In 1978, the Ghent-based Rooie Vlinder, a radical queer organization, organized the very first Belgian Pride in Ghent. A celebration and a protest all in one. After a few years, the Rooie Vlinder spread its wings to Antwerp and Brussels. The organization fought for equal rights and thus played a crucial role within the LGBTQIA+ community of that time. Today, 46 years later, there is no Pride in Ghent. Have we acquired all the rights then? Why is the city where it all began lagging behind today? Strengthened by the legacy of the Rooie Vlinder, various queer artists reinterpret their past with a contemporary perspective. In doing so, they create an attempt to meet the desire for a festive, activist ritual in which connection, community, and the search for identity and freedom take center stage, in a world full of uncertainty and oppression.Credits by and with: Kristof van Baarle, Melanie Barelds, Marie Baudoncq, Mathilde Cominotto, Céline De Coninck, Freek De Craecker, Kato van Ermen, Goldscammer, Zora the Hooker, Thomas Van Imschoot, Jarne Van Loon, Melissa Mabesoone, Queer March, Sam De Mol, Ruud Van Moorleghem (Bebe Books), Marthe Peeters, Tzula Propp, Jens Ranson (Queer March), Denys Shantar, Spring Showers, Kato Stevens, Zindzi Tillot, Valentina Toth, Guido Totté, Bert Toulet, Loes Vanneste, Leen Vandekeybus, Kelly Vermeiren &amp; Hendrik Wittock with the support of: Buda, CAMPO, Chopin Chopin, C-Mine Genk, deAuteurs, De Studio, the Flemish Government, Kunstenwerkplaats, Queer March, Selvagem Woods VZW &amp; Viernulvier

Ander Strand

Following their BROKEBACK SHITSHOW, Louis Verlinde and Gina Beuk are once again joining forces for a new SHITSHOW. With SHITSHOW 2 (your shit is our show), Verlinde and Beuk explore the crossover between a fashion show and a theatrical radio show. SHITSHOW 2 investigates the improbable multiplicity of our world and examines the catwalk as a theatrical space. The show addresses ways of living—and surviving—and how to cope with that multiplicity, sketching a portrait of our times in an almost anthropological manner. It is a catwalk performance that cannot choose between order and chaos, beauty and trash, or "into the wild" and "into the city." For this SHITSHOW, Gina and Louis are collaborating with the Theatre Costume department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. The trashy quality of BROKEBACK SHITSHOW is as amusing as it is unsettling. (...) Louis and Gina seem to be making fun of the high-pace entertainment of today which is made with only one goal in mind: it must sell. It’s a great, sneakily entertaining parody, but it precariously balances on the edge of what it parodies. -&nbsp;Ugnė Noreikė in Etcetera , 14 december 2023

SHITSHOW PART 2

The luxury gay cruise ship Poseidon's Paradise capsizes in the North Sea. Seven drag queens, a captain, and a writer wash up on an uninhabited island. What begins as a wet dream filled with glitter and wigs descends into a battle for power and recognition: survival of the prettiest. Camping Sunset presents a campy adaptation of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. Conflicting group dynamics surface—such as the urge for togetherness, the fear of exclusion, the quest for individual self-expression, and the distribution of power. What happens when these questions are detached from stereotypes of masculinity and explored by a group for whom gender is a broad, fluid spectrum? For this production, Camping Sunset collaborates with a diverse group of drag performers. True to the Sunset identity, the show is created in just two weeks of rehearsals. Over the subsequent ten performance days, the cast continues to explore the essence of the artistic material in front of an audience. Loosely inspired by: Lord of the Flies (1954) by William Golding, Humankind (2019) by Rutger Bregman, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Expeditie Robinson, Echte Meisjes In De Jungle, Million Dollar Island, Ex On The Beach… Possible disclaimers: flashing lights, use of smoke machine, potential nudity, alcohol consumption, explicit language. Credits: Created by and featuring Lennert Boots, Freek De Craecker (Kelly Verpepsi), Sam De Mol (Veronika Deneuve), Jérôme Depriestre (Susan From Grindr), Tine De Pauw (Ding Dong Dolores), Robbe Embrechts, Mick Galliot Fabré (Judas Hengst), Valentin Van Daele (Caramelle), Milan Mitera, Asena Karanfil (Zina Geire), Carine van Bruggen/Gina Beuk. Concept &amp; idea: Freek De Craecker. Coaches: Gina Beuk, Lennert Boots, Luca Bryssinck, Joeri Happel. Music: Robbe Embrechts. Set design &amp; lighting: Gilles Pollak. Costumes: Sam Beddegenoodts, Louis Verlinde. Wigs &amp; make-up coordinator: Valentin Van Daele (Caramelle). Production and communication: Erica Van Mulders and Kelly Vermeiren. Business management: Hanne Ghekiere. Promotional image: Michael Valdez. With thanks to: Lieselot Siddiki, Frieda Degeyter. Supported by: The Flemish Government, Theater Aan Zee, deAuteurs, and the City of Ghent.

Queen of the Flies

Come along for a night swim and dive into the underbelly of the club! Drown in drinking organs. Become weightless. Seduce a giggling gabber nymph. Drown into oblivion. Cry over missing butt plugs. Whip the whip on Bacchus' buttocks. Feel the moon in your throat and the hunger in the club. Laugh with the lost souls on dry land. Knock out the shame. Slow with the whore of Babylon. Fumble with crazy aquatic creatures. Dance the polonaise with the twelve apostles. Get rituals out of your ass and shots out of your ears. And marinate yourself in pre-cum.

With a shared love for the Dionysian, nightlife, glitter and spectacle, Jarne and Lieselot made 'Night swimming' together. A party disguised as a show. Or a performance disguised as a party.

