In our current climate of growing nationalism and populism, what does it mean to be European? Its variety and diversity make Europe at once a physical continent, a political union striving to create civic harmony, a bustling hub of life, a site of cultural exchange, and much more. While born from an ideal, a utopian dream, today’s Europe is facing a breakdown of democracy in its member-states. On the threshold of elections that will be decisive for the future of Europe, De Balie, a leading venue for cutting-edge debates and art projects in the Netherlands, and Internationaal Theater Amsterdam present Re:Creating Europe, an exploration of Europe through the speeches and texts that have shaped, traced and defined its history. Via the speeches of visionary statesmen like François Mitterrand and Barack Obama, Ivo Van Hove echoes the uncertainty troubling both individuals and institutions, and invite us through his performance to imagine what the Europe of tomorrow might look like.
Introduced by Bas Heijne, one of the most famous writers and essayist from the Netherlands. Since 1991 he writes colums and essays on societal topics for the Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad. In 2017 he received the P.C. Hooftprijs for his essayistic oeuvre.
