Theatre performance The House 44-24

Welcome to ‘The House 44-24’

Surprising theatre spectacle in Gemert, Overloon, Weert and ‘s-Hertogenbosch

After the successes with ‘Weg uit de Peel’ and ‘Strijd om de Kathedraal’, Stichting De Theatermakers is now building on the production ‘Het Huis 44-24’. The ‘finishing phase’ has now started and it is already clear: This will be another spectacular theatre experience!

The series of performances starts on Friday 17 May in the open-air of the Gemert Castle Garden where a total of nine performances can be seen. After that, ‘The House 44-24’ will move to the Overloon Open Air Theatre, near the War Museum, for 6 performances in June. Remarkably, the production will then also be seen ‘indoors’ on 14 and 15 September at the Munttheater Weert and on 26 and 27 October at the Bossche Theater aan de Parade. Audio description for the blind and visually impaired is available for the latter performance.

As with their previous productions, there will be a lot of unpacking. The story, written by Lucas de Waard and directed by Rick Hooijberg, lends itself perfectly to this. Of course, the liberation of Brabant and Limburg, 80 years ago, plays an important role, but today's current events also feature prominently.

What similarities are there between life in 1944 and 2024? What choices were made then and now, and what consequences do they have? In ‘The House 44-24’, we empathise with two families who both have to deal with the circumstances and choices of their ‘era’.

In 1944, the life of the Berkvens family in ‘The House’ comes under great pressure when a wounded resistance fighter knocks on the door for help. Will they manage to keep the Germans at bay long enough? What is ‘right’ and who is ‘wrong’ when everything is unclear?

In 2024, the van Gils family lives in ‘The House’. They have everything and what they still lack is immediately purchased. Will that still be possible if their luxurious life is jeopardised when they are exposed and prove to be much less successful under the ‘social filter’?

‘The House 44-24’ is certainly not ‘just another liberation story’ but one that, especially now, needs to be experienced by a wide audience. Precisely by mixing two time images, fortunately also with the necessary humour, it becomes clear that very little has changed in 80 years. The past interacts with the present in a special setting with more than 70 actors from all over Brabant and Limburg. The Theatre-makers, Bas Leenders and Casper Vriens, hope to spark even more conversations and (liberation) stories with this performance.

Tickets for this spectacular theatre experience are available at www.hethuis44-24.nl. An educational project is also being put together around the performances. More information on this can be found on the website.

Furthermore, see teaser film. Which can be found at: https://youtu.be/WuWr6BhOhyU?si=gIL-ghCCMH6VhaO6