Re:Creating Europe - the conversation continues

What is Europe? Is it a continent or a culture, a bygone dream or a thriving reality – or all of the above? In a year when a divided United Kingdom is set to leave the European Union and the European Parliament Elections will shake up the system even further, Europe's common future is put to the test.

This future requires imagination, as it did in the past. Re:Creating Europe is an exploration of Europe through the speeches and texts that have shaped, traced and defined this history. Based on an idea by Yoeri Albrecht, directed by Ivo van Hove and produced by De Balie & ITA, the performance forces audiences to reflect on what Europe is and what it could be. Through the words of artists, thinkers and political leaders – from Shakespeare to Mitterrand, Thatcher to Obama – Europe is imagined, dissected and conjured up by members of the ITA ensemble.

On May 4th, at the Ateliers Berthier of the Odéon in Paris, we will continue this quest, a unique mix of theatrical performance and political discourse. Various guest actors and speakers have joined the performance in the past: Jude Law performed in the 2016 edition, and two years later – when opening the Forum on European Culture 2018 – Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science Ingrid van Engelshoven joined the cast.

For the next performance in Paris, the ranks of the ITA ensemble will be bolstered by French actor Charles Berling and German actor Lars Eidinger. Dutch philosopher and essayist Bas Heijne provides an introduction to the performance. Re:Creating Europe takes place on May 4^th in Paris, at les Ateliers Berthier (Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe), at 20.00.

Later, It will venture to the United Kingdom as part of the Manchester International Festival. It will be shown at the Lowry's Lyric Theatre, in Salford, at 20:00 on July 12^th. Special guest during that performance will be English actress Juliet Stevenson.

Learn more about The Forum on European Culture, a joint initiative by DutchCulture and De Balie and read what the New York Times had to say about the performance back in 2016.