Michiel Vandevelde & fABULEUS [BE]

Paradise Now (1968-2018)

12.05 – 13.05.2018

Ecstatic trip

July 1968. The legendary Paradise Now by the New York theatre company The Living Theatre premieres at the Festival d’Avignon. The actors attempted to unleash a revolution by getting the audience into a state of readiness. It was an ecstatic trip intended to result in a new form of togetherness. Their revolution was not only political but also spiritual, inspired by sources such as the I Ching, Chassidism, and Kabbalah. They focused especially on the relationship between the collective and the individual.

Half a century later, Kaaitheater artist-in-residence Michiel Vandevelde is exploring the vestiges of the legacy of May ’68 with a new generation of young people. Many of the ideals of the hippie generation have become hip practices: companies like Google and Apple promote self-organization and decentralization as the best way to develop new ideas and achieve results. But does the collective still have any significance as an artistic and political statement?

The play is a voyage from the many to the one, and from the one to the many.
– The Living Theatre on Paradise Now


choreography Michiel Vandevelde | with Zulaa Antheunis, Sarah Bekambo, Jarko Bosmans, Bavo Buys, Wara Chavarria, Judith Engelen, Abigail Gypens, Lore Mertens, Anton Rys, Margot Timmermans, Bo Van Meervenne, Esra Verboven, Aron Wouters | production fABULEUS

There's more

Michiel Vandevelde

Andrade

dance

Andrade
Andrade
Kaaitheater
Wed 29.11 - Thu 30.11.17

In an attempt to create a new culture, Michiel Vandevelde has armed himself with music videos and advertisements. Dancer Bryana Fritz distils them in an intimate, explosive and at times Lynchian dance solo. Like an invisible presence, Vandevelde directs the light and sound.

PARADISE NOW (Then & Now): On Revolutionary Theatre

Michiel Vandevelde in conversation with Richard Schechner (moderated by Kristof van Baarle)

PARADISE NOW (Then & Now):  On Revolutionary Theatre
PARADISE NOW (Then & Now):  On Revolutionary Theatre

Interview

Thu 03.05.18

In October 2017 – in the framework of the 40th anniversary of Kaaitheater –  the founding father of performance studies Richard Schechner and choreographer, dancer and curator Michiel Vandevelde were invited to have a conversation about art, arts centres, and the world.

Michiel Vandevelde

Michiel Vandevelde
Michiel Vandevelde

artist

Kaaitheater artist-in-residence 2017-2021