Totem

Concept, Mise-en-Scene, Scenography

Collaborating composer David Ko, Musical Director, Nicolò Foron Dramaturg Jair Buisman , Light Jordi Wolswijk, Producer Ezra Bredius

With Jorge Castro, Jeroen Bakker, Kris Cheuk-Yang Ng, Mia Mandineau, Lottie Walker, Marion Vergez-Pascal, Andrew George, Freddie te Roller, Joel Gester Suarez

Orchestra Kevin Kirs Verstege, Francisco Lopez Serrano, Cormac ò Briain, Adriana Mendez Fernandez, Olga Kowalczyk, Sophie Mettefue, Sofoklis Pagonis, Sophie Kalker, Phoebe Tarleton, Lisa de Bruycker, Antonio Pedrosa, Jorge Hernandez, Claudia Velez, Josanne Stavenuiter

Totem is an adaptation of Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem. In collaboration with composer David Ko, 15 minutes of music was added between the Libera Me and In Paradisum, to allow a storytelling that brings the idea of Paradise closer to life on earth than to the afterlife. 

In Totem, we follow the journey of a young man (the baritone voice) as he discovers a new perspective on life. Totem takes place in a space where all the elements of time come together, where the seasons exist alongside each other, the sun and moon meet and where the crops rise right as they are harvested. It is a reminder of the circularity of existence, and that new beginnings do not require the ending of another. 

Photo’s by Robert van der Ree