De Macht der theaterlijke dwaasheden

Info

Original Title	De Macht der theaterlijke dwaasheden
English Title	The Power of Theatrical Madness
Director	Jan Fabre
Country	Bélgica
Runtime	260 min

Synopsis

With “The Power of Theatrical Madness” Jan Fabre reconstructs his 1984 historical theatre marathon, scene by scene, movement by movement, with a young generation of performers, with the same cynicism and the same contrasts as before. The zeitgeist of speed and new media makes today’s performance, if possible, even more radical than it was back in 1984. The performance is once again divided in different scenes or proceedings. Hans Christian Andersen’s story of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” is one of the threads that connects the different strands of fragments. The sham, the pretense of the emperor stands as a metaphor for the illusion, for the lying of the theatre. Projections of idyllic, mannerist paintings are glaringly contrasted with the actions and physicality of the actors. Fabre wished that this performance preferably would take place in the red plush and the brass foil of the grand public theatres: in order that the contrast between the hypocrisy and the frivolity of this décor and the reality and the discipline of the performers on the scene would be made as big as possible. As a visual artist Fabre was more than aware of the pressure that ‘the market’ exercised on his art. Here too the question arises, how the times of today color our perception of this performance. A time wherein ‘the market’ has come to determine all aspects of our lives.

The Company

Troubleyn/Jan Fabre is a theatre company with extensive international operations. Its home base is Antwerp. The artist Jan Fabre has been its artistic head since it was established in 1986. Troubleyn/Jan Fabre represents the creation and presentation of the work for the stage by the artist Jan Fabre (theatre, dance, opera, film projects) and by extension the coordination of publications, public talks, workshops etc. as well as the work of the Troubleyn/Laboratorium. This space functions not only as a workplace and rehearsal space, but also as a laboratory for independent research and training, focusing on body and language.

Cast

Maria Dafneros, Yorrith De Bakker, Piet Defrancq, Melissa Guerin, Nelle Hens, Sven Jakir, Carlijn Koppelmans, Georgios Kotsifakis, Dennis Makris, Lisa May, Giulia Perelli, Gilles Polet, Pietro Quadrino, Merel Severs, Nicolas Simeha and Kasper Vandenberghe