It appears that your browser has JavaScript disabled. The SecSign ID login requires your browser to be JavaScript enabled.SecSign Support

Please donate!

We invest in our journalism. We are independent. Thanks to donations from readers like you!

Donate

Choose a payment method

Would you like to share your details with us?

No Yes

Name

Name

First name

First name

Surname

Surname

E-mail (not compulsory)

Confirm E-mail (not mandatory)

If you are human, leave this field blank.

public

The-Black-Piece

The Black Piece. The preview. The debrief.

by Ruben Brugman
19 September 201430 March 2022
4 min read
For members only, DANS

At some performances, you groan inwardly whether it will all work out. At other performances, you groan that it turns out so well. The Black Piece is the latter. Ann Van den Broek's latest production was created with input from dancers and test audiences. Then it can hardly go wrong. The preview shows a penetrating mix of versions of the term black. As if, as an audience, you are forced to stand in front of a fogged-up mirror where the mist slowly lifts and someone says: look! The choreographer gives an account afterwards.

Amy Tan and the whip

by one of our members
18 September 201411 July 2016
1 min read
ACTUAL, LITERARY

Amy Tan - a guest at the John Adams Institute in Amsterdam - personally introduced her new book to Dutch audiences this week: Valley of wonder. She gave a very personal lecture at the Amstelkerk on the difficult lives of her mother and grandmother in ancient China before the great agitator Mao. The setting: early 20th century...

Anna Korsun wins Gaudeamus Music Prize

by Thea Derks
15 September 201430 March 2022
3 min read
ACTUAL, For members only, MUSIC

Last night, Ukrainian composer Anna Korsun (1986, Donetsk) won the coveted Gaudeamus Music Prize in TivoliVredenburg. This consists of a cash prize of €4550, which serves as an honorarium for a new composition that will have its world premiere in a subsequent instalment. The international jury, consisting of composers Vanessa Lann (Netherlands), Oscar Bianchi (Switzerland) and Wim Hendericx (Belgium) chose her unanimously from...

Proven: theatre-goers seek intellectual satisfaction and hardly ever read reviews

by Wijbrand Schaap
8 September 201411 July 2016
4 min read
ACTUAL, DANS, OPERA, THEATER

Drama reviews mainly fill a need among artists and journalists. Newspaper readers hardly use them. In London, this has been studied. Only 36 per cent of theatre-goers say they read reviews. Much more value fans place on tips from friends and family. Last Saturday at Amsterdam's De Balie debate centre, there was a discussion between theatre-makers,...

'Grandiose' opening Theatre Festival doesn't quite take away the pain

by Wijbrand Schaap
5 September 201411 July 2016
3 min read
ACTUAL, DANS, THEATER

"Grand opening, right?" Jeffrey Meulman, the man who as director of the ailing Theatre Festival gave the word "inspired" a new dimension, was delighted. It was Thursday night, September 4, 2014. Shortly before, I had seriously considered jumping from the 1st balcony of the Stadsschouwburg, rather than applauding Tauerbach, the opening performance of The Theatre Festival. It is...

The future is not fixed. 7 solutions to the arts crisis.

by one of our members
30 August 201420 October 2023
10 min read
ACTUAL, policy, Column, HERITAGE, PERSONAL

By Melle Daamen 'What do you want then?' was a question I received quite often in response to my articles last year in NRC, in which I expressed my concerns about the state of the arts in the Netherlands and especially its future. I argued for a fundamental debate from within the arts sector itself, focusing on the future, including...

Melle Daamen on @culturepress: 6 reasons why the arts debate in the Netherlands is so laborious.

by one of our members
30 August 201430 March 2022
10 min read
ACTUAL, For members only

I published two articles in NRC Handelsblad last year. The first (6 July 2013) was critical of government policy. There was little reaction to this. The second article (7 December 2013) was critical of the arts sector: it needs to make its own sharp choices. That did cause a stir, although I am convinced that many colleagues largely agree with the content...

8 essential lessons Dutch theatres can learn from festivals - and vice versa

by Joost Ramaer
29 August 201429 March 2022
7 min read
ACTUAL, For members only, THEATER

Declining visitor numbers, shrinking subsidies, impoverished programming: most Dutch theatres are struggling, research by NRC Handelsblad recently showed. Theatres welcomed 12 million visitors in 2012, according to NRC figures, a quarter less than in 2008. Festivals, on the other hand, are on the rise. More and more are being organised, and they are attracting more and more people - in total...

