A-mag – Amsterdam Magazine: Vol 3, No. 1

AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

SIGHTS & SOUNDS ART & FASHION DANCING & DINING COMPLETE LISTINGS JAN & FEB 2015

Vol 3 NO 1 €3.50

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AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

VOL 3 N0 1 JAN & FEB 2015

HAIL REMBRANDT

CONTENTS P.04 WHAT’S NEW?

City confidential: exciting new Amsterdam initiatives, events and venues – including your Top 5 must-do things this issue.

P.08 UP CLOSE Rembrandt defiant: a blockbuster exhibition at the Rijksmuseum explores how the Old Master’s scandal-filled later years led to his most experimental – and most loved – work.

P.17 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Australian enfant terrible director Simon Stone takes the helm of Amsterdam’s most celebrated theatre company, plus our critics’ picks of the best exhibitions, concerts and events.

Neighbourhood watch: the up-and-coming Oost; plus the hottest new shops, the tastiest food trends and our selection of the best restaurants and cafés.

P.61 CLOSING Get out of town with our excursion tips; once upon a time in Amsterdam; top tips from visitors on the way out; colophon.

Bart van Oosterhout editor-in-chief A-mag a-mag@iamsterdam.com

STAY IN TOUCH:

P.47 THE A-LIST Agendas at the ready: from clubbing to gallery hopping, The A-List is your one-stop, at-a-glance guide to the city’s very best music, theatre (language no problem!), sporting, family and gay & lesbian events and venues.

iamsterdam.com facebook.com/iamsterdam twitter.com/iamsterdam youtube.com/videoiamsterdam

WANT TO ADVERTISE? T: 020 702 6180 E: partner@iamsterdam.com © ZLATKA SILJDEDIC

P.29 EAT, DRINK & CHIC

He is the quintessential Dutch master painter. His ‘Night Watch’ is indisputably one of the most famous paintings in the world, together with Leonardo’s ‘Mona Lisa’, Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’, Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ and Picasso’s ‘Guernica’. He’s probably one of the reasons you came to Amsterdam (another one is just around the corner in the Van Gogh Museum). And now you get the chance to witness an exhibition of the richest, most mature and accomplished – in short, the best – work he ever made and yet that you have probably never seen before.

Late Rembrandt, opening in the Rijksmuseum on 12 February, shows more than 90 works from 1652 onwards, the last 17 years of his life, when things started going downhill for Rembrandt in every sense. After losing his first wife and three children, going into bankruptcy because he lived way beyond his means, buying art and curiosities instead of paying off the high mortgage on his splendid house on the Jodenbreestraat 4 (now the Rembrandt House Museum) and falling out of favour with the rich art buyers of the epoch, losing his second wife and his only remaining son, Rembrandt turned to his art.

Defiant is the word that comes to mind when you look at the ‘Self-Portrait with Two Circles’ painted from this period (see page 15). In spite of it all, in spite of being derided by his peers for his thick layers of paint and his sketchy compositions, Rembrandt kept doing what he believed he had to do: to live for his art, constantly improving himself, turning in new directions technically as well as in his choice of subjects, to capture the essence of what it is to be human.

I keep a portrait of Rembrandt in my house to honour him for that reason. I think every Amsterdammer should.

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jan & feb 2015

OPENING

What’s new?

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‘YOU GO TO PLACES, YOU GO AMSTERDAM WHERE THEY’VE DECRIMINALISED DOPE, IT HAS A SLEAZY ATMOSPHERE.’

(in town)

HAS LONDON MAYOR BORIS JOHNSON BEEN SMOKING SOMETHING?

All the latest cultural news plus the fresh new initiatives, events and venues making Amsterdam the place to be.

A NEW CHAPTER The run of ANNE, only the second theatrical production in history to have been granted permission to quote directly from Anne Frank’s original diaries, has been extended on account of its massive popularity. The play makes use of Anne’s unedited diaries to reveal a complex, three-dimensional character to a new generation and can be experienced in several languages thanks to a groundbreaking translation system.

