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MAFESTIVAL 2014 1-10 AUG METAM ORPHOSES One of the biggest literary masterpieces of all time, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, served as a source of inspiration for the 51st edition of MAfestival Bruges, from 1–10 August 2014. A wide variety of transformations from Greek and Roman mythology unfolds in the epic poem, as Ovid narrates of numerous characters and their metamorphoses in a stunningly colourful and imaginative language. ‘Everything changes, nothing perishes,’ a thought which remains fascinatingly topical in the 21st century. With this quote as a starting point, MAfestival goes in search of diverse metamorphoses in music.

It goes without saying that several mythological characters will pass in review, in programs with a metamorphosis as the thematic starting point. As such, the world renowned Italian ensemble Il Giardino Armonico devotes a concert to Händel’s Aci, Galatea e Polifemo. The youthful force of Cappella Mediterranea, conducted by the Argentinian top conductor Leonardo García Alarcón brings La Dafne by Marco da Gagliano. The illustrious poet-singer Orpheus makes his appearance during the concerts of L’Yriade and cantoLX.

Apart from this context you will also hear some musical metamorphoses, like Schumann’s Papillons, performed by winner of the International Competition Musica Antiqua 2013 Elizaveta Miller, and Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in arrangements by carilloneur Arie Abbenes and recorder virtuoso Erik Bosgraaf.

MAfestival 2014 also explores some processes of formal transformation in music. The duo Istomin-Sofronitsky and Hespèrion XXI illustrate the plethora of metamorphoses musical themes can undergo in the course of a series of variations, fugue or fantasia. Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien, Le Poème Harmonique and Ensemble Tiburtina each in their own way prove that music history is a concatenation of metamorphoses as well, by rendering a stylistic development or revolution tangible.

Just like Ovid revamped well-known myths, MAfestival gives the floor to several musicians who reinterpret an existing repertoire. The musical collective around saxophone player Robin Verheyen formulates a contemporary answer on the oeuvre of Guillaume de Machaut; the electric guitar quartet Zwerm assumes the role of a 17th century consort; and Rembrandt Frerichs lets us hear the modern sound of the pianoforte. Improvisation and reinterpretation are these adventurous projects’ trump cards, as they resonate the past in the future and prove that in music too, nothing perishes and everything is a constant change.

Apart from the surprising and prestigious concert series, other fixed values of the MAfestival return. The International Competition Musica Antiqua 2014 focusses on melodic instruments. MAfestival managed to persuade Amandine Beyer, Erik Bosgraaf, Jan De Winne, Sergei Istomin and Mieneke van der Velden to constitute the jury under the chairmanship of Johan Huys. There is an exhibition of historic instruments and a Fringe series which gives the floor to upcoming young talent. On both festival Sundays the Bruges Woodland and Wetland is explored, with a concert day in the picturesque village of

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Lissewege, and the second edition of the successful Vélo Baroque, a musical cycling tour between Bruges and Damme.

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INDEX

HIGHLIGHTS – P.1 Il Giardino Armonico olv Giovanni Antonini – Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, Händel Jordi Savall & Hespèrion XXI – Contrapunctus, consortmuziek van Dowland tot Bach Le Poème Harmonique olv Vincent Dumestre – Nova Metamorfosi Cappella Mediterranea olv Leonardo García Alarcón – La Dafne, Marco da Gagliano Erik Bosgraaf & Ensemble Cordevento – The Four Seasons, Vivaldi Ensemble Correspondances olv Sébastien Daucé – Litanies de la Vièrge, M.- A. Charpentier Amandine Beyer & Gli Incogniti – Beatus vir?, Johann Rosenmüller

THE FUTURE SOUND OF EARLY MUSIC – P.5 Robin Verheyen, Russ Johnson, Aton’&Armide, I Solisti del Vento - The modern sound of Guillaume de Machaut Zwerm - Electric consort Rembrandt Frerichs – The contemporary fortepiano

VÉLO BAROQUE – P. 7

LISSEWEGE – P.8

LUNCH CONCERTS – P.9

CONCERT CALENDAR – P. 11

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION MUSICA ANTIQUA – P.12 31/07-07/08

EXHIBITION HISTORIC INSTRUMENTS – P.13 02/08-05/08

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FRINGE – P. 13

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CONCERTS: HIGHLIGHTS

ACI, GALATEA E POLIFEMO – G.F. HÄNDEL

Il Giardino Armonico Giovanni Antonini m u s i c a l d i r e c t o r

Roberta Invernizzi s o p r a n o K ristina Hammarström mezzo s o p r a n o Christopher Purves b a s s

MAfestival 2014 is opening con brio. The world-renowned Italian ensemble Il Giardino Armonico led by virtuoso flutist Giovanni Antonini will bring one of the highlights from Händels earlier repertoire: Aci, Galatea e Polifemo. This dramatic serenata is based on one of the episodes from Ovid’s Metamorphosis. It gives voice to the love story of the nymph Galatea and the shepherd Aci, performed respectively by mezzosoprano Kristina Hammarström and soprano Roberta Invernizzi. Christopher Purves takes on the extraordinary bass line of the jealous Cyclops Polifemo.

