En avant, marche!

Our country has a long tradition of bands, orchestras and musical associations. So, too, does the Belgian city of Ghent, where, in 2012, a local museum presented an exhibition on the subject entitled En avant, marche! This exhibition inspired the theatre directors Frank Van Laecke and Alain Platel to create a production based on the subject in collaboration with the composer Steven Prengels. The result is a performance portraying a group formed by different individuals who all seek the same goal: to march to a single cadence. Surely, the perfect metaphor for our society as a whole? Four actors and seven musicians, joined for the occasion by Barcelona Municipal Band, come together on stage, even exchanging roles to the surprise of the audience. The broad musical palette includes, not only marches, but also a repertoire inspired by classical music, arrangements of nineteenth- and twentieth-century pieces by composers ranging from Richard Strauss to Gustav Mahler. Moreover, instruments like the trumpet, the tuba and the euphonium come to the fore, as well as percussion, leading the show away from the triumphal, celebratory music with which wind orchestras are often associated.

Direcció: Frank Van Laecke, Alain Platel ; Dramatúrgia: Koen Haagdorens ; Intèrprets: Chris Thys, Griet Debacker, Hendrik Lebon, Wim Opbrouck, Gregory Van Seghbroeck (tuba), Jan D'Haene (trompeta), Jonas Van Hoeydonck (trompeta), Lies Vandeburie (fiscorn), Niels Van Heertum (bombardí), Simon Hueting (trompa), Witse Lemmens (percussió), Steven Prengels (director), la Banda Municipal de Barcelona ; Interpretació musical: KMV De Leiezonen (direcció: Diederik De Roeck); Composició i direcció musical: Steven Prengels; Ajudant de direcció: Steve De Schepper, Katelijne Laevens; Escenografia: Luc Goedertier; Vestuari: Marie 'Costume' Lauwers; Disseny d'il·luminació: Carlo Bourguignon; Disseny de so / concepció sonora: Bartold Uyttersprot; Regidoria: Wim Van de Cappelle; Direcció de producció: Marieke Cardinaels, Valerie Desmet; Responsable de gira: Steve De Schepper; Distribució: Frans Brood Productions (www.fransbrood.com); Producció executiva local: Agnès Blot; Fotografia: Stephan Vanfleteren, Phile Deprez;