Theater Amsterdam Danzigerkade 5 www.theateramsterdam.nl

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KIZZA, 13 YEARS & TWIN BROTHERS, LINELLE DUENK

© KURT VAN DER ELST

text Mark Smith

CLEAR THINKING A survey of work by a renowned Dutch photographer is being displayed in an Amsterdam gallery to benefit those without access to clean water. Ten per cent of the proceeds from the sale of work by Linelle Deunk, who specialises in black-andwhite documentary and portrait photography, will go to the Marie-Stella Maris foundation, which supports clean drinkingwater projects worldwide.

From 23 January Lindengracht 35 www.kahmanngallery.com

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TAKING FLIGHT An Amsterdam-based ballerina has written a book about her remarkable journey to the stage as a member of the Dutch National Ballet. In her new memoir Hope in a Ballet Shoe, 20-year-old Michaela DePrince describes her early life as an orphan in Sierra Leone, where superstition surrounding the incurable skin condition vitiligo – from which Michaela suffers – marked her out as a ‘devil child’. Things changed dramatically for Michaela when, aged four, she was adopted by Elaine and Charles, a couple from New Jersey who brought her to America. They acted on Michaela’s early enthusiasm for classical ballet, and she has since defied racist stereotypes about the presumed unsuitability of black dancers for ballet by performing in prestigious productions including Swan Lake. www.michaeladeprince.com

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‘ROLLIN WITH THE HOMIES!!

THANKS TO @DILLONFRANCIS AND @MARTINGARRIX FOR THE COOLEST BIRTHDAY EVER.’

‘UK/EURO’14: ROCK ON AMSTERDAM! MOST FUN NIGHT ON STAGE SO FAR... CHEERS! SEE U NEXT YEAR!’

ACTOR ZAC EFRON LEARNS TO BIKE IN AMSTERDAM, IN GOOD COMPANY.

© ANGELA STERLINGLOLLAPALOOZA © ANGELA STERLING JUNIOR COMPANY,

BILLY IDOL IS HOT FOR THIS CITY.

LET US SPRAY Hard to believe nowadays, but there was once a time when sniffy travel writers would liken Amsterdam to a ‘beautiful virgin with foul breath’ on account of the stench that pervaded its picture-perfect waterways.

Nevertheless, it’s a relief to hear that Eau d’Amsterdam, a new fragrance inspired by this great city, draws its olfactory references from the trees that line the canals, rather than the waters themselves. ‘Elm trees have defined Amsterdam’s cityscape for centuries,’ explain the makers, ‘they are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

They bring nature to the urban centre and they tell us what season it is.’ Eau d’Amsterdam has been concocted with the help of Tanja Deurloo from Annindriya Perfume Lounge who (ahem) nose her stuff. www.eaudamsterdam.com

12-MONTH STAND Somewhat ironically, given its name and all, the wellliked Amsterdam restaurant Open, erm, closed last year.

But those who enjoyed dining in Open’s remarkable glass structure atop a former railway swing bridge over a canal near Central Station needn’t despair. In its place comes Le Coq, a temporary cocktail and dining joint from Lex Kok, owner of esteemed venues Le Garage and George WPA. It will close in December 2015.

Le Coq Westerdoksplein 20 www.lecoqamsterdam.nl

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DEFYING BELIEF It’s yet to open it doors, but an Amsterdam chapter of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! is coming soon to Dam square. It’s a bricks-and-mortar extension of an illustrated column that began in 1918, wowing newspaper readers with bizarre facts, and a recent ‘exhibit’ in the London museum was Ayanna Williams, a woman with nails measuring over 58cm. High fives all round, then.

Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Dam 17-21 www.ripleysamsterdam.com

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jan & feb 2015

OPENING WHAT’S NEW?

 ‘AMSTERDAM IS A LABORATORY OF PROGRESSIVE LIVING, BOTTLED INSIDE EUROPE’S MOST 17TH-CENTURY CITY.’

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RICK STEVES, AMERICA’S LEADING AUTHORITY ON EUROPEAN TRAVEL.

‘CAN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT ANNE FRANK AND HER STORY AFTER VISITING THE ANNE FRANK MUSEUM TODAY. WHAT A PRECIOUS, BRAVE AND BEAUTIFUL SOUL…’ DEMI LOVATO HAS A NEW IDOL.

