Review Peer Gynt fan Masquerade: Searching for yourself
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Loading... - Thomas Bourgeois
- 11 Jul 2022
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The open-air play of Masquerade Youth Theater in Oudwoude is a spectacle, in which everything is pulled out. Yet the human emotion is not forgotten either: looking for yourself!
Actually, that Peer Gynt is not a nice boy at all. The main character lies and amounts, likes to brag, is a fighter and causes his mother a lot of grief.
And yet, according to production manager Bianca Wiersma of Masquerade, this piece was deliberately chosen. "The story has various points of contact with this time. How do young people deal with all the corona restrictions around them, the isolation but also their revolt against all measures? But also look for opportunities that are offered."
Masquerade has been around since 2013 and gives young people from Kollumerzwaag, Oudwoude and surroundings the opportunity to discover their talent for possible further steps in the theater. On average, the group consists of just under twenty boys and girls between 8 and 18 years old. In the meantime, the players come from everywhere, as far as Leeuwarden and Surhuizum.
Masquerade is also more than youth theatre. This is again evident in this performance. Director Job de Roo adapted the original text by the Norwegian writer Hendrik Ibsen into an original and appropriate Frisian translation.
But he demands a lot from his players. Sometimes maybe a little too much. Because the story is complex and with so many layers that it is understandable that not all young players can muster the necessary acting qualities.
forest theatre
However, there is still plenty left to enjoy this evening. The location alone, near the ice rink of Oudwoude. There, in the garden of the Ten Kate family, a true forest theater has been created.
The audience sits on a grandstand just in front of a pond and looks out over the water to a fairytale backdrop in the background, bordered by tree greenery. An atmospheric lighting conjures up a world of shadows on the other side, where Peer Gynt can indulge in all his frenzied fantasies.
However, the essential part of the piece is played across the pond, a few meters of ground just in front of the grandstand. This puts the audience on top of the players' skin and soul. And as a result, the performance is directly withdrawn. A wonderful find from the director.
But this also makes De Roo vulnerable to his players. Because in addition to all the beautiful moments, for example the emotional cooperation between Peer and his mother, the less perfect performances are also magnified. Read More...
