Bérénice
Powerful, feverish and nerve-racking. Iconic actress Isabelle Huppert gives voice to intense feelings of despair, desire and sacrifice. In this radical reinterpretation by Romeo Castelucci, Bérénice - one of the most famous French plays from the 17th century - is turned into a compelling monologue.
Festival Holland Festival
Run time 90 minutes
Genre Theatre
Language French
Surtitles English, Dutch
Bérénice
Castellucci, known for seeking out themes and patterns divorced from historical context, delves deep into the verses of Jean Racine (1639) and strips the classic love triangle between Bérénice, emperor Titus and Antiochus to the bone. What remains is a woman who slowly loses herself in the chill of power games.
Huppert is the only speaking actor and the evening’s star: her name is literally stitched into the curtains framing the stage. Surrounded by fourteen silent men, Huppert shines in breathtaking costumes by fashion designer Iris van Herpen.
-|-From the first hopeful words to the ultimate despair, Bérénice balances between tenderness and madness. The abstract and symbolic scenography - which includes a transparent screen that literally shields Huppert from the audience - and the haunting sound world of electro-acoustic composer Scott Gibbons add to her anguish.
about Holland Festival
The Holland Festival is the largest international performing arts festival in the Netherlands and one of the oldest festivals in Europe. Founded in 1947, Holland Festival celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2022.
The festival takes place every June, in and around Amsterdam at various locations, indoors and outdoors, large-scale and intimate, online and offline.
Credits
direction Romeo Castellucci
cast Isabelle Huppert Cheikh Kébé, Giovanni Armando Romano, 12 extra's
music Scott Gibson
costume design Iris van Herpen
direction assistance Silvano Voltolina
dramaturgy Bernard Pautrat
technical director Eugenio Resta, Lorenzo Camera, Carmen Castellucci, Francesca Di Serio, Gionni Gardini
stage technician Andrei Benchea, Stefano Valandro
light operator Andrea Sanson
sound technician Claudio Tortorici
organisation Caterina Soranzo
production assistant Gilda Biasini
choir direction Silvano Voltolina
movement double Serena Dibias
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lighting board technician Chiara Venturini, Madeleine Tessier
hair & make-up Sylvie Cailler, Jocelyne Milazzo
stage sculptures and automations Plastikart Studio Amoroso & Zimmermann
production management Benedetta Briglia, Marko Rankov
tour management Giulia Colla, Bruno Jacob
prompter Agathe Vidal
coproduction Théâtre de la Ville–Paris, Comédie de Genève, Ruhrtriennale, Les Theatres de la Ville Luxembourg, deSingel, Temporada Alta, Teatro di Napoli – Teatro Nazionale, Onassis Stegi, Triennale Milano Teatro, National Taichung Theater, Holland Festival, LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura, TAP Théâtre Auditorium de Poitiers – Scène Nationale, Comédie de Clermont Ferrand, Théâtre National de Bretagne
with the support of Fondation d'entreprise Hermès
