CRISLETTER

#3

PLEASER

In December, I tested a new part of Pleaser, during the Kelly & Dolly Grote Tafel Revue in Ghent. It gave me useful insights that I then continued to work on in the studio. This part of the show focuses primarily on dance, and I’m currently developing a more specific movement language around hand manipulation and humor. That’s also where most of my studio time on Pleaser has gone lately.

HEAVY META

I presented Heavy Meta as a work in progress for the first time during Outsiders Inn, the comedy night organised by Fijt en Fictie in Rotterdam Noord. It was an important step in my spoken-comedy (or x-comedy as I call it) journey,  as it was the first time I performed a set of 45+ minutes. It went very well, and I now have a lot of material and feedback to keep refining the show. I’m planning more try-outs in the coming months within the English-speaking comedy circuits in the Netherlands.

Residency at PimOff, Milan, Italy

I’ll be doing a one-week residency at PimOff in Milan, where I’ll continue working on Pleaser. This is one of the last residency periods, moving closer to the final version of the show. During the week, I’m planning a few showings and comedy spots in Milan. I’ll share what actually happened during the residency in the February Crisletter.

10/01» HARDKOOR by Theater Utrecht / Naomi Velissariou / Nederlands Kamerkoor

If you haven’t seen it yet, this is your last chance to experience this epic show in the Netherlands, nominated for the VSCD Mime/Performance Award. Hardkoor is a stand up tragedy concert, a stream of self-consciousness, set to techno, trip hop and choral music.

at Theater Rotterdam

15/01» DansClick with Bo Jacobs & Zoë Greten and Constantin Trommlitz​

During this DansClick, two performances will be presented that caught my attention. In Unveiling Echoes, Bo Jacobs and Zoë Greten explore the idea of human mirrors. In this intimate duet, the boundary between self and other begins to blur. Antibodies transmits the raw honesty and reality of pain. Two dancers share their unfiltered relationship with pain. 

at Schuur, Haarlem

27/01» Like a Clown by Goos Meeuwseen & Helena ​Bittencourt

I managed to see this last November, and I definitely recommend it! Like a Clown deconstructs the mythical and fictionalized image of the clown and explores the many meanings this figure has acquired over time. When two scholars set out to give a lecture, things take unexpected turns. 

at Theater Bellevue, Amsterdam

29/01» Tuna Big Fish - Newbie of the year

In case you are a fan of comedy competitions, for the entirety of 2025, the Amsterdam comedy scene has been selecting the funniest newbie out of 10 competing comedians. Now it’s time for these Newbies of the Month to go head to head, to determine who can win the title BIG FISH, als known as Newbie of the Year.

at Mezrab, Amsterdam

19-23 January »
at PimOff, Milan, Italy

During January »

During January »

VIDEO INTERVIEW by TU Eindhoven

OPEN CALL

Welcome to the Playground
30/12 at Mezrab, comedy spot,  Amsterdam
In 2025 I took part in various comedy and theater competitions but I did not win any. So I decided to end the year with a fake award cerimony where I would be the winner. Or at least I thought so?

FAKE AWARD CERIMONY

De Grote Tafel Revue, Kelly and Dolly
13/12 at Clown Spot,  Gent
My first time performing at a dinner show. The revue was hosted by the energetic and charismatic Kelly and Dolly, and featured 12 acts, including burlesque, circus, singing, and pole dancing. Some performed on a small stage during dinner, others later in the theatre part of the evening. I was the opening act, which also meant performing before the soup. It was a great opportunity to try out this new part of Pleaser, and I’m looking forward to refining it further and presenting it again.

TRY OUT HANDS DANCE

Heavy Meta (work-in-progress)
06/12 at Fijt en Fictie, Het Klooster, Rotterdam
The show took place in a cozy chapel, with a small audience of around 30 people. For this set, I organised the material into different joke categories and I told the audience about that. But the show goes beyond that, at least according to the character on stage, for whom simply making people laugh is not enough. I’m really looking forward to playing this again.

A JOKE FOR POEPLE WHO DON’T LIKE CROWD WORK

06/12
at Fijt en Fictie, Het Klooster, Rotterdam

Phoebe Perry standup set
Phoebe is a delight to watch, sharing insights from her life with openness and silliness. I really enjoyed seeing her perform a longer set, as I usually see her hosting or doing shorter alternative comedy bits. The audience clearly enjoyed it too.