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Jam-packed opening weekend of Festival Circolo - Audiences' ears and eyes are in short supply during first weekend of Netherlands' biggest circus festival

After two years of dreaming and planning, today is finally the day: Festival Circolo - the largest circus festival in the Netherlands - is back! From 22 to Sunday 31 October, Tilburg's Leijpark will transform into an oasis full of spectacle, acrobatics and humour. Framed by the beautiful autumnal colours of the park, visitors will be treated to modern circus of international top level.... 

Read More "Jam-packed opening weekend of Festival Circolo - Audiences' ears and eyes are in short supply during first weekend of Netherlands' biggest circus festival

Composer Morris Kliphuis on High Dive with Lucky Fonz III: 'Every composer is a little dictator' #novembermusic

The Bossche sounds in November are contemporary. Since '93, the city has acted as a sounding board for today's music under festival name November Music. I talked to Morris Kliphuis (composer) and lyricist Otto Wichers (Lucky Fonz III), about their musical piece High Dive. The song cycle will premiere 11 November at the Verkadefabriek, performed by singer Pitou and ensemble stargaze.... 

Read More "Composer Morris Kliphuis on High Dive with Lucky Fonz III: 'Every composer is a little dictator' #novembermusic

Betrayal as an act of love. Review of 'A friendship' by Silvia Avallone

'And then I had to recognise that too: that you cannot live, cannot grow, without experiencing a wrong friendship.' That is the conclusion drawn by Elisa, the protagonist of Silvia Avallone's new novel A Friendship. Many people will probably recognise it, that attraction to a friend or girlfriend who is not actually right for you or right for you, but... 

Read More "Betrayal as an act of love. Review of 'A friendship' by Silvia Avallone

Stille Nacht Am Silbersee is a unique musical sound poem: 'A single word can evoke a world.' #novembermusic

'Every time I go to a beach, I see the sea through a filter of all the texts written about the sea.' Writer Joachim Robbrecht, at the request of Romain Bisschoff and together with writer brother Artun Alaska Arasli, created a sound poem for Ensemble Silbersee. During November Music, the work will finally premiere, after it had been a year... 

Read More "Stille Nacht Am Silbersee is a unique musical sound poem: 'A single word can evoke a world.' #novembermusic

Jan-Peter De Graaff composes Parallax: 'I show how much effort people put into creating their own world' #novembermusic

Jan-Peter de Graaff (b. 1992) is and thinks big. As an islander, raised on Terschelling as a child of musicians, he also perhaps perceives things a little differently from the peripheral city. The height of the sky, the nothingness of a strip of land surrounded by the movement and power of water; they suggest infinity and the mystery of higher powers. That perspective... 

Read More "Jan-Peter De Graaff composes Parallax: 'I show how much effort people put into creating their own world' #novembermusic

Too divided for unity. How a booklet on yoga nearly brought writer Emmanuel Carrère to the brink of collapse

A light-hearted and delicate little book on yoga is what French author Emmanuel Carrère intends to write. By this, he does not mean the glorified form of gymnastics that so many practise, no, he is talking about the sacred yoga that leads to calming the mind, to serenity and pure perception of what is. Al also goes after... 

Read More "Too divided for unity. How a booklet on yoga nearly brought writer Emmanuel Carrère to the brink of collapse
Botero

Why never say, 'Botero, that's that fat-woman painter, isn't it?

Mons (Mons), a Walloon pinhead on the French border, became European Capital of Culture in 2015. To everyone's surprise. The city presents its umpteenth major exhibition this autumn and winter: Fernando Botero, beyond the forms. 3 questions are addressed in this story: 1) How does a small city like Mons get all that done? 2) Why never say:... 

Read More "Why never say, 'Botero, that's that fat-woman painter, isn't it?

'NOW support saved us, but creates a lot of extra workload afterwards.'

At the end of July, we posted an appeal by the UWV on this site. The benefit agency sounded the alarm because few cultural organisations had yet completed their final application for corona support. If they had not submitted the application corresponding to the advance received earlier before 31 October, they would have to repay that advance anyway. Every reason to take a... 

Read More "'NOW support saved us, but creates a lot of extra workload afterwards.'

