Current issues in exhibition on Dutch musicals by Annie M.G. Schmidt and Harry Bannink
1 June 2022
Annie M.G. Schmidt and Harry Bannink are considered to be the founders of Dutch musical theatre. Between 1965 and 1984, they created seven musicals together – works which stood out thanks to their political engagement and Broadway-like show elements. They left an enduring mark on the genre and put Dutch musical theatre on the map.
Social issues
Curator Hans van Keulen and Milco Feijnenbuik, Editor-in-chief of the website Theaterencyclopedie, published by the Allard Pierson, compiled this exhibition together with guest curator Sanne Thierens, who was awarded a PhD from the University of Winchester in 2018. The exhibition was inspired by the book Thierens wrote for a general readership based on her PhD thesis on the musicals of Harry Bannink and Annie M.G. Schmidt.
‘Because this exhibition focuses especially on the social engagement aspect of the musicals, it will be interesting not only to students of theatre and media studies, but also to students of history.’Curator Hans van Keulen
‘While this exhibition is primarily relevant for those in cultural studies, it is certainly also worthwhile to those in other disciplines where history and social change play a role,’ says Feijnenbuik. ‘Annie M.G. Schmidt incorporated a great many social issues in her shows. Topics such as society’s rat race, the threat of nuclear war, the climate, the pill, abortion, feminism and homosexuality featured prominently in her work. This was, of course, unusual in that era (1965-1984). Foxtrot, for instance, marked the first time two men exchanged a kiss on a Dutch stage. Van Keulen continues: ‘But there are also other interesting questions, like how the makers dealt with protests from the feminist movement in response to their musical Madam.’
‘The exhibition in the Allard Pierson tells the story of how social issues were brought into play in Schmidt and Bannink’s theatre pieces.’Milco Feijnenbuik, Editor-in-chief of the Theaterencyclopedie
From scripts to costumes
In ‘Don’t whine! - The musicals of Annie M.G. Schmidt and Harry Bannink’, the Allard Pierson reveals how musicals have developed over the course of more than sixty years. Costumes, scripts, set designs and costume designs are all on display. The exhibition also features many visual and audio recordings from the musicals created by Annie M.G. Schmidt and Harry Bannink, including Heerlijk duurt het langst, En nu naar bed, Wat een planeet, Foxtrot, Madam, De dader heeft het gedaan and Ping. Most of the objects in the exhibition are from the Allard Pierson's own theatre collection, supplemented with several objects on loan from the Atria Institute and various private parties.
In preparation for the exhibition, many interviews were recorded with active and retired theatre makers. Some of those videos are available for viewing in the exhibition itself, as well as via the online Theaterencyclopedie (an online encyclopaedia of the performing arts).
Feijnenbuik continues: ‘One of the people I interviewed for the exhibition was Millie Taylor. In November 2020, she was appointed Special Professor of Musical Theatre in the Joop van den Ende Chair, which falls under the auspices of Theatre Studies at the University of Amsterdam. In October 2021, students in that programme conducted research into the musicals and the people who took part in creating them. Based on material from the archives, the students wrote texts which were published on Theaterencyclopedie.’
The exhibition will be on display until 30 October 2022. allardpierson.nl