Earlier this year, Moore Bacon! had already carried off both the International Young Makers in Action Award (IYMA) and The Debut Award at the ITs Festival in Amsterdam. The jury of the ITs Festival reported: ‘The performance challenges the human body to such an extent that it seems to transcend physical limitations,’ reported the jury of the ITs Festival. ‘We were captivated by the pure simplicity of the idea, which nonetheless keeps on developing throughout the performance. Moore Bacon! is an extraordinary fusion of visual art and theatre.’
Provoost and Chielens found their inspiration for this poetic visual production in the works of the artists Henry Moore and Francis Bacon. ‘The body becomes an abstract form that does an acrobatic duet with the darkness of the space and a subtle play of light…. As a viewer you are continually misled, beguiled and befuddled. What you cannot see leaves plenty of room for the imagination…. The body on stage is like a living sculpture that inexorably becomes dehumanised, only to reveal itself as human again in a completely new form. Nothing is what it seems; everything moves, transforms, surprises…. Loud applause for the makers’ maturity and originality. Moore Bacon! is a unique and unforgettable fusion of performance and visual art. Bosse Provoost and Kobe Chielens – remember their names.’ Bieke Purnelle in TAZette
From the TAZ jury report:
‘Bosse Provoost and Kobe Chielens undeniably presented the most polished and focused performance amongst the selection of young theatre groups. Moore Bacon! is inspired by the work of two great artists and that entails a big risk, but the makers clear that bar effortlessly. Organic body and object, darkness and light, heaviness and lightness, silence and sound are used in intriguing moving tableaux. This is more than a pure study of form; they not only have given careful thought to how to stage something but also cleverly anticipated how the spectator’s imagination will work. Moore Bacon! is an incredibly strong performance, but is also extremely fragile and can only blossom under the best audience and technical conditions.’
