A phrase is haunting the globe: We are the many. Some may find these words troubling, if not frightening, whereas others see it as most joyful. It probably depends on whether you think of yourself as belonging to the many or not. And what about phrases such as ‘we are the people’ or even ‘we are the 99 %’? In a three hour lecture performance, Dieter Lesage presents the central questions of his upcoming book Parliament and the Many. A Theory of Radical Democracy.

This curated Beckett evening presents a surprising mix of forms: a monologue by Johan Leysen; an academic lecture about memory, neurology, machines and consciousness; a video installation with an immersive (post-)apocalyptic landscape; and a concert. Through this combination, Kris Verdonck explores a fascination that he shares with Beckett, namely technology and the increasing conflict between humans and machines.

A young woman in a city that has been occupied for decades. On the day of her father’s funeral, she discovers his architectural drawings. Broken Shapes is a hybrid theatrical experience between installation, video and performance that explores how physical surroundings affect us mentally. Onstage we see one actress, her words are supported and interrupted by the visual interventions around her.

For this adaptation of Moby Dick, Gorges Ocloo called on Ben Okri, who adapted the novel into a magic-realist story about the gulf between high and low, rich and poor. Josse De Pauw and the renowned American mezzo-soprano Raehann Bryce-Davis take to the stage. Together, they perform an energized and jazzy opera about the need for rapprochement in an increasingly polarized society.

Following the Weiblicher Akt series Maatschappij Discordia is launching a series about Love as it is described by women. In this first part, the company is exploring the work of Marguerite Duras (1914-1996). They let fragments from Duras’ novels resonate with personal stories to create a unique sketch of what love is and can be.