The Disintegration Loops (for Euterpestraat): Workshop series at the Gerrit van der Veen College
Second-year music students and first-year ‘kunst+klas’ students at the Gerrit van der Veen College took part in workshops where they recorded sounds in connection with the theme of ‘freedom’ and went on to learn how to create digital loops and soundscapes. This resulted in experimental albums inspired by the working method of William Basisnki that were published on the Holland Festival website and could be heard during The Disintegration Loops (for Euterpestraat).
Euphoria: Performance visits + mini presentation and workshop, Marcanti College
Fourth-year Havo students of the Marcanti College visited Euphoria and responded in writing to the various quotes from the script.
Euphoria: Research assignment and performance visit HvA Creative Business / Festivals Minor
Festivals Minor students also visited the performance of Euphoria in the Central Market Hall and were given a research assignment about the festival centre in De Balie.
Flash internship JINC
In collaboration with JINC, we organised a so-called flash internship for eleven first-year students of the Over-Y College. The students were given a behind-the-scenes look at what the Holland Festival exactly is and did assignments where they could choose their own associate artist.
“We would book Rihanna as our school’s associate artist for the Holland Festival because she supports a great number of charities, so she’s a good example for us.”
Dragons: Performance visit + Meet and Greet choreographer Eun-Me Ahn for alumni group of the IMC Weekend School
The performance proved to be a good match. Eun-Me Ahn talked about her own performance afterwards in a conversation with young people from the IMC Weekend School. They reflected on the lockdown situation that the piece came out of, as well as on how younger generations should feel free and be able to fully express themselves.
Various performances: Weekend visit from the Akademie Musiktheater Heute (from the Deutsche Bank Stiftung)
The group from the Akademie Musiktheater Heute (a programme in support of young talent) visited various performances at the festival during an entire weekend. Programme manager Jochem Valkenburg had a conversation with the group about the Holland Festival, and there was also a meeting with director Łukasz Twarkowski of Respublika.
Internship and work experience opportunities
There is room for young people in the Holland Festival organisation as well, in the various internship and work experience opportunities that we offer. This year, we had interns working in the following departments: programming, production and engineering, marketing and business operations. There was also a recently graduated student who gained work experience in the marketing department in order to discover where her talents and interests lie exactly.
Professional exchanges
Immerse is the annual Holland Festival programme for artists from the Netherlands and abroad who are at the start of an international career. Its aim is to stimulate international networks and connect artists from different generations. This year’s participants were Ira Brand (United Kingdom), Joshua Serafin (Philippines), Gelsey Bell (United States) and Igor Shugaleev (Belarus). For the second year in a row, the programme was hosted and supervised by theatre-maker Jeroen De Man, who himself was part of the first Immerse group in 2016. Participants immersed themselves for a week in the festival and in each other's work. Ten shows and performances were attended, varying in character and intensity. That diversity generated in-depth conversations within the group and with creators in the festival, such as with choreographer Lukas Avendaño (Lemniskata), director Lisaboa Houbrechts (Vake Poes; or hoe God verdween) and with the associate artist this year: singer, composer and visual artist ANOHNI.
Jeroen De Man: 'In these fast-paced times, time is a scarce commodity. Being able to take your time for a week is incredibly special and inspiring. Participants gave extensive presentations, and conversations with the fascinating creators of the performances sometimes lasted up to two hours. Dinner time and walks were also beautifully used. Immerse is unique.'
Two festival makers were also present at this edition as part of an international exchange of knowledge and experience between festivals: Thobile Maphanga (South Africa) and Horacio Pérez (Chili).