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Esplanade Presents
2 Aug 2023, Wed, 8pm
3 Aug 2023, Thu, 8pm
(Intermission: None)
Esplanade Theatre Studio
This event is over.
This event is over.
“Interesting documentary theatre, about a part of the world that seemed almost forgotten.”
– De Volkskrant
“It’s the genius of the editing that makes ‘Pleasant Island’ a hallucinatory document with an unprecedented form, between performance and documentary.”
– IO Gazette
Encounter this modern-day parable, told through historical records, personal accounts and multimedia recordings, interwoven into a sequence informed by the language and aesthetics of digital culture.
Hidden in the Pacific Ocean lies the island of Nauru, once called Pleasant Island by European explorers. Although its size makes it one of the smallest nations in the world, its history is both large and significant. Nauru is often seen as a parable for our current world. The island was severely impacted by the effects of colonisation, capitalism, migration and ecological distress of which the consequences still linger today.
After the exhaustive exploitation of its natural resources, the island was left in economic and ecologic ruins. Today, Nauru is most known for hosting Australian refugee detention centres in return for a large amount of Australian money. This sparked the government of Nauru to ban most journalists and researchers from entering the island in an effort to keep negative news from reaching the outside world. Meanwhile, the island risks being swallowed by the ocean as a result of the rising sea level. Theatre artists Silke and Hannes were exceptionally allowed to enter the island for a couple of weeks in the summer of 2018. In this post-apocalyptic setting, they try to capture the historical, ecological and humanitarian exhaustion of the island, and by extension of our entire planet.
In Pleasant Island, Silke and Hannes use their personal smartphones to navigate the spectator through audio and images from their research on Nauru. How does one encounter the limitations of a world that is intent on endless growth? What idea of the future is left on Nauru, and the rest of the world?
Mining Stories, Pleasant Island, and Out of the Blue are part of a trilogy by Belgium theatre artists, Silke Huysmans & Hannes Dereere, that explores our human relationship with mining.
By & With Silke Huysmans & Hannes Dereere
Dramaturge Dries Douibi
Sound Mixing Lieven Dousselaere
Technical Anne Meeussen & Piet Depoortere
Production CAMPO
Co-Production Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Spring Festival Utrecht, Beursschouwburg, Kunstenwerkplaats Pianofabriek, Veem House For Performance, Spielart & De Brakke Grond
Residencies Beursschouwburg, De Grote Post, KAAP, Kunstencentrum Buda, Kunstenwerkplaats Pianofabriek, STUK & Veem House For Performance, LOD
With The Support Of Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie & KAAP
Many Thanks To All Collocutors In Nauru
Silke Huysmans and Hannes Dereere
Silke Huysmans (°Brazil, 1989) studied drama at KASK School of Arts Ghent and Hannes Dereere (°Belgium, 1990) theatre sciences at Ghent University. With their performances, the two Brussels-based makers investigate the use of journalistic and documentary elements within theatre. Underlying their work is extensive field research that they use to shape their projects. Since 2016, they have been working on a trilogy involving long-term research on mining.
In 2016, the first part Mining Stories premiered at the Bâtard Festival in Brussels. For this performance, Silke and Hannes returned to the place where she grew up in Brazil. In 2015, a dam burst flooded this place with toxic mining waste, causing one of the biggest ecological mining disasters in recent history. Mining Stories was selected for Circuit X/Het Theater Festival 2017 (Belgium) and received the main prize at the Zürcher Theaterspektakel 2018 (Switzerland).
In 2019 the second part Pleasant Island premiered at the Kunstenfestivaldesarts in Brussels. In this performance, island state Nauru holds up a mirror to the world. Nauru was once a paradise in the Pacific. After decades of colonisation and mining, this island is literally at its water's edge due to rising sea levels.
Out of the Blue concludes the trilogy. In this final piece Silke and Hannes look at the future of mining. Through interviews and conversations, they sketch an in-depth portrait of an emerging industry: deep sea mining. The piece premiered at the Kunstenfestivaldesarts in May 2022.
2 Aug 2023, Wed
8pm
3 Aug 2023, Thu
8pm
Standard | Students, NSFs, Seniors & PWDs |
|
Cat 1 | $38 | $30 |
Standard Ticket
Concession Ticket
Esplanade&Me Specials
Early Bird (11 – 28 May 2023, limited tickets)
Black: 20% savings
White: 15% savings
Discover: 10% savings
From 29 May 2023, 9am
Black: 15% savings
White: 10% savings
Discover: 5% savings
Applicable to Standard tickets only. Terms and Conditions apply.
Esplanade&Me Discover The Studios Special
Enjoy savings with purchase of 4 or more tickets to the same show or across applicable shows (The Mining Trilogy: Mining Stories, The Mining Trilogy: Pleasant Island, The Mining Trilogy: Out of the Blue, Three Years in the Life and Death of Land, Mosaic and ALBIZIA).
Early Bird (11 – 28 May, limited tickets)
Discover: 15% savings
From 29 May, 9am
Discover: 10% savings
Applicable to Standard tickets only. Terms and Conditions apply.
Tote Board Arts Grant
All Upper Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges/ Centralised Institute & ITEs may use the Tote Board Arts Grant to subsidise up to 50% of the programme cost.
For more details, please contact Esplanade Box Office at 6828 8389 or email boxoffice@esplanade.com.
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