Audition BONJE

Design by Ayla Maagdenberg

Hand to hand duo (M/F or M/M)

For her new show BONJE (A SPAT), director Laura van Hal is looking for a hand to hand duo (m/m or m/f). The project is a longterm commitment to the company, spread out over at least 2 years, starting January 2021.

The show BONJE will have two versions; a festival version that will tour during spring and summer 2021 and 2022. And an indoor version for theaters that will tour both Dutch and Belgian theaters in winter/spring 2022.

BONJE will be a creation between a acrobatic duo and mime performer Anastasiia Liubchenko (Mime wave). BONJE is a circus theatre performance for children aged 5 and up and their families. The festival version will be 35 minutes and the theater version 55 minutes.

Laura is artistic leader and director of WIRWAR Producties, a Dutch-based company that creates contemporary circus theater for a young audience. You might have seen her previous work 'WIRWAR' or, 'VLIEG OP!' and 'LEF!' with STIP productions. She also directed 'LOOP' and 'NET' by TENT Circustheater Productions.

BONJE (5+)

Smashing circus theater

BONJE is a humorous circus theater show for the whole family. An acrobatic sensation, full of recognizable situations about arguing, bickering and squabbling.

Arguing... whether we like it or not, we all have to deal with it, some maybe more often than others. Will you, at all costs, continue to be right? Or are you the one who compromises to calm things down? Do you retreat like a turtle in a fight, or do you roar like a chimpanzee? And then, what do you do after that? Do you dare to take that first step to make amends? Or are you too stubborn and would you rather bury your head in the sand?

A family performance in which two acrobats and a mime performer do everything they can to break through the conflict patterns in which they are trapped.

Audition

First round: 21^st of November 2020, 10:00- 18:30 o’clock, Amsterdam

Call back: 22^nd of November 2020, 10:00- 17:00 o’clock, Amsterdam

In a workshop environment we will work on dance, theatre, mime and acrobatic assignments, to explore your talents. There is no need to prepare any material up front.

To apply

Duos that work together on a regular base are welcome to sign in for the audition.

Before the 1st of November 2020 send your CV with photo, videos and a motivational letter describing why you want to be in this show to info@wirwarproducties.nl

Audition by invitation only!

Planning

Rehearsals will take place in region Amsterdam/Haarlem. Ideally 4 rehearsal days per week. In total approximately 7 weeks for the festival version and another 7 weeks for the theater version. Total amount of rehearsals depends on extra funding, yet to be applied for.

Exact dates for the rehearsals will be chosen in consultation with performers.

Rehearsals BONJE festival in blocks spread out from January 2021 till May 2021.
Tour period BONJE festival May till October 2021. We are aiming for 15 to 25 show days. Availability will be checked, but we ask for a commitment to this project.
Rehearsals BONJE theater, 1 block of 3 weeks in fall 2021
Rehearsals and montage BONJE theater, around 4 weeks Jan/Feb 2022
Tour BONJE theater February till April 2022, aiming for 20 to 30 shows
Tour BONJE festival May till October 2022, aiming for 20 to 30 show days

Requirements

Graduate or intern from an official circus school.
Specialization in hand to hand acrobatics is a must. Additional skills are more than welcome as well.
High level of experience in both dance and physical theatre.
Affinity with performing for children from age 5 and up.
Motivated to use the craftsmanship of acrobatics and to thing outside the (acrobatic) box, to create an imaginative storytelling performance by combining physical/mime theatre and circus techniques as starting points.
Experience in giving circus workshops to children is an advantage.
Living in the Netherlands or willing to base here during both the rehearsal- and tour periods. Applicants must live within a maximum range of 300 km from Amsterdam (NL).

Payment, contract and insurance

Rehearsals, montage and shows are paid according to the CAO Dance and Theatre (Dutch collective labour agreement)
acrobats will get a freelance contract with the company
acrobats must have a WA verzekering/liability insurance and hand in the insurance policy when signing the contract.
disclaimer: all rehearsals and show estimates are made assuming we will be able to rehearse and perform within the current Covid-19 regulation. If new regulations prevent us from either rehearsing and/or performing, for now, we can only guarantee payment for the worked days.

No pied-a-terre budget

Acrobats are expected to find housing in the Netherlands themselves. Travel cost will be paid from a Dutch address only. There is no budget to pay for housing or travels to go back and forth abroad.

Function description

Creation period

During the rehearsal period the director and the dramaturge, in cooperation with the performers, will develop an acrobatic performance. The material for the show is created through acting and dance exercises as well as acrobatic movement and mime research.

Festival version

In spring and summer '21 we will perform try-outs and shows at several festivals. We will perform the 35 minute festival version 2 times a day. Performing outside means being spontaneous during the show and flexible in the working conditions.

After the summer we will create more material and adapt the festival version to a 55 minute indoor theater version. Spring and summer 2022 we will continue performing the festival version again and if possible even more years after that.

Theater version

Fall '21 and winter '22 we will work on the adaptation for theaters that will premiere February '22. After the premiere, the show will tour both Dutch and Belgian theaters. This tour will include 'public performances' for families and 'closed performances' for elementary pupils. When performing for schools it's common to have 2 shows a day, your first show being at 10:30 in the morning. During the tour there will be a lot of traveling around the country and if needed you will stay over for the night in a hotel paid for by WIRWAR Prodcuties. Either the night before a show and perhaps the night of the show if more shows are booked back to back in the same city.

Extra information

Workshops

Along with the performance, an educational project will be created. Performers could be asked to give simple circus workshops for elementary school children and/or in theaters after a 'public performance'. These activities will be paid for separately from the show-fee.

Second cast

To optimize the availability of the show for festivals, we will be working with a second cast once the show is a succes. This second cast will be asked for shows if the first cast is not available or in case of injuries. During the audition we will already be looking for this extra duo.

Questions