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JEF VAN CAMPEN, SILENCE

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© PETROVSKY AND RAMONE

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© JOHN LEWIS MARSHALL

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SITUATIONS VACANT

Stedelijk Museum Museumplein 10 www.stedelijk.nl

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STUDIOPORTRET VAN GUSTI PANGERAN HARYO HADIKUSUMO,YOGYAKARTA, 1921-1926

TOP 5 to do

REMBRANDT, SELF-PORTRAIT AS AN OLD MAN

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One of the world’s most challenging artists is presenting twelve of his largescale works in the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam throughout 2015, but he’s unlikely to require much in the way of luggage to get them there. You see, for the BritishGerman artist Tino Sehgal, art is not about creating objects, but situations: live encounters between visitors and meticulously choreographed ‘interpreters’ who might – say – burst into song, as they did for Sehgal’s famous work ‘These Associations’ at London’s Tate Modern in 2012. Split over successive chapters and unfolding throughout a one-year period, Sehgal’s twelve-part Stedelijk survey is being heralded by the museum’s new director Beatrix Ruf as a ‘sharp artistic statement… which has never been done before.’

If you only do one thing in Amsterdam, make it one of our top picks of must-do events, exhibitions, museums, music and more this issue.

1 LATE REMBRANDT Emerging from the shadow of tragic personal losses and financial setbacks, Rembrandt produced some of his finest work in his final years. By experimenting with paint and light, he achieved an unparalleled emotional depth, leading to his most daring, individual and intimate works.

12 February-17 May Rijksmuseum, Museumstraat 1 www.rijksmuseum.nl

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2 MEDEA

4 REALISME

This winter, Australian enfantterrible theatre director Simon Stone takes the helm at the venerable Toneelgroep Amsterdam, bringing Greek tragedy Medea into the present day.

With its history going back to the 17th century – the Golden Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer – figurative and realistic art is firmly rooted in the Netherlands. For its 12th edition, Realisme art fair presents 27 national and international galleries.

17 January-28 March Stadsschouwburg, Leidseplein 26 www.tga.nl

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3 LOOK AT ME The ‘selfie’ trend shows no sign of abating, but it turns out that this is not a particularly new phenomenon. The Tropenmuseum has delved into its photo archive and presents 19th-century ‘selfies’ from colonial Indonesia.

Until 15 March Linnaeusstraat 2 http://tropenmuseum.nl

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15-18 January Passenger terminal Amsterdam, Piet Heinkade 27 www.realismeamsterdam.com

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5 JEWELS The Dutch National Ballet performs George Balanchine’s ‘Crown Jewels’ – three odes to classical ballet.

12-26 February Dutch National Opera & Ballet Amstel 3 www.operaballet.nl

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‘AMSTER DAMN! #STRUTTOUR @ ZIGGO DOME AMSTERDAM.’ LENNY KRAVITZ INDULGES IN SOME WORDPLAY.

SEAT ART STROKE OF GENIUS The Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam’s second biggest tourist attraction, has had a clever redesign that’s intended to ease congestion around its treasure trove of works by the man himself. Until late November last year, the majority of Van Gogh’s paintings were displayed on the first-floor gallery of the fourstorey museum – ideal for those who wanted a quick fix of the artist’s greatest hits, perhaps, but more problematic for those who wished to peruse the paintings at a more thoughtful pace. The radical new organisation of works in the museum redistributes wellknown paintings such as the ‘Sunflowers’ throughout all four floors, setting them in the context of work by other important artists who were operating contemporaneously with the one-eared wonder.

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Paulus Potterstraat 7 www.vangoghmuseum.nl

ROOM SERVICE The festival that’s hell-bent on persuading Amsterdammers to be tourists in their own city is back for a third indulgent edition. The brainchild of Vincent van Dijk – a PR man and blogger who’s so hotelobsessed he once spent every night of the year in a different Amsterdam hostelry – Amsterdam Hotel Night offers low rates in 40 participating properties around the city, but ticket-holders are also welcome at an array of madcap activities to boot. For example, there’s a roller-skate party at the hip-and-healthy Conscious Hotel Vondelpark, a silent disco at the chic Canal House and Alice in Wonderland-themed doings at the Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht. That ‘Do not disturb’ sign won’t be a-swinging for too long, then..