Nina Hiddema, director a.i. of the Netherlands Reisopera: 'Nicolas Mansfield's succession is going to take some time to complete

'A sorcerer's apprentice? It is really not the case that Josef Fuchs could and would single-handedly bend an entire application process to his will. That is pertinently untrue and I even find it damaging to his person.' Nina Hiddema reacts vehemently to our article on Josef Fuchs' remarkable job title, and the change in it. Hiddema explains: 'I am... 

Read More "Nina Hiddema, director a.i. of the Netherlands Reisopera: 'Nicolas Mansfield's succession is going to take some time to complete

Compact Iliad by Alum is ode to invincible writer Homer.

Troy is rather hot, this year. The Hague has just premiered Trojan Wars, an insane marathon performance (5 hours), with 35 actors for 40 roles and a text that, apart from being by Homer, is very clearly by Peer Wittenbols. Who I admire boundlessly. A review by colleague Peter Olsthoorn can be read on this site.... 

Read More "Compact Iliad by Alum is ode to invincible writer Homer.

The dizzying void is literally at the heart of L'absolu during Festival Circolo

For those who love acrobatics and existential questions of life, Boris Gibé's L'absolu is a valhalla. The extraordinary spectacle can be admired during Festival Circolo in Tilburg. In an empty silo at a height of 12 metres, acrobat (and metaphysician) Gibé confronts the audience with the big questions of life. With his act, he shows that circus and art can go hand in... 

Read More "The dizzying void is literally at the heart of L'absolu during Festival Circolo

Lucho Smit's unique take on circus innovation: 'Everything already exists, we just make different connections' #festivalcircolo

'I often wonder why I keep doing what I do. I do circus, but I don't just want to tell stories, I want to act, I want to live up to my beliefs and my values. And by acting, I don't mean eating organic food, sorting my waste and donating to Greenpeace, no ; I really want to contribute to all those issues I... 

Read More "Lucho Smit's unique take on circus innovation: 'Everything already exists, we just make different connections' #festivalcircolo

Jolanda Spoel seamlessly forges hip-hop and classical together in Melomaniac. And that is quite difficult

'They come from two worlds, but work together towards something that is one. Jolanda Spoel has done that perfectly'. Katinka Reinders, head of education at the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, is enthusiastic after one of the first play-in performances of Melomaniac at Maas Theatre & Dance. Just now, a room full of somewhat timid secondary school students turned into a churning group of lovers of... 

Read More "Jolanda Spoel seamlessly forges hip-hop and classical together in Melomaniac. And that is quite difficult

New at Festival Circolo: The stage is at least as exciting when you can only hear it.

During Tilburg circus festival Circolo, you can experience it, if you want to, and certainly if you can't help it: audio description. Especially for the blind and visually impaired, the festival offers the services of Komt Het Zien, a company specialising in live description of what is on stage in front of you. Founder Arlette Hanson, is one such... 

Read More "New at Festival Circolo: The stage is at least as exciting when you can only hear it.

'Smash the crystal ball. Empathise with future generations!' - About Digital Decisiveness #2

Perhaps the COVID pandemic did not itself create unprecedented inventions and new things, but unexpected things that were already there suddenly came to the fore. Like podcasts, like online art, like new views on leadership and a different way of looking at the future. Very briefly, this is what you take away from the total of eight hours of... 

Read More "'Smash the crystal ball. Empathise with future generations!' - About Digital Decisiveness #2

Hawar Tawfiq composes Bosch Requiem 2021 - To be heard exclusively during November Music 2021 and in Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ

Not a standard death mass, but an ode to life. Iraqi-Dutch composer Hawar Tawfiq has been commissioned by festival November Music and Ammodo Fonds to compose a brand new Bosch Requiem in which he opts for a very personal musical approach. With his Requiem des fleurs et des nuages, Tawfiq joins the ranks of earlier Bosch Requiem composers such as Kate Moore, Calliope Tsoupaki and Seung-Won... 

