It could hardly have been more topical for the theater makers: peasant protests are the order of the day. Also in Hollandscheveld, Dutch flags hang upside down in street lamps. “This is the talk of the day”, De Ket also knows, who wants to do something with it. “So the performance is also about how the Netherlands views farmers, and about the gap between the Randstad and the countryside.”
Despite the spicy subject, it is a performance with a lot of comedy. “We have to laugh,” says De Ket. “Koekoek once said in the House of Representatives that he wanted an erection. The chairman responded by asking whether he meant an interruption. “No! An erection, because I can’t stand all this weak bullshit”, Koekoek then shouted. He always had the laughs on his hand, and those are wonderful things to use.”
The script will be written in the coming months. When that is finished, suitable actors can be hired. In the meantime, the financing has yet to be arranged. The manufacturer has confidence in this. “We know Drenthe well and have also built up quite a position as the Het Pauperparadijs Foundation. So we dare to say that the public wants this.” The biggest challenge is phasing out the location. The estimate must now be filled with sanitary facilities, electricity, reception areas and a grandstand.
The piece will premiere on July 15, 2023. In six weeks, 30 performances will be played, which together can receive 30,000 people.