Alain Platel, Frank Van Laecke & Steven Prengels – NTGent & les ballets C de la B – Gardenia – 10 years later

Alain Platel, the trailblazing Founder and Director of the Belgian contemporary dance collective les ballets C de la B, presents this new musical theatre work in collaboration with Frank Van Laecke, with music composed by Steven Prengels. For this new production, Van Laecke and Platel approach the world of marching bands as a ?miniature society’ in its own right, a collective of very different individuals who try to keep one another going in the same direction. By creating a metaphor for society as a whole, Platel explores how musical arrangements are preserved through trial and error. Four actors and seven musicians are joined on stage by a local brass or marching band, playing music by Gustav Holst, Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Strauss.

Premiered in 2010 and staged at Sadler’s Wells in 2011, Gardenia allowed us a glimpse into the private lives of a remarkable group of older artists who effortlessly navigated gender expression. Each on a quest. Each with their own intriguing story. Over 10 years on, eight members of the cast are reunited. Gardenia – 10 years later is an insight into their turbulent lives, showcasing the most intimate of tales about hope and cherished or lost illusions. Again, they are ready to take the stage by storm. To move and surprise. To laugh and keep silent. To sparkle and shine, one more time, somewhere over the rainbow. Directed by Frank Van Laecke and Alain Platel, with composer Steven Prengels, the Olivier Award nominated Gardenia – 10 years later explores lifelong bonds, transformation and an unimaginable will to survive. This performance contains strong language, partial nudity and some adult themes, including transgender discrimination and physical violence.