Read More "Hawar Tawfiq composes Bosch Requiem 2021 - To be heard exclusively during November Music 2021 and in Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ

New Maas Theatre and Dance management sets high stakes with peppery game show

We spend much of our lives saving our asses. You'd better be a bit cheerful about that, because life isn't manufacturable anyway. These are no small life lessons that René Geerlings, the new boss of Rotterdam-based Maas Theatre and Dance, deploys in his first play as artistic director. Still... 

Read More "New Maas Theatre and Dance management sets high stakes with peppery game show

CALL: Are you an independent entrepreneurial artist in Amsterdam and have you been or are you affected by the consequences of the corona crisis? Then the UvA is looking for you!

A request came in from the University of Amsterdam. After all, they like to get in touch with independent artists. Only from Amsterdam, admittedly, but still. We share the main part of the request here. Research on self-employed artists in times of crisis The corona crisis has (had) a major impact on self-employed artists. The University of Amsterdam is investigating the impact of the corona crisis on... 

Read More "CALL: Are you an independent entrepreneurial artist in Amsterdam and have you been or are you affected by the consequences of the corona crisis? Then the UvA is looking for you!

The big question of online gathering: who will show us the way to the bar? #Digitaladventure 1

A virtual gun, which, when you shoot it, does not fire a bullet but displays a pop-up with encyclopaedic information about what you have just fired at. Now if only we fought the next war with that. It was conceived by Iranian artist Ali Eslami, who was forced by the lockdown to use his international network to develop... 

Read More "The big question of online gathering: who will show us the way to the bar? #Digitaladventure 1

'We're not going to talk about Jiskefet, are we?' For Michiel Romeyn, all of life is theatre

Even though the satirical programme Jiskefet has not existed for more than 15 years, Michiel Romeyn (66) is still recognised on the street as 'lullo' Van Binsbergen, 'the white nigger' Oboema or office clerk Storm. In Romeyn's existence, the dividing line between life and theatre is fluid. 'I like to disrupt things,' he says. 'We're hopefully not going to talk about Jiskefet after all.... 

Read More "'We're not going to talk about Jiskefet, are we?' For Michiel Romeyn, all of life is theatre

Monique Hendriks wins NK Poetry Slam 2021

Jury and audience unanimous on new Dutch Poetry Slam champion Monique Hendriks has become Dutch Poetry Slam Champion 2021. After preliminary rounds across the country, eleven poetry slammers faced each other in the final on Friday evening 24 September, during the International Literature Festival Utrecht. Monique Hendriks took on Lucas Kloosterboer in the final battle and captured the national... 

Read More "Monique Hendriks wins NK Poetry Slam 2021

Mahat Arab wins ILFU Storytelling Competition 2021: Out of 723 entries, his spoken word recording 'Part-time fathers' was voted best story

Mahat Arab (born 1996) is the winner of the second edition of ILFU's Storytelling Competition. He won with a spoken word recording titled 'Part-time fathers'. During festival day Exploring Stories, he received the grand prize of five thousand euros, from the hands of ILFU's organisation. More than 700 people participated in the ILFU Stories Competition; 723 stories were entered in five categories. Apart from Mahat... 

Read More "Mahat Arab wins ILFU Storytelling Competition 2021: Out of 723 entries, his spoken word recording 'Part-time fathers' was voted best story

Watching Toer van Schayk's 7th Symphony during a pandemic does wonders for your spirits

Hope for liberation during a dark period of war threat and political oppression; a masterpiece by Beethoven sublimely expressed in dance by Toer van Schayk. Everything gets into an uproar Creating an abstract and layered classical ballet for a large ensemble of a top company to a Beethoven symphony: few can do it and Toer is one of them. His ballet stems from... 

Read More "Watching Toer van Schayk's 7th Symphony during a pandemic does wonders for your spirits

Night-time silence walk with Schiphol hatred to close Holland Festival 2021

Admittedly, I was never a fan, but how I hated those planes last night. I was walking through a dark, nocturnal forest between Lage Vuursche and Hilversum. Where, in the silence, I could have listened extra carefully to creaking twigs, shuffling insects, whispering trees and the occasional owl, I mostly heard how happy we all are that after corona we have another... 

Read More "Night-time silence walk with Schiphol hatred to close Holland Festival 2021

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