Concept: Jarne Van Loon & Lieselot Siddiki - performance: May Abnet, Floris Baeke, Nona Demey Gallagher, Electra, Susan from Grindr, Krietjur, Elisabeth Klinck, Mauve Lux Margy Regniers, Lieselot Siddiki, Valentina Angelique Tóth, Freek De Craecker & Simon Baetens & Jarne Van Loon - costume: Aidan Abnet & Lieselot Siddiki - music: Oscar Pilchard Claus, Elisabeth Klinck, Margy Regniers, Valentina Toth & Nid&Sancy - visuals: Anton Clays - play and make-up: Mauve Lux & Krietjur - poster image: Valerie de Backer, May Abnet, Krietjur & Mauve Lux - thanks to: Karel Busschop, Noel David, Jana De Kockere, Jaimy Aris D'hont, Simon Dewinne, Maarten Dings, Nid & Sancy, Joeri Happel, Nele Keukelier, Bardia Mohammad, Vic Peeters, Gaspard Rozenwajn, SPA for Spirits, Naomi van der Horstt, Alles Kan Stad Gent, Gouvernement, Voo?uit & Zuidpark - a production by Gouvernement - in conjunction with Night Shift

Pictures by Michiel Devijver

Nachtzwemmen

After All Springville Disasters and Amusement Parks is a restaging of her iconic work. With the lightness of a cartoon, the tragic story of a failed community is told.In it, an explosive narrative unfolds around a colorful-smoking cardboard house, its inhabitants and the neighborhood: an elegant walking table that would like nothing better than to be set, a man who wants to take out the trash, a frustrated fuse box and a very long pair of pants go through big and small dramas with varying degrees of slapstick and disaster potential. With the lightness of a cartoon, the tragic story of a failed community is told. And because all this could hardly be more topical, Warlop is now restaging her iconic work 12 years after its world premiere under the title&nbsp;After All Springville.Press“In After All Springville, Miet Warlop opens the door to a wonderful universe. Her theatre is playful and full of jokes, but at heart she is exploring the essence of humanity. Fresh, energetic and disarming. She shows us the poetry of the anomaly, the power and fragility of that which differs from the norm”. – **** De Morgen 2021“Miet Warlop turns out to be a sprightly homo ludens who creates her own worlds without fixed natural laws and logical connections. – De Theaterkrant 2021“In Springville, Warlop sets an inventive course through moving tableaux vivants – which characterise her language – combined with Keatonesque slapstick. It delivers subtle theatre that holds up a penetrating and playful magnifying mirror to the world.” Els Van Steenberghe – Knack – May 2009CREDITS Concept and Direction:&nbsp;Miet Warlop Performance:&nbsp;Hanako Hayakawa, Winston Reynolds/Emiel Vandenberghe, Alexandra Rosser/Margarida Ramalhete, Milan Schudel/Jacobine Tone Kofoed, Wietse Tanghe/Freek De Craecker, Jarne Van Loon Costumes: Sofie Durnez Technical Coordination:&nbsp;Patrick Vanderhaegen Technical Crew: Eva Dermul, Jurgen Techel, Bart Van Hoydonck Production Manager: Rossana Miele Production:&nbsp;Miet Warlop / Irene Wool vzw Coproduction:&nbsp;HAU&nbsp;Hebbel am Ufer – Berlin (DE), Arts Centre&nbsp;BUDA&nbsp;(BE), Arts Centre Vooruit (BE), PerPodium (BE), De Studio Antwerpen (BE), Internationales Sommerfestival Kampnagel (DE) With the support of&nbsp;The Belgian Tax Shelter, Flemish Authorities, City of Ghent (BE) Thanks to: Arts Centre&nbsp;CAMPO&nbsp;(BE),&nbsp;TAZ&nbsp;– Theater Aan Zee &amp; cc De Grote Post (BE), Amotec (BE), Bennert Vancottem Contact &amp; distribution: Frans Brood Productions

After All Springville

This summer, Camping Sunset will treat us to no fewer than three evening performances: part 1, part 2 and part 3 of Ten Oorlog. Each part is made and played in a different city (Ghent, Ostend and Antwerp respectively). During the marathon performance you get the chance to watch the three parts in succession. If you have seen Zomergasten or Happiness before, you know that Camping Sunset guarantees exciting location theater with a series of excellent young players who are also the creators of the piece. This summer the collective is venturing into Ten Oorlog – a monster performance in three parts – based on the theater text by Tom Lanoye and Luk Perceval, based on Shakespeare's War of the Roses. Camping Sunset wouldn't be Camping Sunset if they didn't bend this legendary adaptation. Little intimidated by the cult value of the original piece, the collective adds a large dose of camping punk and cuts and dices without mercy. The three parts are created according to the now well-known Camping Sunset recipe: a very short rehearsal process and a much longer playing time. Because an actor only really learns to play by playing a lot, for and with an audience. CREDITS Camping Sunset is Aimé Claeys, Ali Can Unal, Arne de Tremerie, Bjorn Floréal, Carine van Bruggen, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Erica Van Mulders, Eva Bracke, Flor Van Severen, Freek De Craecker, Gilles Pollak, Hanne Nuyttens, Jana De Kockere, Ibtissam Boulbahaiem, Jesse Vandamme, Joeri Happel, Laurens Aneca, Lennert Boots, Lieselot Siddiki, Loes Swaenepoel, Louis Verlinde, Louise Bergez, Lucie Plasschaert, Menzo Kircz, Mitch Van Landeghem, Patricia Kargbo &amp; Soraya van Welsenlin Siddikis Alexis Gerlach scenography Gilles Pollak technique Gilles Pollak &amp; Hanne Nuyttens text editing Camping Sunset, free after Ten war by Tom Lanoye &amp; Luk Perceval production and communication coordinator Eva Bracke social media manager Erica Van Mulders concept Camping Sunset Carine van Bruggen &amp; Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven production Camping Sunset , CAMPO, Arts Center Vooruit, Het TheaterFestival, TAZ, kleinVerhaal, KAAP, Mu.ZEE &amp; De Grote Post with the financial support of d e Flemish Community, Culture Ghent-City of Ghent &amp; City of Antwerp many thanks to everyone who contributed to make this project possible.

