Kurt van der Elst

PLAN for talent development Brabant

Thanks to PLAN for talent development Brabant, the newest generation of theatre, dance and circus artists get more opportunities in North Brabant. In PLAN producers, venues and festivals are working together in supporting talents. Promising talents receive support in the development of their signature, the cultural entrepreneurship, audience building and the visibility of their work. Talents are invited and suggested by PLAN partners, it is not possible for an artist to apply for participation.

PLAN is supported by the Fonds Podiumkunsten and functions in the context of Talenthub Brabant of the province of North Brabant and Kunstloc Brabant. In PLAN is a collaboration between talents, educators, venues, festivals and support institutions in different disciplines.

Theaterfestival Boulevard is part of Broedplaats ‘s-Hertogenbosch, together with Festival Cement, Theater Artemis and the Verkadefabriek. Breeding Ground ‘s-Hertogenbosch is a development space for artists. Broedplaats can be a partner or a co-producer, with other organizations, for talents. In addition to this development space there is a long lasting route for artists where they can receive expertise from all of the PLAN partners. During the year there are presentations of our Breeding Ground talents.

Each year during Theaterfestival Boulevard different talents get the chance to present their work at the festival. PLAN talents who have been part of the Boulevard festivalprogramme are Simon Bus, Elias de Bruyne and Piet van Dycke.

More information on PLAN

Arjuna Vermeulen PLANmaker 2024

Since January 1, 2024, Arjuna Vermeulen from Den Bosch is one of the three new PLANmakers who will further develop his talent at PLAN!

At Boulevard, we have been following Arjuna for a while, and we are proud that he will further develop his talents under the wings of Boulevard at PLAN Brabant.

Arjuna Vermeulen (1990, Den Bosch) started dancing in 2002, and Breaking became a way of life for him. After two years of taking classes, he and his friends decided to train on their own. In 2007, he formed his current dance group, Cypher Active, together with friends from Den Bosch and Boxtel. At the same time, he taught breakdancing classes at various organizations, earned his stripes as a performing dancer in the international breakdance scene by performing on large stages, and was active as a Host/M.C. during dance battles.

As one of the driving forces behind his dance crew, from 2015 onwards, he combined his expertise with that of his crew-mate Willem van Lieshout and founded the company Cypher HQ, the hub for Hip Hop (dance) culture in Den Bosch. As the artistic leader of Cypher HQ, he is involved daily in the creative implementation of the organization.

In 2020, Arjuna danced at Theaterfestival Boulevard in Traces by maker Shailesh Bahoran. Here, Arjuna discovered his talent for other dance styles, his creative insight, and his expressive personality. After years of being active as a self-taught individual in the breakdance scene, Arjuna set his sights on the theater.

"Arjuna Vermeulen is a dance maker who earned his stripes as a bboy in the (Inter)national hip-hop scene. With great theatrical awareness and infinite creativity, he will search with us in the coming years for the best context to develop, create, and present his work. Arjuna seizes everything at Boulevard as an opportunity to further develop himself and can immediately translate this into productive lessons for him. He has the talent to inspire others for his work - as a pivotal figure in his hip-hop scene - but also in artistic creation processes. Arjuna is moving very fast. We will try to keep up with him in the coming years."

Nina Aalders, Artistic coordinator Theaterfestival Boulevard
Theaterfestival Boulevard thanks:
  • Gemeente 's-Hertogenbosch
  • Den Bosch Partners
  • Provincie Noord-Brabant
  • Fonds Podiumkunsten
  • VSBfonds
  • Fonds21
  • Vriendenloterij Fonds
  • Creative Europe Programme (EU)
  • Gieskes-Strijbis Fonds
  • Dioraphte
  • VandenEnde Foundation
  • Fonds ZOZ
  • Jeugdfonds Sport & Cultuur
  • Jan van Hoof Galerie
  • Apap
  • Feminist Futures
  • Performing Gender