8 million for talent development, but 4 tough problems remain

by Wijbrand Schaap
29 August 201411 July 2016
3 min read
ACTUAL

Culture minister Jet Bussemaker can again make up for the cultural devastation caused by her predecessor Halbe Zijlstra. As promised earlier, money will be freed up for talent development. That was a demand of the chamber and a wish of the country. Are we happy? Of course. Although happy, there are also a few things that remain troublesome. [Tweet "1 Develop...

Symphony orchestra seeks name. All suggestions are welcome.

by Henri Drost
28 August 201411 July 2016
2 min read
ACTUAL, MUSIC

Suddenly they are gone: the Dutch Symphony Orchestra's twitter account and facebook page. Searching for the new ***** name also yields nothing. Must have something to do with all sorts of lawsuits. But if you type in nederlandssymfonieorkest.nl, you happily end up at symfonieorkest.nl. Incidentally, if you type in orkestvanhetoosten.nl, that's also where you end up.

Joop van den Ende sets high bar for Dutch Billy's

by Ruben Brugman
27 August 201411 July 2016
2 min read
ACTUAL

In various studios around the country, for almost a year, many boys took dance classes at the Billy Elliot sCOOL to qualify for one of the most coveted roles on the dance stage: Billy Elliot. Eventually, these participants were brought together for lessons at Stage Entertainment's beautiful new building at Zuidas in Amsterdam. Under the watchful eye of admirer Joop van den Ende, six young dancers were eventually selected by professionals from England, among others. Vanafrom 4 November in Scheveningen in the compelling ballet musical Billy Elliot with music by Elton John.

Main lesson from Benjamin Zander: enjoyment of the game is the key to success.

by Wijbrand Schaap
24 August 201411 July 2016
3 min read
ACTUAL, MUSIC

I had promised to check out a session with Benjamin Zander. Me as a non-expert, together with someone who finds classical music downright soporific. To see if Zander works, as he promises to work: "Everyone loves classical music, they just don't know it yet". The man is in the Netherlands and that doesn't happen very often. Not so long ago...

Sparkling Candide at Canal Festival

by Thea Derks
22 August 201429 March 2022
4 min read
ACTUAL, For members only, MUSIC, OPERA

The 300-strong audience stood up as one after Leonard Bernstein's infectious performance of Candide at the Hilton Hotel in Amsterdam last night. The performance of this 'pocket version' of Bernstein's cheerful musical/opera about the incorrigible optimist Candide, produced by the Nationale Reisopera, took place indoors, in the hotel's ballroom, due to the weather conditions. After all, the Grachtenfestival has to be...

Robin Williams, loved yet misunderstood

by Leo Bankersen
12 August 201411 July 2016
2 min read
FILM

Beloved American actor Robin Williams certainly was. This is evident from the copious reactions following his unexpected death. Extra tragic that it is believed to be suicide, having struggled with depression and drink and drug problems. But it is also wry that the much-loved Williams has not had the chance to shine in a memorable leading role since 2002....

A performance that really makes you feel the futility of war. Demarrage by Charlotte Caeckaert on @tfboulevard

by Wijbrand Schaap
10 August 201430 March 2022
2 min read
For members only, Boulevard, SPECIALS, THEATER

Flemish actors can speak. Flemish actors usually don't need microphones to make themselves understood over a storm, or from 100 metres away in the open air. Charlotte Caeckaert is one such actress who can do all that, and such technique is a joy to witness. She also writes lyrics, and that's where things go a little wrong....

Hearing stories of loss. And cry about it. But then? Separate from the Southern Theatre on @tfboulevard.

by Wijbrand Schaap
10 August 201430 March 2022
2 min read
For members only, Boulevard, SPECIALS, THEATER

Two actors who, together with their director, want to create a performance about loss. Or rather: our fear of losing things, or people. The makers are not quite there yet, it turns out at Theatre Festival Boulevard. From numerous conversations with thinkers and (experiential) experts, they have distilled characters while improvising, which they - separated by a thick...

8 enticing words about Festival Boulevard.

by Wijbrand Schaap
8 August 201430 March 2022
5 min read
For members only, Boulevard, DANS, MUSIC, OPERA, SPECIALS, THEATER

It is the most ambitious summer festival in the Netherlands: Festival Boulevard in Den Bosch aims to showcase not only the finest theatre theatre theatre in the low countries, but also the fattest shows, and youngest new creators and the merriest bus drivers. And all that in 10 days, in once tad where the local newspaper does its best to promote culture as scary as possible to make. We briefly summarise it for you in eight enticing words.

What you can learn from Culture Press. Already 4 unique offers for art lovers and culture writers.

by Wijbrand Schaap
28 July 201430 March 2022
3 min read
ACTUAL, For members only

Being able to write nicely is fine, but the journalists at Culture Press can do more. They have studied to be art experts, have spent thousands of hours in rooms and halls that even you did not know existed and possess enormous drive. How else could this website exist?

