Brecht's First play
A sharp, often humorous reimagining of Bertolt Brecht’s play Baal, by Ben Kidd and Bush Moukarzel. What do you do with an antihero like Baal ignore them, push them aside, or cancel them? And what does that say about morality, power, and control, both in the West and in China?
festival Holland festival
run time 1 uur 45 minuten
genre Theater
language Mandarin.
surtitles: English, Dutch
Brecht's First Play
On stage, a Chinese ensemble performs the scenes in a minimalist blue studio, while above them Baal gradually fades on a video screen. Two worlds overlap: live performance versus manipulated video, presence of the bad guy versus making him disappear and cancelling him. The show explores how societies erase problematic figures and what choices and boundaries come with that. -|-
This internationally produced work by Dead Centre (Ireland), Beijing Repertory Theatre, Holland Festival, and Hong Kong Arts Festival blends theatre, video, and scenography into a visually and intellectually provocative experience. Brecht’s First Play asks a fundamental question: does society really become safer by banning ‘monsters’, or is it society itself that is antisocial?
From 3 to 28 June, the 79th edition of the Holland Festival, the Netherlands' groundbreaking international performing arts festival, will take place. Here you can see performances that you would not otherwise see in the Netherlands. For a whole month, you can enjoy international artists who push the boundaries of dance, music and theatre. From 13 to 27 June, you can see six different productions from this festival at ITA.
Credits
creation Beijing Repertory Theatre, Dead Centre
adaptation Ben Kidd, Bush Moukarzel
direction Ben Kidd, Bush Moukarzel
scenography Jiang Han
video design Sebastian Dupouey -|-
sound design Jing An
lighting design Xiaji Chen
translation Han Zhao
production Shihui Weng, Jiang Han
co-production Tempest Projects, Hong Kong Arts Festival, Holland Festival
