T H E D U T C H O N T O U R - Theater Instituut Nederland

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Youth theatre is a place where children and adults are confronted with both the large and small questions of life or aggression. The reinterpretation of classic scripts represented a prelude to a personal style of writing for youth theatre. Within the framework defined by these stories, the actors were able to experiment with the dramaturgy, the narrative style and the use of language for young audiences. The range is now as extensive as in youth literature, which was in turn also a huge source of inspiration. A relatively new instrument in this respect is the use of scripts that reflect children’s lives in a contemporary family setting. Lives that include biological parents, step-parents, and brothers and sisters that can also be half-brothers and sisters or step-brothers and sisters. The habit of telling logical and linear stories to children has largely been abandoned in youth theatre. Children appear to be very susceptible to performances that, like dreams, are full of imaginative and leaping associations. In recent times, the repertoire has been set in a picturesque and daring way. Theatre makers allow themselves to be inspired by literature, poetry, music, dance, cabaret and puppetry, and they experiment with all sorts of performance styles. The design is exuberant and mirrors the styles in the visual arts. The development of the national Jeugdtheaterfestival (Youth Theatre Festival) into the children’s arts festival Tweetakt is exemplary for the recent history of youth theatre. It began in 1984 as a festival of drama, music-theatre and puppetry. Later, it grew into an experimental arts festival which, in addition to theatre, presented dance, music and film for children. In 2007 it had grown into a festival covering the entire gamut of arts disciplines for the young, ranging from interactive multi-media theatre to a ‘Little Biennale’ with visual art for children. A look at the future The future of youth theatre is looking good. For many years, people worried about where the next generation of youth theatre-makers would come from, but the tide has now turned and we are seeing a growing group of new and exciting theatre-makers. These youthful producers are not simply following in the footsteps of their predecessors; they are following their own hearts. They are paving a wonderful, theatrical path out through a city or creating a show full of water-creatures in a spherical, floating theatre. They design a Mensenmuseum/People Museum or produce a Voorstelling waarin hopelijk niets gebeurt/Performance in which hopefully. And they do not envisage a future dominated by an eternal bond with young audiences. To them, it is only natural to switch between adults and children. This concept is in line with that of numerous experienced theatre-makers who have been making this cross-over for many years. More and more companies catering to both types of audience are starting to emerge. Huis aan de Amstel is now producing shows for adults as well as youth theatre. Wederzijds, which specialises in shows for the classroom and the gym, also produces target group theatre about civil servants, the army or healthcare institutions. And in much the same way, het Onafhankelijk Toneel or Toneelgroep Amsterdam also creates youth theatre productions. The boundaries between theatre for children and theatre for adults are blurring. Youth theatre performances are no less enjoyable for parents than for children, and alternatively, young people readily go to see adult theatre. In the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, theatrical concerts for children and youngsters are performed. The large festivals reflect this trend and they often have a ‘children’s department’ in addition to their regular repertoire. Companies, theatres, concert halls and festivals increasingly programme for the young, the old and the entire family and some youth theatre makers even entertain the idea of making performances for an adult audience about the life and experience of children. A child’s outlook is, after all, an inspiration for young and old alike. Anita Twaalfhoven 56 The Dutch on tour Youth theatre The Dutch on tour Youth theatre 57
Language On request Contact Artistic directors: Loek Beumer and Peter Drost T +31 (0)6 – 23 97 89 94 E info@beumerendrost.nl I www.beumerendrost.nl Agency: Hummelinck Stuurman, for Belgium: Thassos Beumer & Drost Scintillating originality Toneelschap Beumer & Drost is a company of theatre makers that allows the opportunity to escape from reality by offering boundless fantasy and infectious onstage pleasure. Since 1997, the company has been producing family shows for wide audiences of 8 years and above for theatres in the Netherlands and Belgium. The Beumer & Drost signature is apparent in everything they produce; in their approach to acting, in fantasy, in mime and in song. They devise, develop, write and compose all their own work. Toneelschap Beumer & Drost has declared a never-ending quest for scintillating originality. International During the last few years, Beumer & Drost has performed in England, Austria, France, US, Canada, Switzerland and Germany. In 2008, Beumer & Drost will be performing Hobbit de voorstelling/ Hobbit the play at the IPAY festival in Tampa Bay, Florida. In Hobbit, two men make a miraculous journey on and under the stage of their imagination; they become entwined in a comedy film in which everything makes a noise and sound is given a colour. The shows Ingeblikt/Canned and Gasten/Guests are also highly suitable for touring. Ingeblikt/Canned is a complicated embroilment about a rusty old can containing a few film fragments that have stuck together, but which are otherwise unconnected. At least ... this is how it seems. The Gasten/Guests build one last changing-room alongside the 205,212 that already exist in the Netherlands. A light-hearted, bouncy, strange, bizarre, and yet poetic show about sporting affairs. Gasten Photo: Anne Boeschoten The Dutch on tour Youth theatre 59
Page 2 and 3: Index 3 Foreword 4 Physical, object
Page 4 and 5: The 1000 faces of visual theatre If
Page 6 and 7: The consciously naïve makers treat
Page 8 and 9: Language English Contact Artistic d
Page 10 and 11: Language None Contact Artistic dire
Page 12 and 13: Language English Contact Creative d
Page 14 and 15: Language None/English Contact Artis
Page 20 and 21: Language None/on request Contact Ar
Page 26 and 27: Language On request Contact Artisti
Page 28 and 29: Dutch youth theatre is far from chi
Page 34 and 35: Language German/English on request
Page 36 and 37: Language English/Papiamento Contact
Page 38 and 39: Language Dutch,/German,/English Con
Page 40 and 41: Language German/English Contact Art
Page 42 and 43: Language English/German/on request
Page 46 and 47: Language Dutch/French/German/Englis
Page 48: Colophon Editor and producer Moon S

T H E D U T C H O N T O U R - Theater Instituut Nederland

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