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Otemba – Daring Women is a musical theatre piece in celebration of Amsterdam 750, composed by Misato Mochizuki. For those who can not be there, or would like to see this special performance again, it is possible to watch the performance online (as a video on demand).
The piece is based on the painting Portrait of Pieter Cnoll, Cornelia van Nijenrode, their daughters and two enslaved servants (Batavia, 1665) by Jacob Coeman, which is in the Rijksmuseum. In Otemba – Daring Women, Cornelia steps out of the painting and has a conversation with the restorer about colonial relations, the feminine gaze and autonomy.
The restoration of the 17th-century painting that depicts a colonial scene results in a nocturnal encounter between the Indonesian restorer and the woman in the portrait: the Japanese-Dutch Cornelia van Nijenrode, wife of Pieter Cnoll, a wealthy senior merchant in Batavia. She remarried after his death and was the first woman in the Netherlands to file a lawsuit around financial self-determination when she wished to divorce her second husband.
The libretto of Otemba – Daring Women is by Janine Brogt, and the piece is directed by Jan van den Berg. The leading roles are played by soloists Ryoko Aoki, Bernadeta Astari and Michael Wilmering. Misato was previously featured at the Holland Festival with L’heure bleue in 2013.
'Otemba' is not just the title of the piece, but also one of over one hundred and sixty words that Japanese derives from the Dutch language. It refers to rebellious women who refuse to be subjected and go their own way.
'In Otemba, different characters from different times come together and champion a new view of our history. Restoration is also called ‘management of change’, and this restoration offers a renewed, decolonising perspective on the past. Otemba comes to life.'
– Jan van den Berg
dates
Fri June 27 12:01 AM
to
Sun June 29 12:00 AM
prices
- default € 12,50
information
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1 hour 10 minutes
