Tallieu Art Office

Holle Haven - Première

In the spring of 2020, amidst the first lockdown, Gaea Schoeters wrote for ‘Besmette Stad’ (‘Infected City’), a project by De Buren in which they asked authors to reinterpret the collection ‘Bezette Stad’ (‘Occupied City’) of the Belgian poet and writer, Paul van Ostaijen, to the current corona context. In the months that followed, during a co-creation with pianist Lies Colman, mezzo Els Mondelaers & composer Annelies Van Parys , this text transformed into a kind of slam 2.0 for voice, mezzo-soprano and prepared piano. The four artists wanted to push the genre to its limits by combining spoken word with contemporary classical music. Photographer  Sébastien Van Malleghem roamed Antwerp by night and translated the music into film. And now director Sjaron Minailo signs for the final step and brings all these elements together into a staged performance, which paints a picture of the impact of the pandemic on our lives. From the loneliness of separated lovers during the quarantine to the abrupt halt of tourism and the economy, from having to die alone to the insatiable skin hunger and the caged desires.

A creation by Annelies Van Parys, Gaea Schoeters, Els Mondelaers, Lies Colman and Sjaron Minailo. In coproduction with Muziektheater Transparant, Studio Minailo & Concertgebouw Brugge, with the support of the City of Antwerp and in collaboration with deBuren / Besmette Stad.