17 & 18 January Various locations www.amsterdamsehotelnacht.nl

The Dutch national carrier recently decided that its pristine white headrests were in need of a makeover. In an initiative called #CoverGreetings, KLM customers booking on behalf of a friend or family member are invited to daub a personal message on to the headrest using felttipped pens. We’re guessing ‘Sorry I put you in Economy’ isn’t an option… www.klm.com

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PART I UP CLOSE

rembrandt defiant

REMBRANDT DEFIANT Emerging from the shadow of tragedy and scandal, Rembrandt produced some of his most daring work in his final years, which is now on display at the Rijksmuseum.

THE CONSPIRACY OF THE BATAVIANS UNDER CLAUDIUS CIVILIS, 1661-’62 Rembrandt’s final secular painting portrays the rebellion of the ancient Batavians, a favourite patriotic legend of a republic that had recently freed itself from the tyranny of Spain. Commissioned by the City of Amsterdam for the town hall, Rembrandt’s colossal painting – all violent bursts of impasto and strange, eerie light – hung there for just a matter of days before being returned.

According to legend, Civilis was missing an eye. Instead of disguising this fact as convention dictated, Rembrandt made it a macabre focal point, creating a wildly outlandish, coarse tableau in which Civilis dwarves the men around him. It is likely Rembrandt was never paid for the work, and he later cut it down dramatically to resell it, which perhaps accounts for the presence of an additional ghostly sword that hovers ominously without a supporting arm.

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Experimental, uncompromising and incorporating radical technical advances: despite personal scandal and falling out of favour in his later years, Rembrandt remained defiant, his output better than ever. text Nina Siegal box-outs Megan Roberts

AN ARTIST OF TIMELESS ABILITIES

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f you extracted certain works out of the Late Rembrandt exhibition, which opens this February at the Rijksmuseum, and looked at them completely out of context, you might not guess that they were painted by a 17th-century Dutch master.

His ‘Nude Woman Resting on a Cushion’, sketched in 1661-’62, for example, could easily be mistaken for an ancient Japanese ink painting. His ‘The Apostle Bartholomew’, painted in 1661, looks strikingly like a late 19th-century impressionist portrait, possibly by Renoir. And his final, unfinished work, ‘Simeon with the Infant Christ in the Temple’, has the kind of brushwork usually associated with the pointillists.

This is testament to the fact that Rembrandt was an artist of timeless abilities, whose work reflected a deep art-historical knowledge and whose work was highly influential on generations after him. Yet, ironically, in his own age, and especially late in his career, he was considered ‘out of fashion’ by his contemporaries, and ignored for major commissions, even as his artistic capabilities continued to soar.

At the same time, Rembrandt’s later years were characterised by personal scandals (bankruptcy, an illegitimate child) and loss (the death of his common-law wife fol-

lowed a few years later by that of his only son). Yet these years were also the most experimental and exuberantly creative of his career, and the artist remained stalwart as the tide of popular opinion turned against him.

In 1648, the Dutch wars of independence from Spanish rule ended, and resulted in the formation of one of Europe’s first modern republics. This liberation gave Amsterdammers like Spinoza – and surely also Rembrandt – a tremendous sense of freedom, which inspired them to produce their most daring work.

‘When we put all these paintings and drawings and prints together it was astonishing to see,’ said Gregor Weber, chief curator of the exhibition. ‘For me, it has been an incredible experience to learn more about this miraculous man than ever before. What I didn’t recognise before was to what an extent he departed from the other art of his time, and to what extent this artist and this art is everlasting. You feel that when you see it. It is so emotional, so deep, and you find that it’s also very modern.’

A HEROIC CURATORIAL FEAT The Late Rembrandt exhibition is a heroic curatorial feat, pulling together approximately 40 paintings, 20 drawings and 30

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PART I UP CLOSE

rembrandt defiant

THE JEWISH BRIDE, C.1665-’69 Unbearably tender, The Jewish Bride bears testament to the fact that Rembrandt was never more human than after his supposed ‘fall’ from grace. The man and woman – whose names are lost to history – portray Old Testament couple Isaac and Rebecca, captured in a surprisingly intimate moment. The man’s heavily jewelled sleeve, comprised of thick layers of impasto worked with a palette knife, has a glittering, sculptural sense of relief. Ironically, the sumptuous fabrics and rich jewels the couple wear recall the similar items Rembrandt had been forced to sell following his bankruptcy.

