“I am old”, Albert Mol (Laus Steenbeeke) shouts. “I feel old,” recalls Wassim (Silyan Elkattabi). “I’m ugly,” Mol tries to surpass Wassim. “I am a refugee,” the latter replies. Mol is silent for a moment. “Okay,” he sighs. “You win.”
At first glance they don’t have much in common: the old television and theater personality with his old-fashioned dressing gown and the Syrian drag artist with his glittering heel boots. It is therefore quite a strange meeting between Mol and Wassim – all the more so because Mol is located in the Laren of 2004 and Wassim in the Amsterdam of 2023. Yet this meeting forms the core of The mole and the bird of paradisethe new Dutch musical that can be seen during Pride 2023 in DeLaMar in Amsterdam.
Lack of acceptance
Before that meeting, the musical alternately follows the separate storylines of the two men. In the latter days of his life, Mol looks back on what he has actually achieved, which provides a nice insight into how homosexuality is dealt with in the somewhat bourgeois post-war Netherlands. Wassim, in turn, is still busy shaping his life: since he arrived in the Netherlands, he has moved from one temporary accommodation to another, without feeling really welcome anywhere.
Both Mol and Wassim struggle with the lack of acceptance that seems to transcend generations. For their orientation, for their gender identity and especially for the ‘exuberant’ way in which they express it. And in Wassim’s case also for his skin color: the promised ‘gay heaven’ of Amsterdam turns out to be a lot less tolerant than it appears.
Loud and cheerful
The mole and the bird of paradise does not shy away from such criticism of apparent tolerance. The musical is at its strongest when that commentary is sharp, hard and humorous. Like when the ensemble (which often steals the show with strong vocals and big playing) ignites in an upbeat party song about Pride, singing lyrics like “LGBTQ, we are here for you” with as much glee as “No blacks, no asians, that isn’t racist, that’s just a preference” – a reference to the exclusionary texts that sometimes pop up on gay dating apps like Grindr.
In addition to those critical notes, the musical contains a lot of cheerfulness. Both main characters show themselves as the flamboyant bird of paradise from the title, which spreads its colorful feathers instead of hiding underground like a mole. And the original songs, which vary in style from jazz to dance and revue (including nods to ‘The boys from the travel association’ from Yes sister, no sister and Wim Sonneveld’s ‘The Village’), make sure the musical is over before you know it.
Occasionally, that enormous speed and the ambition to develop two storylines works to the disadvantage of the piece. When Mol and Wassim finally come together, it seems as if there is just too little time left for that improbable encounter to come into its own. And after watching them struggle for so long to be accepted, allow both characters a longer moment to spread their feathers together. But as a whole The mole and the bird of paradise a successful celebration of exuberantly being yourself.