As part of Out Of Ourselves, six of the UK’s most promising playwrights take up residence in Brussels for our festival of new UK theatre - British Twist: New Writing. Working with some of Belgium’s top playwrights and directors, their residencies during summer 2005 will lead to the performance of five newly translated British plays in French and Dutch.

The UK is once again the source of a new wave of stunning theatre. From October to December, five new plays will be performed for the first time in French or in Dutch confirming the continuing energy of new writing in the UK. Works by five of the UK’s most promising new playwrights will be translated and brought to the stage by talented Belgian writers and directors. A day of conversation and debate will bring together writers and organisers from Belgium and the UK to examine the conditions that have allowed this writing to flourish, the plays’ common themes and the questions which have arisen through the translation of these texts. New Writing also sees the creation of a piece of “verbatim theatre” based on the city of Brussels, written and performed in the city. The autumn will have a distinctly British flavour!

The Programme
Download British Twist: New Writing programme (PDF 215KB)

'Osama the hero' by Dennis Kelly
French translation: Patrick Lerch
Direction: Armel Roussel /Utopia II
Théâtre Varia (Petite salle)
27–28/10/05 at 20:00

Gary has to give a presentation about contemporary heroes - no easy task. With the eyes of the class all fixed on him, he begins to read out loud: “Osama the Hero.” This action makes him the black sheep of the neighbourhood, and with terrible consequences. The talented Dennis Kelly combines a hyperrealist style with original dramatic construction. His play looks beyond the question of terrorism to show the mechanisms that drive rumours, urban paranoia and social pressure. This text is translated by Patrick Lerch, the ironic and subtle writer behind Dire troublé des choses and L’Ange et le Cuisinier and brought to the stage by the flamboyant Armel Roussel and his team, Utopia II.

'The small things' by Enda Walsh
French translation: Jean-Marie Piemme
Direction: Vincent Minne / Utopia II
Théâtre Varia (Petite salle)
27–28/10/05 at 20:00

A man and a woman have to speak to stay alive. The small things they talk about gradually reveal a tale of extraordinary brutality, emerging horrifically through their chit-chat. Enda Walsh (whose most famous work, Disco Pigs, has been translated and performed internationally) restates through his new play his talent for stories that bear witness to the violence of our world and the complexity of its inhabitants. The text is translated by Jean-Marie Piemme, one of Belgium’s most famous dramatists, and directed by Vincent Minne, a longtime collaborator of Armel Roussel and a regular presence on the Belgian stage.

'Behzti (Dishonour)' by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti
French translation: Rudi Bekaert
Direction: Virginie Jortay/Groupe Kuru
Halles de Schaerbeek
16/11/05 at 20:30

Balbir, a sick, foul-mouthed old lady, and her daughter and nurse, Min, leave their home for the first time in years. A world of desperate aspiration and dangerous deals awaits them. A testament to the UK’s multiculturalism, Bezhti is a brilliant comedy of manners, like Molière’s Tartuffe but set in the UK’s Sikh community. Religious hypocrisy and sexist oppression underpin this blackly comic play which sparked great controversy at its opening, but which deserves to be heard. The play is translated by Rudi Bekaert, writer of the hilarious social dramas Ah oui ça alors là and Enfin bref, and directed by Virginie Jortay, known for her politically edgy theatre.

Fenêtre sur cour - Discussions
Maison du Spectacle – la Bellone
17/11/05
16:00 - God save l’Auteur
18:00 - Buffet with authors
20:00 - Passer la Manche

British Twist: New Writing demonstrates the vivacity and diversity of contemporary UK theatre. It also reflects the predominance of the author in the UK’s current theatrical landscape. La Maison du Spectacle – la Bellone will hold a day of conversation and debate on these ideas.
In the afternoon, and in the presence of several participants from the UK, God Save l’Auteur will chart the progress of an emerging phenomenon: the originality of the UK system, the context of the writing, its main forms and themes, and a comparison with the situation in Belgium.
In the evening, Passer la Manche will be a chance to hear from the writers who took part in the New Writing project. There will be interviews, readings and performances of extracts from the plays, as well as the opportunity for a more intimate discussion with personal viewpoints from the writers on their inspirations, motivations and concerns.

'My arm' by Tim Crouch
Translation: Caroline Lamarche
Direction: Anne Thuot/Groupe TOC
Halles de Schaerbeek
18/11/05 at 20:30

A young boy decides to put his arm above his head… and to leave it there. This fundamental gesture wreaks havoc around him. My arm is a fable that questions the world, the world of art, and the responsibility of the individual in these worlds with a remarkable economy of means. Crouch's peculiar style relates as much to live art as to text-based theatre. The play is translated by the novelist and writer of radio fiction, Caroline Lamarche (L‘Ours, Carnets d’une soumise de province…) and directed by “deconstructivist” director Anne Thuot of the group TOC.

'I only came here for 6 months…' by Alecky Blythe/Recorded Delivery
Halles de Schaerbeek
13/12/05 at 20:30

Club@Seven
15/12/05 at 19:00

KVS Box
17/12/05 at 20:30

Armed with her microphone, Alecky Blythe has been all over Brussels to meet Bruxellois, both native and adopted: Flemish, Walloons, recent immigrants and Eurocrats. Each is affected, to some extent by the EU quarter, by questions of language, identity, integration and the future. Their stories are recorded in a form of English that is constantly evolving, coloured by the numerous cultural influences which give modern-day Brussels its strength and originality.
Find out more about I only came here for six months... (including an interview with Alecky Blythe)

Co-produced by the British Council, Recorded Delivery and the KVS, with the support of the European Union’s Culture 2000 programme. Co-presented by Halles de Schaerbeek.

'On the shore of the wide world' by Simon Stephens
Translation: Tom Hannes
KVS Box
16/12/05 at 20:30

Roy Keane, girls, and the countless stars in the sky: in Stockport, the two Holmes sons are growing up. They’ll soon fly the nest. Parents and grandparents are starting to feel their age and an unexpected event is about to turn their lives upside-down for good. Young writer Simon Stephens shows a maturity beyond his years in this play about the generation gap, human weakness and the redemptive power of love. Tom Hannes (b. 1970) is a multifaceted artist who likes to set his literary talent to music of all genres, from John Cage to Mauro Pawlowski. His status as a relatively young dramatist is more than compensated by his experience treading the boards.

Take your drink in!
In the UK, you can take your drinks into the theatre - for New Writing it will be possible to do the same at Les Halles de Schaerbeek and at the Théâtre Varia.

British Twist: New Writing is the result of a collaboration between the British Council, Les Halles de Schaerbeek, the KVS, the Théâtre Varia and the Maison du Spectacle – la Bellone. Co-ordinated by Philippe Le Moine and Antoine Pickels. With the support of the British Council, the SACD (international authors society), the Service de la Promotion des Lettres du Ministère de la Communauté française, the Wallonie-Bruxelles Théâtre agency and the European Union’s Culture 2000 programme.
Part of Out Of Ourselves: celebrating the UK in Europe.