‘WHAT I DIDN’T RECOGNISE BEFORE WAS TO WHAT AN EXTENT REMBRANDT DEPARTED FROM THE OTHER ART OF HIS TIME, AND TO WHAT EXTENT THIS ARTIST AND THIS ART IS EVERLASTING. IT IS SO EMOTIONAL, SO DEEP, AND YOU FIND THAT IT’S ALSO VERY MODERN.’ GREGOR WEBER, CHIEF CURATOR LATE REMBRANDT

11 prints from the last two decades of the master’s life, from museums around the globe and several key private collections. To avoid disputes about authenticity, the Rijksmuseum and the National Gallery of London, which collaborated on the exhibition, chose to include only works that are indisputably recognised as original Rembrandts.

It features many recognised masterpieces, such as ‘The Syndics of the Drapers’ Guild’ (1662), ‘The Jewish Bride’ (1665-’69) and ‘Bathsheba with King David’s Letter’ (1654), along with lesser-known works that are, in many cases, just as exquisite. These include a series of his late apostle portraits and the breath-taking, large-scale ‘Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph’ (1656). ‘This is a painting which always blew me away, really made me faint,’ said Weber. ‘It’s such a very emotional and harmonious painting, and not many people, who are not scholars, are familiar with it.’

Scholars don’t think it mattered to Rembrandt very much what anyone thought of him, as he continued to work on his own vision for his art. He was an artist who pushed forward through his own work, and, as this exhibition demonstrates beautifully, his skills did not diminish as he aged. Rather, he became a stronger artist, a more powerful painter and more of an innovator at the end of his life.

‘Even three and a half centuries after his

death, Rembrandt continues to astonish and amaze,’ said Betsy Wieseman, curator the exhibition for the National Gallery of London, which originally hosted the exhibition, at its opening in October. ‘His technical innovations and his profound insight into human emotions are as fresh and relevant today as they were in the 17th century.’

AN EXPRESSIVE NEW STYLE Rembrandt van Rijn was not an ‘echte Amsterdammer’ (a true Amsterdammer), as they say. He was a Leidener, born in a mill house on the Rhine, the son of a miller, educated at Latin school and apprenticed as a painter at age 13. He began his career in Leiden, working in a studio he shared with Jan Lievens, and the two young men were considered the rising young stars of their generation.

Towards the end of 1631, he moved to Amsterdam, invited to run the painting academy owned by art dealer Hendrick van Uylenburg, in what’s now called the Jodenbuurt of Amsterdam, or Jewish quarter.

It was also the artists’ quarter, and it was where he also bought his first home to start his family with his new wife, Saskia van Uylenburg – a palatial building built in the year of his birth, 1606 – a few years later, when he established his own painting studio and art business.

But somewhere along the line, some time

REMBRANDT: THE LATER YEARS

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A number of defining personal events – crises, even – coincide with Rembrandt’s move to a more expressionist painting style. Following the death of his wife Saskia in 1642, Rembrandt quarrelled with her family over matters of money and inheritance. An ill-judged affair with his housekeeper, Geertje Dircx, who nursed his sole remaining child, Titus, resulted in accusations by Dircx that Rembrandt had reneged on a marriage proposal. When in 1650 she pawned jewellery that was bequeathed by Saskia to Titus, Rembrandt had Dircx confined in the House of Correction at Gouda, where she remained until 1655. Yet Rembrandt remained defiant of social convention and the scandal surrounding him: in 1649 he began a relationship with Hendrickje Stoffels (pictured here), who bore him a child and lived with him as his common-law wife from 1649 until her death in 1663.

