Dying Together / Futures

DYING TOGETHER is a mental exercise in physical form in which performers, together with the audience, examine and disentangle situations involving collective dying.

Over recent years the performance has been developed and staged in various places in Europe and turns its attention to contemporary situations in which large groups of people, animals and even ecosystems die. In autumn 2020 it will be followed by the (unexpected) third part: DYING TOGETHER / Futures, which is devoted entirely to the impact of Covid 19 on the world we live in.

DYING TOGETHER / Futures focuses on the current pandemic, in which it is not only people and animals that die, but also visions of the future. In the performance, a group of 20 to 40 people is invited to reflect collectively on the times we are living in. The script is flexible, close to current events and open to everything that presents itself.

DYING TOGETHER / Futures is both an intense experience and an enlightening mental experience in which you become aware of the many connections and alliances that already exist between us. By constantly casting the present situation and the past few months in a new light, it becomes palpable that this moment of collective dying first and foremost tells us something about the way we relate to each other while living.

Concept & development Lotte van den Berg (performer) in collaboration with Floor van Leeuwen (performer), Gerindo Kamid Kartadinata (performer), Matteo Bifulco (performer), Nahuel Cano (performer), Salomé Mooij (performer), Polly Lapkovskaya (composer), Vinny Jones & Breg Horemans (lighting & set), Tobias Staab (dramaturge), Jakob Proyer (production manager), Vincent Beune (technical manager) and Julien McHardy (research).

Dying Together is a moment of collective adulthood that causes indifference to short-circuit. Paris-art *** 

In Dying Together you enter a different world, a limbo between life and death which puts you in a state of wakefulness. … Lotte van den Berg takes us on another journey to the limits of theatre and the heart of being a human. Rainer Hofmann – director of SPRING festival

Lotte van den Berg appears not to be afraid of depth. She presents a refined setting, works on the basis of thorough research, formulates things precisely and without pathos, leaves room for silence, and reveals the rules and the limits. And this is undoubtedly why Dying Together transports us to a dimension outside time where even the most transient sensations take shape, at the point where our inner conflicts meet the hundreds of lives that are made tangible. Cathy Blisson in La Libération   ***

PRACTICAL DETAILS Duration: 120 minutes, including prologue, epilogue and a possible discussion afterwards. Interval: there is no collective interval, but members of the audience are free to leave and return to their seats when they like and water is available throughout the evening. Size of audience: depending on the venue and the Corona measures, Dying Together can be performed with between 20 and 40 people. To determine the number, while taking account of the 1.5 metre social distancing, we count on 6 sq. m. per person, so that people can move around in the room freely without coming close to each other. Seats: there are no fixed seats. We bring our own folding stools with us. Performers: this adapted Corona version is with 4 performers. Language: English, with the possibility of surtitling.

Stage design and lighting in brief: Dying Together is performed in an empty space, preferably with no pillars or other interfering elements. In a large theatre the performance, with audience, can take place on stage with the fire curtain closed. In small theatres the tiered seating will have to be removed, collapsed or telescoped. We shall bring a light-grey dance floor that will be rolled out from wall to wall. We shall also bring stands to which lamps and white reflective panels will be attached. The dance floor, stands and panels can be adapted to the size and specific characteristics of the space. It is also possible to perform on location, in a theatre without a grid.

Company: Performers: Lotte van den Berg, Floor van Leeuwen, Gerindo Kamid Kartadinata, Matteo Bifulco, Salomé Mooij, Nahuel Cano (4 performers per performance). Production Manager: Jakob Proyer Head Technician, Lighting & Sound: Vincent Beune

CONTACT

  • Artistic: Lotte van den Berg, lotte@buildingconversation.nl, +31 (0) 648490094
  • Bookings and financial information: Esther Eij, esther@buildingconversation.nl, +31 (0)6 14023907
  • Communication: Klaartje Wouters, pr@buildingconversation.nl, +31 (0)6 48011145
  • Production: Jakob Proyer, jakob@buildingconversation.nl, +31 (0)6 42 31 47 47

Address: Stichting Third Space Tolhuisweg 2 1031 CL Amsterdam www.thirdspace.nl

No English spoken performances planned at this moment