Ontroerend Goed, Theatre Royal
Plymouth, Vooruit, Richard Jordan Productions and Big in Belgium
LIES (£¥€$)
Directed
by Alexander Devrient
at Summerhall,
Edinburgh – Upper Church
4-27 August (not 7,
14, 21, 28 August)
‘The best way to rob a
bank is to own one’ — William Crawford, Commissioner of the California
Department of Savings and Loans
Multiple Fringe-First
winners Ontroerend Goed invite you to get under the skin of the well-to-do. the
1%, the super-rich, the ones who pull the strings, the faces we never get to
see when they return to the Fringe with their latest production, LIES (£¥€$).
What was the inspiration for this performance?
A crisis. Pikkety. Money. My mortgage. Inside Job. Margin Call. The island of Yap. Joris Luyendijck. But most of all my own ignorance of something that’s so dominant in my life.
Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?
Totally. More than any other medium it brings makers and audience together, in the same space.
Books and movies still have a wider reach but there is no immediate interaction with the messenger, only with the message.
And as opposed to some other art forms theatre has the possibility to resist certain commercial influence. In its limit lies its strength.
Because of that, theatre can be a mirror of reality without being influenced and controlled by political or commercial agendas.
How did you become interested in making performance?
I don’t remember. We were up on a stage creating weird shizzle before we wondered why we were there.
Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?
Any idea or any show we create always demands its own process. Our last show World Without Us - a monologue - was so different compared to £¥€$, with a team of more than 15 people.
And the subject matter was so much more complex.
Does the show fit with your usual productions?
Probably.
What do you hope that the audience will experience?
The point of the show was always to make you understand as much as bankers do of the financial system. The only thing that we realised during the rehearsal process was… well bankers don’t know very much.
They don’t act, most of them just react.
What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?
The gaming element was always there. Put you in the position of the 1%. And a casino setting seemed like a good idea to start it in.
Script by Joeri Smet, Angelo Tijssens, Karolien De Bleser and Alexander Devriendt
Costume by Astrid Peeters
Music by Johannes Genard
Design by Nick Mattan
Scenography by vormen
Cast - Joeri Smet, Angelo Tijssens, Karolien De Bleser, Samir Veen, Hannah Boer, Aurélie Lannoy, Joeri Heegstra, Britt Bakker, Charlotte De Bruyne, Khalid Koujili, Bastiaan Vandendriessche, Eleonore Van Godtsenhoven, Robin Keyaert, Max Wind and Sjef van Schie
For one night, you can take their chairs. You call the shots. You're in the centre of our economic system. You shape the course.
And who knows, you might make the world a better place, more fair, more responsible,
because you'll do things differently, for sure.
Studies have shown the emotional core of greed, adrenaline and self- realization that drives the people operating in the financial system. From this point of view, the financial system is more like an uncontrollable beast with the capacity to possess people. This “possession” is tangible in the performance £¥€$.
Is it possible to seduce people who otherwise don’t care about money or feel strongly against capitalist ideology to engage in the game of hedge funds and stocks, high risk investments and toxic financial products. In the performance, there’s no judgement of the audience’s decisions. Choices are offered and the spectators/participants are free to decide
Theatre-performance-group Ontroerend Goed produces self-devised work grounded in the here and now, inviting their audiences to participate as well as observe.
They first emerged on the international scene in 2007, with ‘The Smile Off Your Face’, a one-on-one show in which the audience is tied to a wheelchair and then blindfolded. Their hit show ‘Once and For All...’ was an uncompromising celebration of raw teenage energy on stage. With every new piece of work, Ontroerend Goed provides an intense experience constructed in reality; life goes on during the performance. The company has won numerous prizes across Europe and has appeared New York, Sydney, London and Hong Kong to critical acclaim. Their work continues to be performed in countries around the world.
About Big in Belgium
Big in Belgium, Richard Jordan Productions, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Summerhall
in association with RBC/Upper Church
Following the huge success of the four previous seasons at Summerhall, which have included the award-winning Us/Them, One Hundred Homes and The Great Downhill Journey of Little Tommy, Big in Belgium, Richard Jordan Productions, Summerhall and Theatre Royal Plymouth return to present a fifth BIG IN BELGIUM season at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and featuring some of the most significant theatre companies from the Flemish part of Belgium.
Each of the shows in this season has previously been very successful on the European mainland and are now presented for the first time to Edinburgh audiences, some translated and adapted, ready for breaking new grounds in English-speaking territories
The works are subsequently progressed worldwide following their Edinburgh premieres by the above producing parties.
This year BIG IN BELGIUM is also pleased to present four of its productions within a brand new theatre space adapted for them within Summerhall in association with RBC/Upper-Church.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
Venue: Summerhall (Upper Church), Summerhall Place, EH9 1PL
Dates and Times: 4 - 27 August at 18.30 (20:00) and 20.30 (22.00)
(not 7, 14, 21, 28 August)
Running Time: 90 mins
Tickets: Previews £10, thereafter £14 (concessions £12)
Box Office: 0845 874 3001
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