Een coproductie met Concertgebouw Brugge Vr 01/08, 20:00, Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal MASTERS OF CONTRAPUNCTUS

Hespèrion XXI

Jordi Savall musical director

Jordi Savall, the greatest gambist of his time, illustrates with his Hespèrion XXI the evolution of the ensemble music between the 16th and 18th century. The musical metamorphosis of themes and melodies in the course of a composition is at the centre of this work. The wide range of genres and composition techniques that are demonstrated during this concert prove that this development can take on different forms, from a free imitation in the tiento to the strict counterpoint of Bach’s Kunst der Fuge and experiments like Purcell’s Fantasia Upon One Note.

Woe 06/08, 20:00, Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

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NOVA METAMORFOSI

Le Poème Harmonique

Vincent Dumestre m u s i c a l d i r e c t o r

The Council of Trent (1563) brought about a musical revolution: in the church the complex polyphony had to give way to simple and especially understandable music. In this spirit madrigal composer Vincenzo Ruffo wrote his wonderful Missa Quarti Toni. But the reformation was never really complete and not everybody followed the rules of the Council to the letter. At the beginning of the 17th century Claudio Monteverdi and other composers experimented with improvised ornamentation techniques which intensified the rhetorical power of masses, motets and falsobordoni. It is these fascinating musical metamorphoses which the lauded ensemble Le Poème Harmonique of artistic director Vincent Dumestre illustrates in a stunning way in this final concert.

Coproduction with Concertgebouw Brugge Za 09/08, 20:00, Concertgebouw Brugge LA DAFNE – MARCO DA GAGLIANO

Cappella Mediterranea Leonardo García Alarcón musical director

W i t h

Mariana Flores s o p r a n o Céline Scheen s o p r a n o Christopher Lowrey c o u n t e r t e n o r Julian Milan b a r i t o n

The libretto of Marco da Gagliano’s La Dafne is based on one of the best known myths from Ovid’s magnum opus: the nymph Daphne who transforms into a laurel tree to escape the god Apollo’s lust. The Argentinian top conductor Alarcòn executes this favola pastorale with a small ensemble, where the continuo instruments transcend their accompanying role and fully take part in the melodic ornamentation. Cappella

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Mediterranea’s young talent will make you unforgettably acquainted with this rarely performed piece from the earliest years of opera.

Za 02/08, 20:00, Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

Erik Bosgraaf r e c o r d e r & musical director Ensemble Cordevento

THE FOUR SEASONS – A. VIVALDI The violin concertos of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons undoubtedly belong to the most popular works from the history of music. They were already popular in their own time, due to the score’s musical imitations of dancing nymphs, barking dogs and chattering teeth, and even today they still appeal to the imagination. The bundle keeps taking on different forms as a source of inspiration for violinists and other musicians, who each in their own way keep on reinventing the concerti. Multifaceted and sensational recorder player Erik Bosgraaf plays the solo part of these works with such a natural flair it seems like they were composed for the recorder. His recording of this masterpiece (Brilliant Classics, 2013) was enthusiastically reviewed by press and public.

Zo 03/08, 18:00, Kerk Lissewege

LITANIES DE LA VIÈRGE / MOTETS POUR LA MAISON DE GUISE – M.- A. CHARPENTIER

E n s e m b l e Correspondances Sébastien Daucé musical director

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The young Ensemble Correspondances led by Sébastien Daucé caused a furore with soulful interpretations of hidden gems from the 17th century French religious music. This Belgian premiere is dedicated to one of the most influential characters of French music: Marc-Antoine Charpentier. The programme features many different works he wrote between 1670 and 1680, commissioned by the Duchesse de Guise, his patroness who was as devout as she was musical. Eight voices and an instrumental ensemble engage in a breath-taking dialogue, which culminates in the Litanies de la Vièrge. Last year Ensemble Correspondances was awarded a Diapason d’Or and a Choc de Classica for their recording of this program.

