The Quest

Description

At the juncture where stand-up, the absurd and existential drama meet, Cédric Eeckhout obsessively singles out the similarities between his fate and that of the entire continent, politically and economically; he blends the great historical currents with his personal story. According to him, important dates of his life correspond strangely with important episodes in the history of United Europe.
On one hand we have his story, a forty year old actor looking for eternal love, marked from a young age by the separation of his Walloon mother and his Flemish father. And on the other hand, the European Union whose foundations could crack, threatened by the rise of nationalism.
During his performance, he addresses Europe's fragmentation and questions the ambivalent effects of Neoliberalism ? He reflects on his origins: he is the fruit of a union between someone from the north and someone from the south of Belgium, which after 18 years resulted in divorce. Will the European Union enjoy a better fate? Presenting himself as a 21st century errant armour-clad medieval knight, he is joined in his quest by his mom and his cat Jésus.
Together they went to the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Sweden and Hungary, but also Flanders and Wallonia, sharing his reflections on family and Europe. They interviewed key people on the future of Europe; intellectuals, politicians, artists and also regular European citizens as well as members of his own family.
The Quest is the first theatre show of the week-long "Focus Europe" programme. Following Monday's performance, the audience is invited to a post-show discussion on current European themes.

Writing & directing Cédric Eeckhout with the partnership of Douglas Grauwels
Dramaturgy Nils Haarmann
Costumes & set design Laurence Hermant
Lighting design Emily Brassier With Cédric Eeckhout, Douglas Grauwels & Jo Libertiaux Assistant director Eulalie Roux
Costumes & Set design Ateliers du Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles Consultant English language editor Daisy Phillips
Translation, transcription, surtitling Isabelle Grynberg, Tineke de Meyer, Lola Chuniaud, Pulse Translations (Christopher Smith, Francis Smith, Valérie De Heyn, Valentine De Luca)
Presentation text Sophie Dupavé Creation Studio Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles
Production Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles Co-production Riksteatern; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg; Mars ? Mons Arts de la Scène; L'ANCRE ? Théâtre Royal; Grand Théâtre?/?Noorderzon; Trafó Budapest; La Coop asbl & Shelter Prod
With the support of Taxshelter.be, ING & the Tax Shelter of the Belgian Federal Government A showcase has been presented during the Festival XS 2017 at the Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles. We thank the teams of theatres who welcomed us during the various residences in Europe between April 2019 and February 2020 as well as the eighty-five people who agreed to be interviewed for this project. Vendredi 9 JUILLET 2021 à 20h00
Samedi 10 JUILLET 2021 à 20h00
Réservation par e-mail ou par téléphone au +352 4708951 DURÉE inconnue, spectacle en création Introduction to the play by Janine Goedert 30 minutes before every performance (EN).Adultes 20 ?, 15 ?, 8 ? / Jeunes 8 ? / Kulturpass bienvenu Lieu: Théâtre des Capucins