Two women are forced to share a prison cell: a young activist arrested after an illegal protest and a working-class woman for killing her boyfriend. Their involuntary togetherness gets off to a bad start, but as the nights pass, they begin to reveal their fears and hopes to one another. They start talking about the things in life that are worth fighting for and how far you can and may go. Their shared confinement becomes an inner journey that changes them both permanently. Notwehr brings together old and new music: Banchieri’s madrigal cycle La barca di Venezia a Padua functions as a kind of echo of the past and of the outside world, weaving its way into new music by composer Annelies Van Parys.
This production was realized with the support of the Tax Shelter measure of the Belgian Federal Government through Flanders Tax Shelter, and of Fonds Podiumkunsten (NL). It is a coproduction of Studio Minailo, HERMESensemble, B’Rock Orchestra and Muziektheater Transparant.
