Mein Gent

By making Mein Gent, directors Frank Van Laecke and Alain Platel realize a long-cherished dream they share with each other: to pay tribute to Ghent, the city with which they are thoroughly intertwined. Both Ghent townsmen found each other ten years ago in making music theatre performances. Supported by soundscapes composed by Steven Prengels, they dive with each performance into a most extraordinary universe to tell about the little and the great tragedies in life. Remind Gardenia in 2010 or also En avant, marche! in 2015.

Mein Gent is popular theatre pur sang and shamelessly rummages through the oeuvre of Romain Deconinck and Eric De Volder. Flirting with all possible boundaries of the genre itself. Pascale Platel, Ineke Nijssen and Gorges Ocloo are surrounded in their quest by a large group of Ghent citizens. Together they wonder whether there is such a thing as the DNA of the Ghentian or a Ghent canon and they guide the audience unabashedly and associatively through their Ghent of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Or to the life of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Playful, funny, hilarious, whimsical, bizarre, moving, sharp, poignant, but above all heart-warming.

Mein Gent is a performance that unfolds like an operetta. Or what, according to the makers, operetta can be today.

Alain Platel and Frank Van Laecke about Mein Gent.