Ten Oorlog II

After the success of the family performance The Four Seasons, concertmaster Lisanne Soeterbroek and narrator Freek De Craecker are once again joining forces for an unforgettable chamber music concert. Step into the colorful fantasy world of The Wizard of Oz, which the ensemble of musicians from the orchestra brings to life to the masterful sounds of Igor Stravinsky. The flamboyant theater maker Freek De Craecker gives the timeless story of L. Frank Baum a contemporary twist. An unmissable experience for the whole family, from six years old!

The Wizard of Oz

Performance: millipedeWith Ruben Mardulier, Freek De Craecker, Margot Masquelier en Renee LeermanPhoto's: Michiel Devijver

millepede

Pen: What’s the point? Pencil: The point? The point of what? Pen: Well, the point of everything? Eraser: I really don’t feel like doing this. *Paperas* is a performance for young audiences (8+) about the power and limitations of words. A pencil, a pen, a felt-tip marker, and an eraser are stuck together inside a pencil case. Every now and then, one of them is ‘chosen’ to go on an adventure in the big, unknown outside world. They return with stories about romantic love letters, difficult tests, abstract drawings, stressful tax returns, and other paperwork. The analog writing tools soon realize that out there, they are running out—wearing down. The eraser fears erasing itself completely, the marker is afraid of losing its cap and drying out, and the pencil knows that every time her tip is sharpened, she gets a little shorter. To brave the outside world, the writing tools must work together; understanding one another—and the role language plays in that—becomes their greatest challenge. Text and concept: Freek De Craecker and Femke Platteau Director: Femke Platteau Cast: Freek De Craecker, Melanie Barelds, Maya Albert, and Joshua Smits Coaching: Gina Beuk Costumes and design: Louis Verlinde and Veerle Vervliet Lighting design: Bram Geldhof Music: Tijl Piryns Production management: Kelly Vermeiren Technical support: Bert Demeulenaere Business management: Dorien Vranckx Production: One Eyed Jack vzw In co-production with: Het LAB/CCHA, fABULEUS/OPEK, 30CC/Rode Hond Festival Supported by: The Flemish Government, Tax Shelter/Perpodium. with thanks to: Kristof Van Baarle, Simon Baetens, Loes Carrette, Loes Swaenepoel, BRONKS, VIERNULVIER, Kopergietery, The European House of Authors

PAPERAS

This summer, Camping Sunset will treat us to no fewer than three evening performances: part 1, part 2 and part 3 of Ten Oorlog. Each part is made and played in a different city (Ghent, Ostend and Antwerp respectively). During the marathon performance you get the chance to watch the three parts in succession.

If you have seen Zomergasten or Happiness before, you know that Camping Sunset guarantees exciting location theater with a series of excellent young players who are also the creators of the piece. This summer the collective is venturing into Ten Oorlog – a monster performance in three parts – based on the theater text by Tom Lanoye and Luk Perceval, based on Shakespeare's War of the Roses. Camping Sunset wouldn't be Camping Sunset if they didn't bend this legendary adaptation. Little intimidated by the cult value of the original piece, the collective adds a large dose of camping punk and cuts and dices without mercy.

The three parts are created according to the now well-known Camping Sunset recipe: a very short rehearsal process and a much longer playing time. Because an actor only really learns to play by playing a lot, for and with an audience.

CREDITS

Camping Sunset is Aimé Claeys, Ali Can Unal, Arne de Tremerie, Bjorn Floréal, Carine van Bruggen, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Erica Van Mulders, Eva Bracke, Flor Van Severen, Freek De Craecker, Gilles Pollak, Hanne Nuyttens, Jana De Kockere, Ibtissam Boulbahaiem, Jesse Vandamme, Joeri Happel, Laurens Aneca, Lennert Boots, Lieselot Siddiki, Loes Swaenepoel, Louis Verlinde, Louise Bergez, Lucie Plasschaert, Menzo Kircz, Mitch Van Landeghem, Patricia Kargbo & Soraya van Welsenlin Siddikis Alexis Gerlach scenography Gilles Pollak technique Gilles Pollak & Hanne Nuyttens text editing Camping Sunset, free after Ten war by Tom Lanoye & Luk Perceval production and communication coordinator Eva Bracke social media manager Erica Van Mulders concept Camping Sunset Carine van Bruggen & Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven production Camping Sunset , CAMPO, Arts Center Voo?uit, Het TheaterFestival, TAZ, kleinVerhaal, KAAP, Mu.ZEE & De Grote Post with the financial support of d e Flemish Community, Culture Ghent-City of Ghent & City of Antwerp many thanks to everyone who contributed to make this project possible.

Ten Oorlog III

The only thing you can do is embrace this fucking shitshow!&nbsp;BROKEBACK SHITSHOW is a grotesque catwalk performance that tells the story of the lonely cowboy looking for love in this modern-bullshit society. After their debut on the classic catwalk, they are now taking the theater world by storm.&nbsp;Starting from the classic gay icon film Brokeback Mountain, Louis Verlinde and Gina Beuk create a multidisciplinary fashion performance based on Louis&#39; aversion and attraction for the love story. With their background in theater, visual arts, fashion and costume design, they challenge the given, classic codes on and off the catwalk. scenography, costume
LOUIS VERLINDE
 Direction
LOUIS VERLINDE GINA BEUK with GINA BEUK JARNE VAN LOON HANNAH BRUGGE FREEK DE CRAECKER SHEE ROETING EMIEL VANDENBERGHE EMMA VERSTRAETE IRIS DONDERS LUCIE PLASSCHAERT NONA DEMEY GALLAGHER MELANIE BARELDS
 music
MATHIEU JANSSENS
 Thanks to
CLAUDINE

