In the opening speech, festival director Emily Ansenk said that ‘the world's most urgent groundbreaking performing arts come together in June in Amsterdam. It may be here in all its multiformity. When you are 77 years old, and have lived through all sorts of eras, developments and governments, you are flexible and constantly changing. We move with the times, take the lead and at the same time go against the grain: avant-garde, cutting edge, groundbreaking, distinctive, never mainstream.’
Three works were performed in the Gashouder for the opening performance Rite of Spring that illustrates this. Greek visual artist and director Evangelia Kranioti used Stravinky's masterpiece Le Sacre du printemps as the basis for her film, which she made for the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence in 2023. Kranioti's film is a symbolic reflection on the extremes of Western civilisation in which, to Stravinsky's rousing rhythms, she fuses beauty and destruction into an intense experience.
Associate artist of this edition, Brazilian theatre and film maker Christiane Jatahy, used images from her extensive film archive to create a new film inspired by American composer Caroline Shaw's composition Music In Common Time.
As an epilogue, Frank Ticheli's Earth Song was performed by Cappella Amsterdam conducted by Daniel Reuss. The compositions were performed by the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Karina Canellakis, and Cappella Amsterdam. The first two works can be seen and heard again on 7 June.
Associate artist van deze editie, de Braziliaanse theater- en filmmaker Christiane Jatahy, maakte met beelden uit haar omvangrijke filmarchief een nieuwe film, geïnspireerd op de compositie Music In Common Time van de Amerikaanse componist Caroline Shaw.
By associate artist Christiane Jatahy, the following works can be seen at the Holland Festival:
Depois do silêncio, 7-9 June, Frascati.
Crossings, 15 and 19 June in Nelson Mandela Park and Noorderpark, respectively.
Hamlet - In the Folds of Time, 21-23 June in ITA.
There is also a meeting with Jatahy on 8 June at de Balie, and an artist talk with two theatre-makers also from Brazil, Janaina Leite (Stabat Mater) and Carolina Bianchi on 23 June at Felix Meritis.
check the complete festival programme
photo: Janiek Dam