Ma 04/08, 20:00, Sint-Jakobskerk BEATUS VIR? - ROSENMÜLLER MOTETS AND SONATAS Gli Incogniti

Amandine Beyer musical director Julietta Fioretti s o p r a n o

The respected violinist Amandine Beyer started her own ensemble Gli Incogniti in 2006. These musicians love to tempt their audience with the, perhaps unjustified, unknown. During MAfestival 2014 tey perform in Bruges for the first time/ They focused on some unpublished motets and sonates of the German Baroque composer Johann Rosenmüller. This colorful character occupied the most diverse positions in the course of his life, and in 1655 he even escaped from prison. In motets like Beatus Vir and Nisi Dominus he managed to erase the borders between the vocal and the instrumental, by fusing the soprano with the accompaniment.

Vr 08/08, 20:00, Sint-Jakobskerk

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THE FUTURE SOUND OF EARLY MUSIC

Nothing comes from nothing. This ovidian thought is a nice paraphrase of the message the MAfestival carries out. We not only want to experience the evolution of the old music movement from the first row, we also want to actively participate to it, by providing space for creation, improvisation and experiment. The MAfestival sees an important future for itself in the stimulation of projects which catapult the musical past back to the present. This year too some original performances link a solid base in the historic practice with a healthy dose of curiosity and adventure. As it turns out, the historical distance can easily be bridged and past, present and future seem to be closer to each other than thought.

THE MODERN SOUND OF GUILLAUME DE MACHAUT - WERELDPREMIÈRE

Robin Verheyen saxofoon & artistieke leiding Russ Johnson t r o m p e t Aton’&Armide strijkkwartet I Solisti del Vento blazerskwartet

By request of the MAfestival the Belgian jazz saxophone player Robin Verheyen creates a contemporary suite based on the music of 14th century composer Guillaume de Machaut. Robin Verheyen belongs to the top of the European saxophone players and worked closely together with jazz heavyweights such as Gary Peacock, Marc Copland, Ralph Alessi, Bill Carrothers and Drew Gress. With his NY Quartet he is reaching summits and with jazz ensemble Narcissus he recently finished a tour celebrating their 10th anniversary.

For this project he immerses in the work of Guillaume de Machaut (1300-1377), one of the most important practitioners of the Ars Nova. The French composer experimented with complex rhythms and complicated mutations in the hexachord series and by doing so contributed to the evolutions in the tonal system which would take place in the century after him. Central in Verheyen’s composition is his Messe de Nostre Dame, as far as we know the oldest example of a mass which can be attributed to one single composer. The polyphony is presented and the gothic cathedral of Reims is said to have inspired De Machaut to the complex singing parts of the agnus dei.

In the hands of the Belgian jazz saxophone player Robin Verheyen this illustrious mass undergoes a fascinating metamorphosis. For the performance of his composition he works together with the American trumpet player Russ Johnson and musicians of I Solisti del Vento and Aton’&Armide. A historical distance of more than six centuries is effortlessly bridged during the world premiere of this unique creation.

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i.s.m. Kunstencentrum De Werf Di 05/08, 20:00, Kunstencentrum De Werf ELECTRIC CONSORT

Z w e r m guitar quartet

Would John Dowland have chosen for the warm sound of a Fender Telecaster now while composing his bluesy “Melancholy Galliard”? Tempted by this catching question the wilful Belgian-Dutch electric guitar quartet Zwerm starts their investigation of the English Renaissance. For the occasion the musicians see themselves as members of a consort and let themselves be inspired by John Dowlands lute solos and compositions by contemporary artists like Christopher Tye, William Byrd and Henry Purcell. Using contemporary instruments the ensemble put their adventurous stamp on this 16th and 17th century repertoire.

Zo 03/08, 11:00, schuur Ter Doest Lissewege

THE CONTEMPORARY FORTEPIANO

Rembrandt Frerichs Trio

Rembrandt Frerichs: p i a n o f o r t e Tony Overwater: double bass Vinsent Planjer: p e r c u s s i o n

The talented Dutch jazz pianist Rembrandt Frerichs does not go for the beaten track. In this program he approaches the pianoforte as he would a modern instrument and

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Zo 03/08, 16:00, spiegeltent Lissewege

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VÉLO BAROQUE – ZO 10/08

The first edition of Velo Baroque in 2013 was a hit. Weeks before the event all tickets were sold. A second edition is a logical consequence.

Vélo Baroque combines early music with a bike ride through Bruges and its surroundings. Seven surprising concerts in unique locations mark a loop of 30km along Bruges, Male, Damme and Vivenkapelle.