BROKEBACK SHITSHOW

The traffic garden in the Vrijbroekpark is where generations of Mechelen residents learned their cycling skills. At the request of BROEK, the Belgian circus artist/performer Ruben Mardulier and his Norwegian colleague Micha Goldberg are creating a performance at that location for the first time.&nbsp;Get into a go-kart, put on your headphones and be completely captivated by audio guide Samantha, who tells compelling stories and gives absurd instructions while you drive in circles with a view to infinity. Sens Interdit is the first collaboration between Mardulier and Goldberg, two artists with a unique, humorous signature.&nbsp; By: Ruben Mardulier and Micha Goldberg &bull; game: Ruben Mardulier, Micha Goldberg, Freek de Craecker and Margot Masquelier &bull; photo: Camille Paycha

Hullabaloo Park

As per tradition, we close the festival and VIDEODROOM at Arts Centre VIERNULVIER with an epic Closing Party.Bring out your inner Prince, because this year&rsquo;s closing party is entirely dedicated to Purple Rain. Exactly 40 years ago, Prince became a worldwide phenomenon thanks to both the album and the film. The birthday party will be kick-started by Belgian talent Porcelain id, who will perform the iconic soundtrack (see Porcelain id x Purple Rain on the programme). Afterwards, you&rsquo;ll get to imagine yourself on the set of Purple Rain, as De Vooruit&rsquo;s Concertzaal will be transformed into the legendary First Avenue nightclub from the film by Ghent-based collective GHOST. Expect a wild ride of Minneapolis funk &amp; eighties pop, surprise performances, and - who knows - real purple rain. Let&rsquo;s go crazy!

Videodroom x filmfest

God is dead and I love Coca Cola. That's when I got restless.
 
The Big Loser Show is about not knowing how to deal with the responsability of individualism and not knowing how to karaoke in style.
Performance completly in English, ein bisschen Deutsch, un petit peu de Francais en misschien een paar woorden Nederlands. If you would like to have a translation before you come, please let it know and you will receive a Google Translate version of the text.
​
Text and Performance: Freek De Craecker | Costume: Elise Good Company | Supervision: Mieja Hollevoet, Bauke Lievens | Many thanks to: Rosie Sommers, Aron Wouters, Tim Taveirne, Leo Verlinden, Bjorn Elliot, Nina Simone, Benny Claessens, Tom Goossens, Vanessa Chinitor, Naomi van der Horst, Google Translate, Valerie Galle, Mieja Hollevoet, Lozano Lafertin, Spotify , Louise Bergez, Fabrice Delecluse, Anna Carlier, Beethoven, Mia Van Herreweghe, Mourad Baaiz, Divan David, Michael Angelo, Louis Janssens, Nathan Ooms, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Simon Baetens, Alessandro Baricco, Condittioner, Finn Janning, Eleanor Bauer, Niek Doyen, Coca Cola, Simon Hugé and Oprah Winfrey, and others 

The Big Loser Show

THE ARTIST IS MEGA MEGA PRESENT an invasive parody performance where old Marina meets young Marina in such a presence it&rsquo;s just really too much and you just wanna get the hell out of the present.Curated by Ruben Mardulier for Muzee Oostende.

The artist is mega mega present

Theatre maker Freek De Craecker and violinist Lisanne Soeterbroek—concertmaster of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra—have previously created two successful family performances within the beautiful setting of AMUZ. Now, they take you on a wondrous journey through space. Their story follows scientists of the future as they set out to explore other planets. Exciting! You will hear music by composers who were true innovators for their time. Are you ready to push boundaries and explore the universe? A captivating family performance for children aged six and up and their families. CREDITS Volodymyr Fedorov cello Peter Verhoyen flute Nele Delafonteyne clarinet Elias Blanco del Prado percussion Thomas Van Imschoot costumes Lisanne Soeterbroek violin and direction Jonas Baeke outside eye Freek De Craecker narrator Lauretta Bloomer piano

Ruimtereizigers

On the horizon is an assemblage of several installations and performances that all take their inspiration from the phallic symbol. It is almost impossible not to be confronted by these vertical forms of self-proclaimed male authority. Towering apartment buildings dominate the landscape, there is no museum or gallery to visit in which the male sexual organ is absent. And once you&#39;ve seen this work, even the horizon might get funky.. And the phallic symbol hopefully loses it&#39;s last bits of authority. By copiously adding even more phallic symbols, Ruben attempts to break the untouchability of this symbol as a man with his deconstructive humorous approach which he cultivates in his work for the past few years. all pictures by Michiel Devijver

On The Horizon

Camping Sunset, the revelation of the past TheaterFestival, is back. This summer they will be releasing Happiness, based on Todd Solondz's acclaimed film. An ode to plucking life, because life is a party, as long as you hang the garlands yourself. Happiness is about sleeping peacefully without demons in your head and a healthy dose of Seroxat in your stomach. About everyday life. About doing your best and then failing and then failing better and then everything again. About fucking and a lack thereof. Happiness is yolo, is being satisfied with yourself. The quest for the human dimension and the American dream. Desires and secrets, all around that one concept: touch. 

Camping Sunset, a collective of 15 newly graduated players, always starts from the principle that they play longer than rehearse. Because you become a player by playing. You, as a spectator, can come and see three times with one ticket. This way you challenge the players to throw themselves in front of the lions, and you see them and the performance evolve throughout the three-week playing period. You're in bed. There is a rope around your neck. Life is good. The bread is fresh. You greet a kind woman. You drink coffee at home. You eat sandwiches. You read the newspaper. Life is good. You go to bed. There is a rope hanging around your neck. 

