WhyNot X Julidans: OFF VENUE
Julidans talked to the driving forces behind the OFF VENUE programme, Marjolein Vogels and Daisy Benz from WhyNot. OFF VENUE is a route through the city along special locations where various performances are staged by choreographers and artists. WhyNot is a platform that works with body and movement as starting points. For their projects such as OFF VENUE and the WhyNot festival, they often place dance and performance makers alongside other art disciplines. In this way, the audience also discovers visual artists who focus on body and movement.
An unplugged and raw look behind the scenes of Amsterdam's dance studios
Why OFF VENUE?
Marjolein is a dancer and choreographer herself, and from her contact with the field, the need arose to offer dance artists a sanctuary. Daisy is in charge of concept development. She translates the works of art into concrete plans for the festival world to show the general public how special the body is to everyone.
For OFF VENUE, we thought it would be a nice idea to show the audience what else is happening in the field of dance in the city, while the big Julidans names are programmed in the evening. We bring art and dance to the people, we place it in the neighbourhoods, in parks, playgrounds, churches, shops, museums, on squares, and this year in the special places where dance is made: the rehearsal rooms. The audience sees several performances, and in between cycles together from one location to another. Cycling gives you the opportunity to meet and to reflect on what you have seen, and you will also discover special places in the city that you would not normally visit. Like a rehearsal room in the attic of a church!
What can we expect this year?
This year, we showcase the infrastructure of dance workshops in the city. The audience can go backstage and take a look behind the scenes. What precedes a performance? We want the audience to see how important it is that these places exist, and show how much research, effort and time go into a creative process. This year's performances include improvisation, first drafts, but also work that is already finished but has not yet been put on stage because of corona. So you see how the soup is made, you taste its ingredients, but also dishes that are already finished. After last year, we also want to show that a lot has been made despite the fact that many makers have not yet been able to present their work. As an audience you can also ask the maker questions about what you see and about the process. It is intimate.
What are you most looking forward to?
To good weather! No, it is especially exciting because this fourth edition of OFF VENUE shows the creative process, which means that most of the work is still under development, unplugged. We don't yet know exactly what will happen, so that is very exciting! A peek into the kitchen, so the soup can be tasted? Much more exciting than presenting normal shows. That is what we like best, that it is so unplugged and raw.
What else can we expect from WhyNot?
WhyNot is making a production with artists from different disciplines around the concept of Landscaping. This summer, choreographers, dancers, a landscape architect, an artist, a researcher and a composer are doing residencies in gardens in the city such as the Tolhuistuin. They investigate what the landscape means to the body, what the body means to the landscape, and how they set each other in motion. From 31 August to 4 September 2021, we will show the results at a beautiful location in the Amsterdamse Bos! Soon you can find it all on festivalwhynot.nl.