The complete program and trail will be announced in May on www.velobaroque.be

i.s.m. Toerisme Brugge, Westtoer & Stad Damme

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MINIFESTIVAL LISSEWEGE – ZO 03/08 On Sunday August 3 MAfestival moves to Lissewege for a mini festival with a varied concert program in the picturesque village.

Program:

ELECTRIC CONSORT - ZWERM 11:00, schuur Ter Doest

FOR EVER FORTUNE

Les Musiciens de Saint - J u l i e n

François Lazarevitch a r t i s t i c l e a d e r Robert Getchell t e n o r

In 18th century Scotland traditional and classic music engaged in a fascinating interaction. Composer-performers such as William Mc Gibbon, James Oswald, and Robert McIntosh combined Scottish folk music with the forms and harmonic practices of the early Rococo. Conducted by the virtuoso multi-instrumentalist François Lazarevitch, Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien take you in tow in this lively, sensitive, and occasionally slightly gamy repertoire of airs, jigs and reels.

14:00, kerk Lissewege THE CONTEMPORARY FORTEPIANO – REMBRANDT FRERICHS TRIO 16:00, spiegeltent

DE VIER SEIZOENEN - ERIK BOSGRAAF & CORDEVENTO 18:00, kerk Lissewege

i.s.m. Toerisme Brugge

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LUNCHTIME CONCERTS

From Monday till Friday, MAfestival traditionally organizes surprising lunchtime concerts.

ORPHÉE AUX ENFERS

Cyril Auvity tenor L ’ Y r i a d e e n s e m b l e

The Orpheus myth was at the basis of the early opera in Italy and was later picked up by French composers as well. The ensemble L’Yriade presents Orphée-cantatas by Rameau and Clérambault, as well as other orphic compositions from the French Baroque.

Ma 04/08, 11:30, Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

MESSE DE NOSTRE DAME

Tiburtina Ensemble v o c a a l e n s e m b l e

The singers of the vocal ensemble concentrate on the illustre Messe de Nostre Dame by Guillaume de Machaut. This quadrophonic masterpiece from around 1360 was composed for the cathedral of Reims and is the earliest known polyphonic setting of a mass by one single composer. On the verge of the medieval tradition and the innovation of the Ars Nova,

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Di 05/08, 11:30, Sint-Annakerk A PURCELL FANTASIA

Olivier Fortin harpsichord

Harpsichordist Olivier Fortin regularly has concerts with ensembles such as Capriccio Stravagante and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, and founded his own ensemble Masques, specialized in 17th and 18th century music. During MAfestival he brings a solo program based on Purcell’s music.

Woe 06/08, 11:30, Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

VARIATIONS

Viviana Sofronitsky pianoforte

Sergei Istomin c e l l o

Cello player Sergei Istomin and pianist Viviana Sofronitsky have been on the stage together for years. In this programme they explore the creativity with which Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn and Chopin experimented with the technique of variation. This concert in the spirit of the melodic, rhythmic and harmonic richness, bathes in the colorific splendour of the historic instruments played by Istomin and Sofronitsky.

Do 07/08, 11:30, Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal PAPILLONS

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Elizaveta Miller p i a n o f o r t e

In 2013 Elizaveta Miller was the first Russian fortepianist ever to win the International Competition Musica Antiqua. In this program, Miller combines the work of ‘avantgardist’ Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach with a sonate of Beethoven and Schumann’s miniaturist Papillons.

Vr 08/08, 11:30, Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

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CONCERT CALENDAR

Vr 01/08, 20:00, Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, Il Giardino Armonico olv Giovanni Antonini – Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

Za 02/08, 11:00, Carillon concert, Arie Abbenes – Carillon Brugge

Za 02/08, 17:00, Festival introduction – Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Za 02/08, 20:00, La Dafne, Cappella Mediterranea olv Leonardo García Alarcón– Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

Za 02/08, 22:30, Nerf, Zefiro Torna & Ultima Thule – Sint-Lodewijkscollege

Zo 03/08 MAfestival in Lissewege

11:00, Electric consort, Zwerm guitar quartet –Schuur Ter Doest

14:00, For Ever Fortune, Les musiciens de Saint-Julien – Kerk Lissewege

16:00, The contemporary fortepiano, Rembrandt Frerichs Trio – Spiegeltent

18:00, The Four Seasons, Erik Bosgraaf & Cordevento – Kerk Lissewege

Ma 04/08, 11:30, Orphée, Cyril Auvity & L’Yriade – Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Ma 04/08, 20:00, Litanies de la vièrge, Ensemble Correspondances olv Sébastien Daucé – Sint-Jakobskerk Brugge