Camping Sunset is Aimé Claeys, Arne de Tremerie, Bjorn Floréal, Carine van Bruggen, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Erica Van Mulders, Eva Bracke, Flor Van Severen, Freek De Craecker, Gilles Pollak, Jana De Kockere, Jesse Vandamme, Joeri Happel, Lennert Boots, Loes Swaenepoel, Louise Bergez, Lucie Plasschaert, Martha Balthazar, Menzo Kirzc & Mitch Van Landeghem Play in Happiness: Arne de Tremerie, Carine van Bruggen, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Flor Van Severen, Freek De Craecker, Loes Swaenepoel, Menzo Kirzc & Mitch Van Landeghem Coaching: Jesse Vandamme & Lennert Boots Musical accompaniment: FAN Costumes: Bjorn Floreal, Louis Verlinde & Lucie Plasschaert Scenography: Gilles Pollak Technique: Gilles Pollak & Philippe Digneffe Text editing: Camping Sunset, free to Happiness (Todd Solondz) Concept Camping Sunset: Carine van Bruggen & Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven Communication: Erica Van Mulders Production coordination / Corona coordinator: Eva Bracke Production: Camping Sunset & CAMPO Co-production: Vooruit Arts Center With thanks to: The TheaterFestival, de Wasserij, City of Ghent, Refu Interim and everyone who has contributed in a way to make this project possible. 

Happiness

Ariadne auf Naxos is perhaps the most inventive opera by composer Richard Strauss and librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal, the successful duo behind Der Rosenkavalier and Elektra. It's a bundle of genres and entanglements, a play within a play, a battle for the audience's attention between the "high" and "low" arts. Opera Ballet Vlaanderen presents this celebrated, late-Romantic gem in a concert performance.

In the palazzo of Vienna's wealthiest upstart, the steward is in a dire situation. No fewer than two opera companies have been engaged for the post-culinary entertainment of his master's guests. The first is a farcical mess in line with the opera buffa tradition, led by the feisty Zerbinetta. The second is a rather exalted company – complete with prima donna, tenor, composer ... – that intends to perform a serious opera about the myth of Ariadne. Dinner is running late, as these things go, and the fireworks later in the evening absolutely cannot wait. Therefore, the steward announces that the two groups will have to perform at the same time. And that's just the beginning.

With this ingenious plot, Strauss and Von Hofmannsthal furnish Ariadne auf Naxos with all the theatrical and musical ingredients for success. Interspersed between the plot developments, Strauss weaves musical gems with which many a soprano has become immortal. Think of Zerbinetta's virtuoso "Grossmächtige Prinzessin" or Ariadne's moving "Ein Schönes war".


Ariadne auf Naxos

All the leaves are brown, and the sky is grey… A turbulent serenade about living together. In Tillsammans (Together), 13 young creators/performers from KASK Drama—under the guidance of Camping Sunset—enact the story of a Swedish commune from the 1970s. The rules are simple: Pippi Longstocking is a capitalist, washing dishes is bourgeois, and porridge is the ultimate delicacy. But love is free, the children belong to everyone, and everyone belongs! For eight weeks, this ad-hoc commune blurred the lines between fiction and reality. Living and working together proves to be anything but straightforward, yet absolutely essential. How do you reconcile 13 different opinions? How do you avoid tearing each other apart? Or perhaps you don’t? And who does the dishes at the end of the day? Collectivity, conflict, and a touch of communism. A quest for togetherness against all odds. Because only love remains; that is all there is. Tillsammans is an exuberant site-specific project by third-year Drama students from KASK &amp; Conservatory and Camping Sunset. The stage is the NTGent city theatre. Together, they embrace the "Sunset method": selecting and adapting a play within a few weeks and exploring it on the rehearsal floor as much as possible. The idea behind Camping Sunset is as simple as it is radical: an actor only truly learns to act by acting a lot—in front of and with an audience. Inspired by the film by Lukas MoodyssonBy and featuring Anaïs Maes, Anna De Graeve, Casper Schoolmeesters, Dorelia Schraven, Gudrun Moreau, Milan Mitera, Miro Lievens, Nathan Isahakyan, Pieter Van Dijk, Rinus Chaerle, Robbe Embrechts, Seppe Somers, Tembi De Koninck Music: Robbe Embrechts Coaches: Carine van Bruggen, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Freek De Craecker, Joeri Happel, Mitch Van Landeghem, Patricia Kargbo Dramaturgical advice: Lennert Boots Costumes: Louis Verlinde Lighting: Gilles Pollak Imagery: Ellen Soors and Karin De Vos With thanks to Simon De Winne, Jan Steen, Madonna Lenaert, Bardia Mohammad, City of Ghent

Tillsammans

HALL05 is the fifth in the series of 32 sub projects that works towards the building that is a theatre play and the theatre play that is a building (HALL33). HALL05 was presented at Saint Nicolas Church in Ghent, during Design Triennial. Design and theatre tudents of The Royal Academy of The Hague and SCHOOL of Arts Ghent (KASK) have co-designed and build the installation, with expert input by Welsh theatre maker Iwan Brioc and the Bishop of Ghent Luc Van Looy. Two Moderated Meetings were organized: at the opening on November 12th actress Pascale Platel and designer Elise Van Thuyne experience HALL05 followed by a talk on their profession. On November 19th we invited Vlaams Bouwmeester Leo Van Broeck and city councilor Tom Balthazar on stage.
​
/ Context: Design Triennial, Ghent
/ Location: Saint Nicolas Church, Korenmarkt
/ Time: November 12th untill November 27 2016
/ Partners: Campo Arts Centre, Design Museum Ghent
/ Production: Stichting SoAP
/ Funded by: Kunsten en Erfgoed, Fonds Podium Kunsten, C-TAKT
/ Photography: Jim Stephenson

