In collaboration with theatre collective DeRonde/Deroo we developed four workshop for the Gerrit van der Veen College’s theatre class. The workshop series is a physical discovery in which life’s challenges are visualised. In June the students visited Sisyphe and presented their findings during an improvised final performance at school. 

Eight alumni of the IMC Weekendschool attended the performance Depois do Silêncio by associate artist Christiane Jatahy. Jatahy explained her performance beforehand in conversation with the IMC Weekendschool alumni. They reflected on the political situation in the Netherlands and Christiane expressed her hope for the young generation. The performance visit was an eye-opener for the alumni. They found it motivating to see how art can provide a platform for underrepresented voices.

Inspired by Crossings we developed a diverse programme around the theme ‘home’ for 250 4th and 5th year pupils. The students got an insight into what the Holland Festival is, reflected on the theme through assignments, were given a master class with Discussiëren Kun Je Leren and attended a workshop by spoken word artist Luan Buleshkaj. 

The Mediacollege visited Sisyphe with 45 first-year Game Design students. Programme manager Jochem Valkenburg gave an introduction before the performance. 

For the performance Sisyphe by Victor Pilon, we developed teaching materials with three creative assignments that teachers in Cultural and Artistic Education (CKV) or the arts can use to creatively provide context and deepen understanding, both before and after visiting a performance.  

View the lesson materials here

This year fifty students from five conservatories in the Netherlands had the chance to work with internationally renowned artists and fully participate in the Holland Festival production 11.000 Saiten. This type of extracurricular activity for broadening horizons will be expanded in the coming years under the title Exploratorium. The term comes from Karlheinz Stockhausen, who felt that conservatories should not train students to conserve old music, but rather encourage exploring new sounds and structures.  

In collaboration with the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, we developed an in-depth programme consisting of a master class by conductor Bas Wiegers, a visit to the performance Melencolia and the final rehearsal of 11.000 Saiten, meet & greets with composer Georg Friedrich Haas and sound director Norbert Ommer. This project resulted in various spatial compositions that were presented during a concert evening at the Q-Factory.  

In collaboration with Toekomst Muziek, an empowerment project for young people with a multitude of unresolved issues, we developed a programme for young people from Amsterdam Zuidoost. For three weeks, the young people visited the performances Crossings, Eu não sou só eu em mim, Melencolia, Sisyphe and Arthur Verocai, met international artists and got a glimse behind the scenes. 

In collaboration with Eiwerk, a music centre for people with mental vulnerabilities, we developed a workshop series around the theme of melancholy: what is it, and what does it sound like? Participants visited the performance Melencolia and worked towards their own final concert inspired by the performance.

In collaboration with JINC, we organised a so-called flash internship for 11 second-year pupils of the Calandlyceum. They were given a glimpse of what the Holland Festival is all about and did assignments where they could choose their own associate artist. They were also given a tour through the different Holland Festival departments and the Muziekgebouw. 

In cooperation with Gerrit van der Veen College, we developed four workshops for the music and art+ class around The Disintegration Loops, a performance taking place on the square in front of the school. 60 pupils made their own sound recordings around the theme of freedom, and worked with their class towards a collective album.

For the large-scale film installation Euphoria, we developed a lesson plan (link to pdf) that can be used by art/CKV teachers in the classroom, before or after a visit to a performance. The lesson plan also serves as a starting point for the jointly organised CKV day for 120 pupils of the Hyperion Lyceum.