Di 05/08, 11:30, Messe de Nostre Dame, Tiburtina Ensemble – Sint-Annakerk, Brugge

Di 05/08, 20:00, The modern sound of Guillaume de Machaut, Robin Verheyen, Russ Johnson Aton’&Armide & I solisti del Vento – Kunstencentrum De Werf

Woe 06/08, 11:30, A Purcell Fantasia, Olivier Fortin – Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Woe 06/08, 20:00, Masters of Contrapunctus, Hespèrion XXI olv Jordi Savall – Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

Do 07/08, 11:30, Variations, Sergei Istomin & Viviana Sofronitsky - Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Do 07/08, 18:00, Final International Competition Musica Antiqua – Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Vr 08/08, 11:30, Papillons, Elizaveta Miller – Concertgebouw Brugge, Kamermuziekzaal

Vr 08/08, 20:00, Beatus Vir?, Gli Incogniti olv Amandine Beyer – Sint-Jakobskerk Brugge

Vr 08/08, 22:30, (M)orpheus, cantoLX – Sint-Gilliskerk Brugge

Za 09/08, 11:00, Carillon concert, Frank Deleu – Carillon Brugge

Za 09/08, 20:00, Nova Metamorfosi, Le Poème Harmonique olv Vincent Dumestre – Concertgebouw Brugge, Concertzaal

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Zo 10/08, from 10:00, Vélo Baroque - Brugge, Damme en het Ommeland

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INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION MUSICA ANTIQUA for recorder, baroque flute, baroque violin, baroque cello & viola da gamba

The International Competitions Musica Antiqua are the most important and renowned early music competition. Being a finalist during these competitions often means the start of an international career. The competition is open to young, highly qualified performers from all over the world, who specialize in the historically informed performance practice. The International Competition Musica Antiqua 2014 focuses on melody instruments.

Candidates will be judged by a jury composed of members with a successful career in early music. Johan Huys (president, BE), Amandine Beyer (FR), Erik Bosgraaf (NL), Jan De Winne (BE), Sergei Istomin (RU) and Mieneke van der Velden (NL) are the members of the 2014 jury for the International Competitions Musica Antiqua.

Starting in 2008, MAfestival offers the winner(s) besides a cheque, a concert as part of the next MAfestival and a number of concerts in close collaboration with important national and international organizations. Since 2013 one of the candidates also gets the chance to record a cd with the renowned alpha label.

31/07 tem 7/08

Preselections start July 31 2014

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The final takes place on August 7, 18:00, Kamermuziekzaal, Concertgebouw Brugge

Time tables are available from July 1st on www.mafestival.be

EXHIBITION HISTORICAL INSTRUMENTS Focus melodic instruments

Historical instruments will be resounding again at the Belfry of Bruges from August 2nd till 5th 2014. Renowned builders and publishers form all over the world presenting themselves to the international MAfestival public.

Builders also get the chance to organise showcases, masterclasses or lectures.

The exhibition, as the International Competition Musica Antiqua, focuses on melody instruments and accessories in 2014.

FRINGE Young early music artists at work

Za 2 – Vr 8 aug

14:00 & 15:30

Hallen belfort & Provinciaal Hof

De Fringereeks, i.c.w. Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht, offers ten young ensembles the chance to present themselves to an international, enthusiastic public.

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Complete time table available from August 1 on www.mafestival.be

MAfestival Flanders Festival Bruges

MAfestival / Flanders Festival Bruges was founded in 1963 and is now one of world's most famous early music festivals. It focuses on the historical informed practice of early music and is currently leading in terms of renewing and extending the concept. Besides an international ten-day festival marked by a selection of the world's most exciting performers, MAfestival Bruges also organizes lectures and classes about the subject, a competition for young musicians and an exposition that focuses on historical instruments, instruments made to historical examples and musical accessories.

MAfestival wants to be a guiding, critical and contemporary festival, specialized in early music. It constantly searches for new developments and launches new developments through creation, presentation, education and participation.

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COLOFON

MAfestival Brugge 2014 / 51st edition an initiative of vzw Festival van Vlaanderen-Brugge, ’t Zand 34, B-8000 Brugge, +32 (0)50 33 22 83 [email protected], www.mafestival.be

director Tomas Bisschop production Jelle De Ketelbutter communicatio Sofie Deschepper cooperation dramaturgy Katherina Lindekens

MORE INFO?

Contact Sofie Deschepper on [email protected] or +32(0)50 33 22 83

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