Everything must go
Studio Dries Verhoeven | NL
Theatre maker and visual artist Dries Verhoeven dives into the world of shoplifting in his new ‘live’ performance Everything must go. In a system in which money is important, this installation focuses on the socially inappropriate. How well-behaved are we if we are not watched, for example at the self-service checkout? Is the shoplifter realty a criminal, or could they also be our salvation from a system that has had its best days? Is the shoplifter a symptom of a predatory world, or are their actions a defensible form of disobedience or resistance? Everything must go, but in favour of what?
Since the introduction of the self-service checkout shoplifting has been on the rise. Dries Verhoeven used it as inspiration for Everything must go. Behind the innocent decision to slip that one piece of ginger unpaid into your bag appears to be a social change, a shift in what society considers right and permitted.
Verhoeven talked to people in various financial situations who occasionally ‘forget’ to pay, thieves in custody and those who consider theft as a way of resistance. He invited the proletarian shoppers (those who shop without paying as a way of resistance), self-proclaimed Robin Hoods to self-examination. The result is a stark depiction of the dark depths of our moral actions.
Everything must go is Verhoeven’s next installment in a series about irrational and indecent human beings. At Boulevard, he showed the haunted house Phobiarama (2017) which focused on fear. Verhoeven explored the growing interest in antidepressants, drug and sexual indulgence in Happiness (2019) and The NarcoSexuals (2022). The latter production was nominated for the VSCD Mimeprijs at the Nederlands Theaterfestival. His work Dear Beloved Friend received a Gouden Kalf at the Dutch Film Festival.
Good to know
- The performance is in English.
- The performance contains explicit nudity.
- You may decide how long you stay, the average amount of time is 60 minutes.
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Concept and direction Dries Verhoeven
Performance Annica Muller, Rosie Sommers
Movementmaterial developed in collaboration with the performers, Isadora Tomasi
Text Dries Verhoeven n.a.v. interviews met ervaringsdeskundigen
Dramaturgy Hellan Godee, Miguel A Melgares
Sound design Isadora Tomasi
Sound edit Peer Thielen
Direction assistent Didi Kreike
Technical direction Roel Evenhuis
Decor Niklas van Woerden
Communication Esra Merkel
Business direction Lisanne Notermans, Ellen van Bunnik
Subtitles Casper Wortmann
Production Ellen van Bunnik ('n More), Jitske Weijand
Thanks to Yoni Vermeire, Dirk Verhoeven, Titus Duitshof, Karl Klomp, Rob's Prop Shop, Ellis Kat (Nieuw Dakota), Jana Jacuka
Made possible by Fonds Podiumkunsten, Gemeente Utrecht, K.F. Heinfonds, AFK, Fonds21