TAAT

The first human is pretty lost. The second is smiling. The third is bungeejumping. The fourth really hates babies. The fifth is watching scary shit. The sixth is refusing to eat. The seventh is proud of his body The eight is tearing up old pictures. The ninth is an old guy tapdancing. The tenth wants to kill the third. The eleventh would like to have at least one friend. The twelfth is &nbsp;crying softly. The thirteenth almost died but is ok now. The fourteenth is not masturbating The fifteenth has started a blog about emotions. The sixteenth is spitting on all the dead corpses. The seventeenth is looking at the twelfth. The eighteenth can&rsquo;t believe this is happening. And then they all played.The performance FUN LOVING HUMANS explores in a loving way how sick everything and everyone is normally. This is done in an extremely detailed and completely arbitrary manner. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is striking.PRODUCTION: KOPERGIETERY &amp; KGbeDIRECTOR: Simon D&#39;HuyvetterACTORS: Jonas Baeke, Lotta Bal, Robin Chan, Imme Crul, Bente De Graeve, Isaura De Paepe, Eran De Vlam, Sander Celestes De Vlam, Anthea Demoen, Gust Dhossche, Lisa Mari, Robbe Meere, Mats VandrogenbroeckARTISTIC COACH: Griet DobbelaereMUSIC: Matthieu SysCOSTUMES: Leentje KerremansLIGHT: Jeroen DoiseSOUND: Gert Van HyfteDECOR: Jan BekaertTECHNIQUE: Bart Van BellegemPRODUCTION: Polien Demeulemeester, Gielke Smet, Karel Clemminck

Fun Loving Humans

Jarne Van Loon and Freek De Craecker are both theater makers and actors that inhabit worlds where extravagance, wildness and queerness are sovereign. Their collaboration traces back to a wide array of projects: Freek played in Nachtzwemmen, a party performance created by Jarne Van Loon and Lieselot Siddiki. They both can be seen in After All Springville by Miet Warlop but also in Nightshift in Oostende as well as in Horst. They are developing an experiential club performance, an invitation to reconsider and push boundaries of movement and embodiment in a humorous yet sensual, capturing yet freeing act. &nbsp;&nbsp;Photographs taken by Anton Fayle.

Fade into you

Three White Horses is the first project by Arne De Tremerie, Freek De Craecker and Menzo Kircz under the banner of the new company Le Grand Comité de Salut Public. A performance that is the search for an interpretation of an identity and where it can be found on Youtube ...

Why are you, you?
From this question, a new beginning.
From this question, a new destiny.
For you are a world, and a meeting of worlds.
What if we could tell you the history of the world in just two hours?

Welcome to the final show
Hope you're wearing your best clothes.
Come with questions, leave with visions.
We are the link between the past and the future.
New scenery,
new actors,
and there is a new crowd.
Why are you, you?
We are mirrors of each other.
We connect, we inspire, we multiply illuminations
with the unique light of art.
We are a twenty first century wonder.
Cause we got issues
But you've got 'em too.
The Louvre Abu Dhabi - Youtube - Harry Styles - Julia Michaels
 
From and with: Arne De Tremerie, Freek De Craecker and Menzo Kircz
Thanks to: Bauke Lievens, Mieja Hollevoet, Tom Engels, Gregory Abels, Fabrice Delecluse, all mums and dads, De Robot, Marie Lamberechts, Pat Vermeulen and many, many, many more…

Photos: Leontien Allemeersch 

Three White Horses

Nothing but graygrayand gray again. Until a hint of blue trickles in.A spark of red spills over.In the distance, a yellow stripe waves.And there, a giant orange cast. Everything changes.Until everyone has forgotten what he was just doing. Kladderadatsch is like a look and search book in whichgray figures are followed in their daily lives.Until their world is thoroughly shaken by the arrival of color.An unbridled fantasy trip for everyone from the age of three. A performance by: Freek De Craecker, Femke Platteau &amp; Tijs VerbruggeGame: Femke Platteau, Freek De Craecker &amp; Tijl PirynsScenography, costumes and performance: Lotte BoonstraSet design and lighting design: Max AdamsMusic: Tijl PirynsCoach: Jits Van BelleStage production and directing assistance: Silke GerinckxPromo image: Olympe TitsProduction manager: Maaike ScheltjensTechnique: Zeno VerleeTechnical coordinator: Koen Bellens Co-production: Per Podium

Kladderadatsch

Concertmaster Lisanne Soeterbroek is a true multi-talent: in addition to her leading role at the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, she is a portrait photographer and she can also sing like the best. A creative jack-of-all-trades. With this performance she brings a unique chamber music experience for the whole family. When Antonio Vivaldi published his world-famous violin cycle The Four Seasons, he also wrote a sonnet for each part. Music and poetry merge into a timeless story about the seasons and the beauty of nature, completely tailor-made by theater maker Freek De Craecker. In this performance you let your imagination loose with the ear-pleasing music of Vivaldi. An indispensable introduction to classical music for everyone aged 8 and over!

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons

Two men and a woman sunbathe and bathe on the beach in Southern Europe. Ordinary people on vacation, living in the cocoon of the Club Med resorts. They seduce each other, send postcards with the well-known clichés and drink cocktails late into the night. A hangover is the trigger for a small existential crisis, which is only answered with polonaises and more cocktails.
 
The libretto, in the characteristic style of Dimitri Verhulst, is staged in Bosch Beach by LOD composer Vasco Mendonça and director Kris Verdonck, who is venturing into his first opera. On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of Hieronymus Bosch's death, they take the idea of ​​hell on earth as their starting point, in order to look at our current world through Bosch's eyes. What does hell look like today? What place is the "False Paradise," a hidden hell on Earth today? Sunbathe on the beautiful beach of Lampedusa while the refugees wash up; it seems to be getting very close.
 
