Breaking the Codes: Zamenhof Project, by the young music theatre maker Jerzy Bielski, is an interdisciplinary project inspired by the ideas and the life of Ludwik Zamenhof, the creator of the universal language Esperanto and promoter of world peace. In this large-scale interdisciplinary project Bielski constructs a world which surprises, challenges and confuses.
Breaking the Codes: Zamenhof Project is situated somewhere between a concert, a museum visit and a theatre or dance production. The international cast, consisting of actors, musicians and dancers who between them speak seven languages, involves the audience in an exploration of communication (or miscommunication) and language. And the audience will not stay seated the whole time, but will be free to discover the space and installations together with the performers.
Polish-born Bielski has been artist in residence with Gaudeamus since 2017. As a young maker theatre-maker he is given space there in which to develop his expressive music theatre works. Breaking the Codes: Zamenhof Project is a coproduction of Stichting Futurists and Gaudeamus.
After more than three years of preparation, research, writing, creating and rehearsing the “Zamenhof Project – Breaking the Codes” will finally be showed in the only one of its kind, completely unique town and region of Kelmis (previously known as the New Moresnet). It’s the only such place in the world, which used to have Esperanto as its official language back in the day where they were still an autonomy stuck between Prussian and Dutch borders.
It happened that I come from the same town (Bialystok in eastern Poland), which makes it more inspiring, putting the ideals and the life-time work of Ludwik Zamenhof in a whole different, more personal perspective for me. Communication between people coming from different cultures, backgrounds, social classes, genders, etc. is in the very core of this piece. Difficulties that it carries, leading up to misunderstandings, hostility and conflict show the other side of it. Language, be it spoken, written or based on gestures together with non-verbal codes and the way we use them is not only what can connect us, but is also precisely what divide us from one another. That is why it can also be the best means of manipulation the other…Building, destroying, creating, deconstructing FORM of any communication system lies in the very centre of this work.
You’ll be able to experience for yourself during this 1,5h long interdisciplinary experiment/event a total mind boggling mix of music and text originally written for this piece and inseparably intertwined with a choreography created meticulously for the 11 performers, several astounding moving sound installations, along with a set design built and costumes sawn exclusively for this performance, videos, unique audio recordings and live electronics – all working together as well as in many fragments.
You’ll hear Dutch, English, Esperanto, Polish, French, Danish, Russian, Morse alphabet, Braille alphabet, binary code, DNA codes – all entangled in a fierce collage of rhythmical arrangements, uncovering the musical structures, rhythms, intonations, phonems and the unique sound elements of these very languages and systems.
The piece will be an exploratory journey into the linguistic-/gesture-/number-/etc.-based world of CODES and dreams of those who’d missed to decipher them…
So, leave all your troubles, sorrows and every-day bores and join the crowd of the very first showing of this unique all round total immersive experience! But don’t forget to gather your best friends, neighbours and family and run and as you stand, as quick as you can to join this unimaginable performance of wonder and delight, which your eyes have never seen before on this very world!
“Zamenhof Project: Breaking the Codes” is a new international music theatre piece, created by a young composer/music theatre maker Jerzy Bielski, winner of Gold Award at Amsterdam Fringe in 2015 for “not only FUTURISTS” (together with stage director Laura Jakschas, the two artists collaborated with each other again this time).
The concept has been inspired by the ideas and life of Ludwik Zamenhof, the creator of the universal language Esperanto and a promotor of world’s peace. Communication between people coming from different cultures, backgrounds, social classes, genders, etc. is in the very centre of this performance. Difficulties that it carries, leading up to misunderstandings, hostility or even a fight show us the other side of it. Language, be it spoken, written or based on gestures together with non-verbal communication and the way we use it is precisely what divides us and also what can connect us to each other. That is why it can also be the best means of manipulating people. Bulding, destroying, creating, deconstructing FORM of some kind of communication lies in the core centre of this work.
Come, don’t wait!
You’ll be able to experience for yourself during this interdisciplinary experiment/event a total mind boggling mix of new music inseparably intertwined with text written or compiled especially for this play, choreography created with meticulous precision for 8 performers, full theatrical huge set design built specifically for this occasion along with several incredible moving sound installations, videos, uniquely arranged audio recordings and live electronics.
The piece will be an exploratory journey into the linguistic/gesture-/number-, etc. based world of CODES and dreams of those who missed to decipher them.
The project is a pioneering, far-reaching enterprise into the unknown. An innovation and a challenge, which only those, who will come and experience it with all of their senses, will be able to tell if it has been completely fulfilled and will leave any mark on their memories or not at all. This piece is an event on its own, appealing to all the human perception sides, emotional as well as a thorough intellectual. Individual discovery of all the layers, directions and sensations encompassed in this multi-faceted composition will be something that everyone who will come to see it will live through completely differently!
Come and you will not regret it!
The performance is dedicated to 18+ audiences
There will be stroboscope lights, loud music and strong language used during the performance
Duration: 2h 45min. (including 20min. interval)
ENSEMBLE
Creative team:
Jerzy Bielski – concept, composition, text, artistic & production leader
Laura Jakschas (Germany) – stage direction collaboration
Sandra Abouav (France) – choreography collaboration
Karolina Maksimowicz (Poland) – set design, costumes, sound installations
Felix de Bousies (Belgium/Greece) – video, sound installations
Performers:
Akim Moiseenkov (Netherlands) – vocalist/instrument builder/musician
Claire Malchrowicz (France) – vocalist/dancer
Eva Layla Schipper (Netherlands) – vocalist/actor
Pawel Chomczyk (Poland) – vocalist/actor
Kirstine Lindemann (Denmark) – vocalist/musician
Richard Dubelski (France) – vocalist/musician
Felix de Bousies (Belgium/Greece) – performer
Tatiana Rosa (Netherlands) – live electronics, audio, audio & video cues
Tim Sabel – pre-pared piano, MIDI-keyboard (Asko|Schönberg – K[h]AOS)
Noè Rodrigo Gisbert – percussion, drum kit (Asko|Schönberg – K[h]AOS)
Jerzy Bielski – guitars
Production assistant:
Matthijs Mantel
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