Over Gajes (EN)
About Gajes
Theater Gajes’ core business was outdoor theater performances with which it toured throughout Europe. In addition, there were one-off performances (custom work) and educational projects. The performances were always performed outdoors or at a special location. Theater Gajes briefly transformed these everyday surroundings into the perfect theater. The shows and performances appealed to a very layered audience.
PLAYING STYLE
The company created performances and performances that responded to society or context and told a story. In doing so, they used live music, physical play, text, technology, visual objects and effects.
In this theater, the audience is literally in the middle of the playing floor. There is no front row; no one is at the front. The audience is surrounded by the set and must step aside for moving objects and actors traversing the crowd. Because of this interaction, the crowd is incessantly moving as in a choreography. Players can be followed by turns from very close and from a distance. The separation between audience and playing surface is eliminated.
Literally standing in the middle of the playing surface, another dimension is added for the audience. Above the heads, the theatrical reality takes place, which can be done through the use of large moving objects and stilts. At height, the players thus float, as it were, above the heads of the audience and create another reality. At street level, the effort and technique required for this is visible. One finds oneself, as it were, between the wings. In this duality, the spectator has a choice. One can lose oneself in the story on an imaginary level and at the same time, on a real level, experience the efforts required to achieve this. In addition to all this, live music contributes greatly to the rhythm and dynamics of the performance. As players, the musicians are an integral part of the story.
MISSION
Theater Gajes went for high-level outdoor theater and through that theater wanted to give everyone in society a chance to come into contact with theater.
Theater Gajes connected spectacle with content, raw images with poetry, musicality with noise. Theater Gajes took people into its creative world in all its activities. In short, Theater Gajes connected!
Theater Gajes was one of the proponents of outdoor theater in the Netherlands.
It stood for outdoor theater of an artistically responsible level. Made by professionals on all fronts. Outdoor theater with a story or a message, outdoor theater that consciously communicates with its audience, aiming to open new doors and realities for that audience. She was committed to improving the quality of outdoor theater in general and of her own company in particular. One of the ways she did this was by co-founding the “Belangenvereniging Buitentheater”.
An offline archive is available. If interested, please contact Maartje Keijzer (maartje.keijzer@gmail.com)
Team Gajes
The last 10 years, the company was led by:
Maartje Keijzer
Theater Gajes was established and initially led by:
Norbert Busschers en Roderik Sommerdijk
Gajes was also:
Valentijn van der Mieden, Maarten van der Berg, Marjet Spook, Nard Verdonschot, Albert Klein Kranenburg, Joyce van Esch, Christiaan Bloem, Luka Kooijmans, Bas Verduijn, Berco Stukje, Arjan Bouw, Fleur Dikken, Sebastiaan Flier, Arjan van Drunen, Emma Janssen, Dorus van der Meer, Douwe Hibma, Linda van Boxtel, Otto Berg, Floor Paul, Marcel van der Schot, Gerida van Gerrevink, Bert Feddema, Reindert Kruse, Nynke Borgman, Raoul Copier, Riette Sommerdijk, Juul Beerda, Toon Kuijpers, Sieger Baljon, Sophie Simenel, Teun Christoffels, Arjen Dijkstra, Guido de Wijs, Enno Lobo, Tessa Verbei, Joram Westen, Lex Prinzen, Anjo de Bont, Jan Amse, Luca Sommerdijk, Jeroen Kriek, Silas Neumann, Ferdi Celic, Thijs de Waard, Petra Appelman, Yasmin le Comte, Ibelisse Guardia, Briian Verhagen, Mette Bunskoek, Jan van de Bosch, Janice Slot, Sasha Manuilenko, Wilma Paalman, Bas van Waard, Benjamin Kuijtenbrouwer, Ilse Evers, Tabitha van den Hooff, Roeland Dros, Eva van der Post, Jose Kistenkas, Britt Verstegen, Thijs Bos, Trudy Hekman, Esther Tobé, Dirkjan Lekkerkerker, Joyce Tuut, Henk de Reus, Willemijn Lont, Arie Keijzer, Joost Brouwer, Maxime Schrader, Jiska Mensink, Bas Leerink, Richard Scholten, Monique van Meel, Marijn Keijzer, Joyce Scholtnes, Anneke Demmers, Sylvia Kruidhof, Jannie ter Horst, Marian Stel, Gerran Kroes, Elsabeth Reijnders, Rosa Berman, Leon Giethoorn, Victor Alvarezalegria, Sander Beens, Tess Broek, Tobias Bodewitz, Maite Levy, Nikkie Terberg, Merel Rutgers, Mark van der Heide, Lard Adrian, Dilly Helmink, Nova Lubbelinkhof, Nigel Appelboom, Iwan Kolk, Christel van Schagen, Mariël Vaartjes, Rachel Rijswijk, Lous van Noordwijk, Freek Nieuwdorp en Dick Hauser