A village… in a not so distant past. People live in harmony with each other. But then the city comes. It brings laws, judges, and notaries. It preys on the land. ‘They built fences, we tore them down. They rebuilt them… we tore them down again. It looked like child’s play, but it got out of hand… just like child’s play sometimes does…’
At the Feast of the Dreams there was a bloody confrontation. There were casualties on both sides, but most on the side of the villagers. A number of children and youths that had been brought into safety by their parents, now return, looking for answers…
Dream Travellers is a free adaptation of the theater play A la vera del camino (‘On the side of the road’) by Arena y Esteras. A story based on the testimony of Verónica, who, at the age of seven, survives an attack on her village, flees to Lima, and many years later tries to find out what happened to her family. You can read her complete story “here”:http://www.sering.be/en/camino.
During the months of rehearsing, we examined how a spiral of violence emerges. The presence of actors with Iraqi, Vietnamese, and Congolese roots at the performances at Sering made this question very up-to-date.
Performed in the Spring of 2009 at Sering, Antwerp, Belgium.
The Sering-version was created by: Mia Grijp, Rebecca Huys, Lisette Mertens and Tania Poppe Set design: Ivo Vander Borght
Costumes and masks: Hilde Colaers and Bart Luypaert
Featuring: Azal Yahiya Adress, Jacinta Agten, Paula Bartelen, Kanada Bijlhout, Lukas Bulteel, Simonne Dandois, Mieke De Block, Maria De Laet, Chaymae El Makoulfi, Wouter Fierens, Saloua Laaraj, Soukaina Laaraj, Emmanuella Lunanga, Roeland Luyckx, Adams Mensah, Xuan Nguyen, Denzel Obasi, Ifechi Obasi, Jochem Oomen, Sara ten Broek
In name of our village Villa El Salvador,
in name of Verónica,
in name of the thousands Verónicas who the war cannot silence,
we say: thank you!!!
for making our history your own,
for making our struggle your struggle
for doing this with respect, honesty, and warmth…
… on stage as well as in real life.
Arena y Esteras
Villa El Salvador
Peru
11-05-09
Below are some pictures of the performances at Arena y Esteras in Peru and at Sering in Antwerp.
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