In Bosch Beach, Verhulst, Verdonck & Mendonça play with the ambiguity of this place and the impossible questions of guilt it entails. Faced with the flows of refugees, there is a strong moral appeal for responsibility. Isn't our lifestyle at the expense of the quality of life and stability on other continents? And if so, can and should we feel responsible there as individuals? And how should we act accordingly? Reality gnaws how much we try to avoid it. Alienating elements, three mascots, an inflatable kiosk and burning light punctuate the relaxation. In Bosch Beach, the false paradise of the resorts and the Bosche hell on earth merge seamlessly together.

CREDITS:
Director: Kris Verdonck
Dramaturgy: Kristof Van Baarle
Music: Vasco Mendonça
Libretto: Dimitri Verhulst based on The Seven Deadly Sins by Hieronymus Bosch
Conductor: Etienne Siebens
Vocals: Marion Tassou (soprano), Rodrigo Ferreira (countertenor), Damien Pass (baritone)
Orchestra: Asko | Schönberg: (1 flute (double alto flute, bass flute, piccolo) 2 clarinets (both bass clarinet) 2 trumpets (both flugelhorn) 1 trombone 1 percussionist 2 violins 2 violas 2 cellos 1 double bass)
Extra: Robbe Peeters, Simon Van Schuylenbergh, Astrid De Haes, Freek De Craecker
Copyist: Wim Hoogewerf
Choreographer: Marc Iglesias
Repititor piano: Lies Colman
Costumes: Eefje Wijnings, Andrea Kränzlin
Decor: Kris Verdonck, Eefje Wijnings
Decor execution: A Two Dogs Company
Lighting design: Jan Van Gijsel
Technical coordination: Jan Van Gijsel, Nic Roseeuw
Technique: Bram De Cock, Diederik Suykens, Jan Van Gijsel, Chris Vanneste
Production: LOD music theater
Production management: Isabel Vermeulen
Co-production: A Two Dogs Company, Jheronimus Bosch 500 Foundation, Kaaitheater, Teatro Maria Matos, House on Fire, Asko | Schönberg, Concertgebouw Brugge, Fundaçao Calouste Gulbenkian, Theater Mousonturm Frankfurt
In collaboration with: Flanders and the Netherlands host country 2016 Frankfurter Buchmesse
With the support of: Eduard Van Beinum Foundation, Flemish Government & Flemish Community Commission 

Bosch Beach

Everything starts with a letter.
From Egel to Mol.
That he wants to be with her.
Talk about things together.
Drinking tea together in front of the window.
Looking outside together.
Count sheep together and
Sleeping together in one bed.
Stekeblind is a love story.
Romeo and Juliet is a preschooler.
 
Authors: Raf Walschaerts and Frans Van der Aa
Game: Femke Platteau and Freek De Craecker
Director: Frans Van der Aa
Composition: Peter Spaepen
Decor: Geert Hautekiet
Light: Dennis Diels
Costumes: Jana Roos
Animation: Fran Van Gysegem
Based on an idea by Ariane Sonck.
Technique: Peter Van Hoof / Ole Ceenaeme
music performance: Opus4 string quartet in collaboration with AB
Decor execution: Geert Hautekiet & Martin Baarda
Production management: Celine Vanhoutte
Stage production: Violetta Rijnhout
Photos: Jeroen Vanhoutte

In the press:
4Hoog has grown into a quality label that guarantees stimulating nursery theater (…) the new Stekeblind (3+) and lets you realize what great craft it takes to captivate a toddler for 40 minutes.
- deMorgen, Evelyne Coussens
 
At 4hoog they therefore take great pride in their meticulous finish with music, image, rhythm (…) in the form of a smooth little wheel that wants to continue sanding content.
- DeStandaard, Wouter Hillaert 

Stekeblind

A text adaptation of Halfway Reversed by Magne van den Berg. A collaboration with Carine Van Bruggen.

All photos by Leontien Allemeersch. 

Traum Trash Vortex

“People, lions, eagles and deer with antlers, geese, spiders, dumb fish that inhabit the waters, starfish and everything that is not visible to the eye, in short, everything, everything, everything that lives has completed its sad cycle and is extinct … ”
Ba3 KASK Drama students worked together with Marijke Pinoy for eight weeks with Anton Chekhov's De Meeuw. De Meeuw is full of desires: for the other, for itself, for life. On the other hand are the broken promises and hearts. The play has the eternal struggle between fierce innovation and entrenched tradition. During these eight weeks, the students examined their character, discussed, deleted, cut and pasted, and staged this classic text into their own version of De Meeuw. Because every generation is entitled to its classics.

Game: Arne De Tremerie, Freek De Craecker, Imke Mol, Mats Vandroogenbroeck, Naomi van der Horst & Timo Sterckx | Coach: Marijke Pinoy | Costume: Ruby Renteurs | Music: Gilles Vandecaveye-Pinoy | Thanks to: Anton Chekhov, Fabrice Delecluse, Leo Verlinden, Sebastiaan Eggermont, les ballets C de la B, ...

Photos: Axel Himburg, Johan Pijpops 

The Seagull

Creation of The European youth Capital Opening Show 2024 Ghent.&nbsp;

European Youth Capital 

Bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla. Bla bla blah blah blaah! Blah blah blah, blah blah. Bla bla bleuh blah bla bla bla? Bla bla bla? Bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla blaaa… Bla bla blaaaa blah. Bla bla blaaa bla blah! Blah! Bla bla blaha blahaha bla bla Bla Bla Blues! ”

Femke Platteau and Freek De Craecker got to know each other while playing at 4Hoog. Together with Frans van der Aa and Raf Walschaerts they made the performance Stekeblind. After the great collaboration, they decided to create their own children's show: Bla Bla Blues.

Bla Bla Blues is an absurd visual performance for children from the age of 8 and their families.
Different figures live together in a large apartment building. They are plucked from a bygone era. Together they live next to, with, on, over, under and without each other. They each slog with their solitude in a world where everything seems possible. They become entangled in a search for connection with each other, themselves and their environment.