Who are the finalists of the 50th Organ Festival?

by Thea Derks
16 July 201411 July 2016
4 min read
ACTUAL, MUSIC

Last night marked the 50th edition of the Organ Festival in Haarlem was graced with a concert in the Grote or St Bavo church by organists Ton Koopman and Olivier Latry. The voluminous book The Haarlem Essays gepresented, detailing the renaissance of the improvisation competition founded in 1951. The atmosphere in the sold-out church was supreme.

Journalism has changed. Countless reasons why you as an arts journalist can be at the forefront.

by Wijbrand Schaap
16 July 201411 July 2016
5 min read
ACTUAL

Once upon a time, people had a newspaper. In the newsroom, a few people knew why people had a newspaper. But it was a fact of life. People had a newspaper. Those who did not have a newspaper were not human beings. Nowadays, people don't have a newspaper. They have the internet. Those who don't have the internet are retarded.

Deventer seeks one boss for not a museum, but a story

by Wijbrand Schaap
14 July 201430 March 2022
2 min read
ACTUAL, For members only, VISUAL

Who can tell the story of Deventer? Apply. And if you manage to convince the committee, you can touch a nice salary for three years. As director of the first museum production house in the world.

Working for free has become commonplace in the arts. 4 bare facts by festival director Meulman

by Wijbrand Schaap
14 July 201429 March 2022
3 min read
ACTUAL, For members only

'The practice of payment by book voucher does not belong to a professional sector with substantial economic importance.' Jeffrey Meulman, director of the Dutch theatre festival, has learned to live with it. Against his will. As host of the annual Gala of Dutch Theatre, he has managed to organise that party again. Without money.

Aufführung der Komposition " Delusion of the fury " von Harry Partch in der Musiktheater Inszenierung von Heiner Goebbels mit dem Ensemble musikFabrik in der Jahrhunderthalle Bochum im Rahmen der Ruhrtriennale 2012-14 am Mittwoch, 21.08.2013

Seeing music (and not hearing it?)

by one of our members
4 July 201430 March 2022
11 min read
For members only, Holland Festival, MUSIC, SPECIALS

Because of my fascination with the complex relationship between listening and watching, I decided to visit three performances at the recent Holland Festival and experience what happened when I tried to pay equal attention to ears and eyes. The first was "Delusion of the Fury" (1966) by American composer Harry Partch, the second a concert performance of Philip Glass's opera "The CIVIL warS" (1983), the third a performance of Franz Schubert's "Die Winterreise" (1827) in which twenty-four short films by South African artist William Kentridge were shown.

Four opera myths shattered @Oerol festival

by one of our members
25 June 201430 March 2022
7 min read
ACTUAL, For members only, OPERA

Is a performance opera if not a note is sung? If the audience sits on a stand in a car park with headphones on their heads? Or if a man cries out like a dog with a tongue out of his mouth throughout the performance? The definitions of opera are stretched quite a bit at five Oerol performances. Interestingly, hardly anyone calls the performance opera. By necessity, musical theatre is often used, but that term does not really fall into a warm bath.

Culture Council says it: the Giving Act has failed, and the rest basically too

by Henri Drost
25 June 201411 July 2016
2 min read
ACTUAL, OPERA

Do you remember? The band-aid Halbe Zijlstra offered the cultural sector in the form of the Giving Act? Tax breaks would definitely lead to more sponsorship, so the impact of the austerity measures would not be nearly as dramatic as the sector itself cried out.

" Previous
1
...
35
36
37
38
39
...
52
Next "

Small Membership

175€ / 12 Months

Subscribe

Especially for organisations with a turnover or grant of less than 250,000 per year.

No annoying banners

A premium newsletter

5 trial newsletter subscriptions

All our podcasts

Have your say on our policies

Insight into finances

Exclusive archives

Posting press releases yourself

Own mastodon account on our instance

More details in the confirmation email!

Most Popular

Cultural Membership

360€ / Year

Subscribe

For cultural organisations

No annoying banners

A premium newsletter

10 trial newsletter subscriptions

All our podcasts

Participate

Insight into finances

Exclusive archives

Posting press releases yourself

Own mastodon account on our instance

Collaboration

In the confirmation e-mail you will find the details for press release forwarding

Private Membership

50€ / Year

Subscribe

For natural persons and self-employed persons.

No annoying banners

A premium newsletter

All our podcasts

Have your say on our policies

Insight into finances

Exclusive archives

Own mastodon account on our instance