My Heavenly Favourite
Lucas Rijneveld received the prestigious International Booker Prize for the English edition of his debut De avond is ongemak. The translation rights of his widely acclaimed second novel Mijn lieve gunsteling have so far been sold to fourteen countries. Ivo van Hove is the first director to adapt this heartbreaking and at the same time terrifying novel for the stage.
Location La Villette, Paris
Run time 140 minutes
Genre Theater
Language Dutch
Please note this performance is about an adult who is sexually attracted to a minor and contains sexual violence. The performance uses strong lighting effects including stroboscope and the set uses a large amount of straw.
My Heavenly Favourite
A novel that the author himself thought no one would ever want to read, but which became a bestseller in a short time. A 49-year-old vet develops a forbidden love for a farmer's underage daughter during a sweltering summer.
-|-
A love that quickly becomes an obsession. A story with moving but also intense scenes in which the adult man and the 14-year-old girl grow closer and closer until the border is crossed.
About My Heavenly Favourite
'I am very honoured that the grand master of the stage, Ivo van Hove, is performing Mijn lieve gunsteling on the stage. I have every confidence that it will be a wonderful adaptation. The cow in the spotlight! And the love, of course, the love.' - Lucas Rijneveld
'Lucas Rijneveld treads the slippery slope of a forbidden relationship between an adult man and an underage girl in an idiosyncratic, beautifully written and important book. A rollercoaster of emotions: ecstasy, deep unhappiness, loneliness, guilt, jealousy, craving, nightmares and sex.' - Ivo van Hove
IN THE PRESS
Trouw
'My Heavenly Favourite is an impressive performance that resonates.'
De Volkskrant
'My Heavenly Favourite on stage, there's no way to escape it.'
DIGITAL BROCHURE
Read more about the production's author, direction, music, scenography and costumes in our digital brochure.
Ivo van Hove was Artistic Director of Internationaal Theater Amsterdam from 2001 to 2023. As stage director, he signed on for numerous ground-breaking and highly acclaimed productions such as The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand) and A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara), as well as the two Shakespeare marathons Roman Tragedies and Kings of War, with which the ensemble toured around the world. After twenty-two years, Van Hove decided to leave ITA and concentrate on his international directing work. He will also head the Ruhrtriennale as Artistic Director from 2024 to 2026.
In the 24/25 season, his productions of Who Killed My Father (Édouard Louis) and Angels in America (Tony Kushner) will be revived.
CREDITS
based on the book by Lucas Rijneveld
direction and adaptation Ivo van Hove
accompaniment adaptation and dramaturgical advice Bart Van den Eynde
scenography and lighting design Jan Versweyveld
costumes An D'Huys
song lyrics Marieke Lucas Rijneveld
composition songs Wende Snijders and Koen van der Wardt
music and sound design George Dhauw
video design Christopher Ash
cast Hans Kesting, Eefje Paddenburg, Katelijne Damen, Bart Slegers, Achraf Koutet
musician Roos van Tuil, Tosca van der Waals
cows Dora and Trix
private producer Marcelle and Joost Kuiper, Hans Peter Sauerwein
supported by Ammodo
-|-
assistant director Maria Luttikhuis, Agnese Kumpina (intern)
assistant dramaturgy Fleur Zick (intern)
assistant scenography Bart van Merode, Jenn Yuqing Cao (intern)
assistant music David Knap
head of technical staff Reyer Meeter
head artistic office Loesje Riethof
head of production Michiel van Schijndel
head of dramaturgy Johan Reyniers
head of design Roel Van Berckelaer
first productionleader Edith den Hamer
productionleader Marleen Koens
assistant production Eva Sol
scenographical technical producer Ramon Huijbrechts
technical production Rick Liesveld
technical planner Joris Reijmer
structural calculation Pieter Pollemans
technical staff Daan van Oene (stage manager), Emile Bleeker, Yannick Bruine de Bruin, Danne Hekman, Daan Kapteijn, Zinzi Kemper, Berend van Leer (intern), David Logger, Paul Meijer, Wouter Pieters, Dennis van Scheppingen, Marleen Wind
costume department Wim van Vliet (head), Farida Bouhbouh, Leanne Vandenbussche
dresser Carlijn Veurink
hair and make-up Mirjam Venema
casting advice Hans Kemna
intimacy coordinator Zarah Bracht
casting and advice cows Catvertise, Sabine van der Helm
training and guidance cows Cattle Training, Chantal van den Broek
photography Jan Versweyveld, Dim Balsem, Fabian Calis
graphic design Serena Kloet, Sara Fortuin
publicity Iris Istha
This performance is supported by
Ivo van Hove adapted Who Killed My Father, by internationally acclaimed writer Édouard Louis, for the stage. Van Hove turned the very outspoken book into a monologue, especially for Hans Kesting.