Made and performed by: Femke Platteau and Freek De Craecker
Costumes: Jana Roos
Decor: The Cabinet
Music: Jonas Detavernier, Willem-Alexander Langlet and Mathijs Steels
Technique: Ole Ceenaeme
Coaching: Katrien Valckenaers and Frans Van der Aa
Dramaturgical advice: Kristof Van Baarle
Production assistance: Celine Vanhoutte
Production: One Eyed Jack vzw
Photos: Leontien Allemeersch, Yuri van der Hoeven
With thanks to: Production house 4Hoog, Biblab, WALPURGIS music theater, fABULEUS, GC De Linde, GC De Kriekelaar, Gouvernement, the mums and the dads, Iven Deduytschaver, Olivia and Jean-Pierre, Tante Rodica, Tom Goossens, Randi De Vlieghe, Oma Marie-Louise Van Bellekes, Dr. Elly Belly, Griet Troch, and others
In co-production with: ccHasselt / Het LAB

With the support of the Flemish Government, cc De Schakel and the municipality of Wetteren. 

Bla Bla Blues

Café Paris

"What can be incendiary in our words? What affective turbulence can our gestures propose? How can the act of coming together and the act of bringing together words and gestures, simultaneously threaten our stability, our security, even our will to power? 

To begin a creation, one must first assemble. Since our first ‘assembly’ on November 25th 2016, we have taken the risk to form a group through words, questions, gestures and their transmission. The risk remains in the loss that takes place in between what the thing that is said and the thing that is done, in the distance between what one says and the saying makes us do. The principe of this assembly is the understanding that we are all made of words; and that these words incite us to certain gestures; and that these gesture become the place where we live together. To talk, to listen, to perform and to question are the actions that formulate our collective being and our network of the sensible. 
​
Powder is thus organized as a reconciliation between word and gesture, and in doing so, looks to be a critical act towards currents events, an act of desire and of forms of resistance to a crushing power. We welcome these elements, starting from the singularity of each performer, et we jettison them in the heart of the scene, in a quest for a chorus evocative of a form of resistance. Resistance to the demolition of differences, of Trumpisms, the stereotypical roles of films that are presented to us, the simplistic latitude, the burden of history, the banal spitefulness… This work is only starts from things that are said or articulated; of articulations originating out of the mouths and the entire bodies of the performers during our artistic process. Our common objective is to identify how and when our lives - especially our current lives - regulate and compose our way of feeling, loving, resisting, believing, seeing and existing. 
 
Powder is above all a collective practice of our way of articulating words and gestures, individual and collective, desire and opposition. In that movement of convulsion, of dispersion and of erring into the unknown, it are our bodies, full of forces and contradictions, which are pulverized and become powder among us. Let’s dig new forms of breathing together! Here is our call!“

Powder

Thuis

Nine young people made and play this performance over and with the internet, which they were forced to rely on during the making process.
They take a critical look at the medium and humanity while looking for their own way in the meantime.
Can we make the virtual real again?
Can an individual surf trip on the net be shared collectively in the here and now?
Can we reconnect with each other and with you, the spectator, without a screen?
Expect a real trip along virtual paths, fast Tinder Dates, slow Tik Toks, a poetic intermezzo with 1001gedichten.nl, Twitter the Musical, sweet spam and many, many selfies.

Directed by: Freek De Craecker
Actors: Amber Turpyn, Cedric Oosterlynck, Eline Bos, Hanne Van Rentergem, Janne Van Beveren, Kaat De Muer, Matthias van Eijkeren, Mona Van Speybroeck, Yaris Vereecken

We All Go Rhythm

salon secret vienna

Twenty-four duos - "ordinary people" - meet for the first time on stage. You witness their first personal and physical contact. How do they react to each other and to the watching audience?

With THE COMMON PEOPLE, choreographer Jan Martens and film director Lukas Dhont make a series of duets and an installation with 48 people from Ghent, in which the life of unknown fellow human beings, privacy versus exhibitionism and the digitization of human contact are central. The result is an evening that reopens the theater as a place of human-to-human encounter.
 
With your ticket you can walk in and out of the performance and discover the installation, which provides an insight into the digital alter egos of the participants.

Choreographer / dancer Jan Martens is probably no stranger to you. He has previously appeared at CAMPO with dance performances such as SWEAT BABY SWEAT, THE DOG DAYS ARE OVER and VICTOR, a duet he created together with Peter Seynaeve.
The Common People

Credits:
concept & direction Jan Martens & Lukas Dhont with 48 participants from Ghent production GRIP co-production tanzhaus nrw, spring performing arts festival, Wiener Festwochen, CDC Le Gymnase & ICKamsterdam with the financial support of the Flemish government, Dutch Performing Arts Fund & City of Antwerp 

The Common People

For the casting of Anthony Schatteman's new professional Short film, he casted two boys who never acted before in film. His goal was to make something with them in only 24 hours. No script or shooting plan, but only two boys witth the drive to act, and Anthony with his camera. This came out. Consider it as a pre-shoot of his upcoming short film. 
​
Director: Anthony Schatteman
Actors: Maxim Debar & Freek De Craecker

Stories that we could have told

Bij de Buren

A short, comic fantasy film about an unworldly poetry student who, when his city is under siege, wants to save the world with a poem.

Cast:
Freek de Craecker, Marthe Schneider, Eric de Kuyper, Hendrik Van Doorn, Bas Zemering, Evelyne Verhellen, Julie Kurris, Pieter Verelst, Emma Verstraeten, Eric ter Veld, Marijke Pinoy, Ingrid De Vos

Directed & Written by:
Reinier Kroese

Genre
Fantasy, Comedy, Live Action / Animation Hybrid 

Vsble