yesterday was the premiere... 

Read More "We are all fluid. Alum makes tangible in Metamorphoses II how comforting that is

FAQ in Den Bosch: An alchemists' festival full of niches, nerds and drones #novembermusic

Not everyone thinks music is also something to look at. Not a crazy idea, considering that some music is so layered and complex that you need all your attention for listening. So modern electronic music largely takes place in the dark, I experienced during two evenings of FAQ Festival in Den Bosch. There, I discovered that I... 

Read More "FAQ in Den Bosch: An alchemists' festival full of niches, nerds and drones #novembermusic

Harpist Remy van Kesteren sets out to surprise November Music: 'Above all, I hope people will really listen' #novembermusic

An orchestra of household appliances, a pop concert with singer Luwten, and a gospel choir accompanied by top Dutch music. Plus a DJ set with lots of Faithless. Those who might think of something sacred when they hear the term 'harp' can be surprised at November Music by Dutch harpist Remy van Kesteren. This 33-year-old genius has, since he was a 5-year-old, been... 

Read More "Harpist Remy van Kesteren sets out to surprise November Music: 'Above all, I hope people will really listen' #novembermusic

The cultural sector needs to be protected from itself. Maryam Hassouni makes that crystal clear in What the Fak!

Patronisation! Woke terror! These were some of the reactions from the film world when there were calls for the appointment of an intimacy coordinator at Dutch film productions. As if anyone could allow or display sexually transgressive behaviour in a studio with 40 other staff around it. Impossible! Yesterday, the book Wat de Fak! by award-winning actress Maryam Hassouni was published and in it, it states... 

Read More "The cultural sector needs to be protected from itself. Maryam Hassouni makes that crystal clear in What the Fak!

4 Reasons why theatre performance Light in Leidsche Rijn is not all that nice by chance

Light is the name of the latest production by NUT, a theatre company with close ties to Utrecht's Leidsche Rijn district. It is theatre in a bubble in Utrecht's largest city park, and it starts with good food and drink. I went to see it, and again became even more of a fan than I already was. A few reasons, why that came about.

The attack on The Girl with the Pearl Earring is the provisional low point of Instagram madness.

A temperature record will be broken in the Netherlands on 28 October. Yet another, and it is indeed incomprehensible that on this day people still book a plane for a weekend in Barcelona. It is unfortunately also incomprehensible that on this 27th October 2022, a young man sticks his head next to the head of The Girl with the... 

Read More "The attack on The Girl with the Pearl Earring is the provisional low point of Instagram madness.

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