After the impressive Mount Olympus, Jan Fabre is now presenting an ode to his country, Belgium. He does this in the language that he feels is most suited for grasping the spirit of this slippery state, that of theatre, of images. Says Fabre, ‘Theatre lies at the origins of this little country, and theatre is what this little country remains. Belgium is bursting with bureaucracy and contrived ceremony. An artificial state that serves as a platform for other people’s wars. Everybody (and nobody) speaks three languages. Three regions subpide this minuscule territory. Belgians live life with gusto. They are greedy for pleasure. They celebrate the flesh, believe in fanfare and festivity. They dance with death, in masks and carnivals. Belgium is a land of processions and surrealists. Surreal and subversive. A race of slackers and bunglers lives in Belgium. Ceci n’est pas un pays.’

Together with an international cast of performers and musicians, Fabre has translated the Belgian identity into a traveling dance and theatre show. For this production, songwriter Raymond van het Groenewoud wrote a number of national anthems.

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