Belle - 5+

An astounding adventure about a monster and a girl    

Click here for a preview of Belle

Belle tells the famous fairytale of Beauty and the Beast, but in a different way. In an exciting dance duet a girl and a monster are challenging each other. The piece starts as a frightening nightmare and slowely turns into a funny love duet. If you dare to look a creepy monster in the eye, you'll experience a wonderful adventure. And maybe you'll even fall in love...

Jef Van gestel created Belle in 2008 as a small piece in our Max.Lab (the laboratory of theatergroep Max.). This was so bizar and beautifully designed, creepy and funny at the same time, that Max. decided to bring it on tour.

"The young guest director Jef Van gestel transformed the famous fairytale Beauty and the Beast to a compact hour of non-verbal physical theatre. His actors Saskia Driessen and Roel Swanenberg turn their pranks into catchy slapstick sequences. These pranks all arise from the struggle between fear and trust. (…) The acrobatic chases through the pretty-pretty bedroom please the youthful audience." 

"A clever and funny dance duet. (…) The simple projections on the wall when the Beast is asleep are moving (NRC Handelsblad, five balls). 

"The final scene completes this moving performance entirely. After seeing this performance, no child will longer be afraid of monsters. (…) The children in the auditorium laugh and stare their eyes out. A successful way to spend your afternoon." (www.theaterjournaal.nl) 

"Theatergroep Max. succeeded in thoroughly reviving a generally known fairytale. (…) an exciting, funny and in the end even exceptional moving story." (Elsevier)    

 "In a wonderful setting a girl's room comes to life. (…) A smart choreography, in which the young actors Saskia Driessen en Roel Swanenberg play with each other in a game of attracting and rejecting. (…) Jochem Baelus' soundscape is very attractive. (…) Van gestel succeeded in transforming the famous fairytale to an exciting and funny performance. An inventive director, Jef Van gestel." (Parool) 

 "At their best, performances for five year olds are mostly beautiful and poetic. But the Dutch performance Belle digs much deeper. (…) The laughter of the children in the auditorium is striking hearty. (…) A pearl." (De Standaard) 

Jef Van gestel graduated from the drama acadamy of Maastricht as a theatre maker/drama teacher. He won the Ton Lutz Prijs for most promising directing talent. He directed at Huis van Bourgondië, Fabuleus, Veemtheater, RO Theater and is one of the founders of collective Tuning People. Jef performed in the following Max. performances: House of Dreams, Peter Pan was Here, Lear's Daughters and Reigen.

Direction - Jef Van gestel

Performance - Saskia Driessen, Roel Swanenwerg

Music & animations - Jochem Baelus

Set design - Jean Lou Çaĝlar, Sanne Danz

Costume design - Marike Kamphuis

Light design - Jean Lou Çaĝlar

Dutch tour - January – March 2010

Age - 5 years and up

Lenght 60 minutes

28 Feb 2010 - Szene Bunte Wähne Tanzfestival, Vianna, Austria