This coincided with a rapid deterioration of Rembrandt’s financial situation – brought on at least in part by his own mismanagement. He had neglected to pay the mortgage on the house he bought in 1639, although archival material shows that he spent sums greater than the outstanding balance on his extensive collection of curiosities. Between 1652 and 1656 he made frantic attempts to pay off his debt, but he did not succeed and was forced into bankruptcy. He lost his house and moved to a small rented property on the Rozengracht, where he lived until his death in 1669. He had not received – or accepted – a single portrait commission since 1642.

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PART I UP CLOSE

rembrandt defiant

Rembrandt was an artist who pushed forward through his own work, and his skills did not diminish as he aged. Rather, he became a stronger artist, a more powerful painter and more of an innovator.

A WOMAN BATHING IN A STREAM, 1654 Possibly featuring Rembrandt’s common-law wife, Hendrickje Stoffels, this tenderly intimate portrait displays an unusually spontaneous handling of paint. Appearing almost unfinished in places (note the shadow at the hem of the raised chemise, the left shoulder and right arm). But Rembrandt clearly considered the painting finished: he signed and dated it upon completion.

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LATE REMBRANDT 12 February-17 May Rijksmuseum Museumstraat 1 www.rijksmuseum.nl

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after he painted his iconic ‘The Night Watch’ and his wife died, Rembrandt became less popular with the people who paid for art in Amsterdam. His portraits were labelled ugly, his heavy use of paint amateurish. He was no longer commissioned to paint murals for the city’s great buildings and guildhalls – though there was a tremendous demand for monumental portraits of the city’s noblemen and members of various boards of trustees – and in some cases, when he painted them, they were repainted or removed from sight.

The popular style of the late 17th century was known as the Van Dyck style, after Sir Anthony van Dyck, a Flemish Baroque painter who moved to London and became a leading court painter in England.

Art aficionados of Rembrandt’s era also favoured other Dutch painters like Nicolaes Pickenoy, and Rembrandt’s pupils, Govert Flinck and Ferdinand Bol, over Rembrandt himself.

In his 1718 biography of the artist, Arnold Houbraken noted that ‘Rembrandt did not want to conform to anyone else’s rules’ – even, it would seem, at the expense of his

reputation and livelihood.

Because waning popularity didn’t stop Rembrandt – or even, as we can see from his production, slow him down. In fact, as he aged he painted more productively. From the late 1650s until his death in 1669, he worked tirelessly to create an expressive new style of painting, which required him to develop all kinds of new painting techniques, many of them still considered revolutionary today. He was the first painter to use a palette knife to apply paint to his canvases.

‘In the end, he focused on his strengths and in that sense he elaborated his technique again and again and again, making it stronger,’ said Weber. ‘He was also always departing from the rules of art, especially those of his era. He began as a revolutionary artist, but at the end of his life it was much more.’

Nina Siegal is the author of The Anatomy Lesson, a fictionalised account of one of Rembrandt’s most famous paintings. Published by Random House (www.randomhouse.com).

> WHERE REMBRANDT LIVED From 1639 to 1658 – before profligacy set in, enemies swooped and bankruptcy came a-knocking – Rembrandt van Rijn ran the Netherlands’ largest painting studio from a house in the 17th-century artists’ quarter of Amsterdam, now home to the Rembrandt House Museum. Costing a budget-busting 13,000 guilders – a princely sum that Rembrandt was supposed to pay in instalments – this extravagant purchase was to lead, in part, to his bankruptcy. In 1656 his property was inventoried for the benefit of his creditors, and his household effects and extensive collection of art and curiosities were sold.

Based on that inventory, extensive historical research and some of Rembrandt’s own sketches, the interior of the Rembrandt House Museum has been faithfully reconstructed. The museum also owns an almost complete collection of Rembrandt’s 250-odd etchings, of which a changing selection is on constant display.

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Jodenbreestraat 4 www.rembrandthuis.nl

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rembrandt defiant

PART I UP CLOSE

REMBRANDT’S AMSTERDAM: ‘THE WORLD’S MOST LIBERAL CITY’ From medieval mudflats to its reputation among the ignorant as a Mecca for sex and drugs (thanks in part to Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly and London mayor Boris Johnson), in his book Amsterdam: A History of the World’s Most Liberal City Russell Shorto traces the history of Amsterdam’s notorious freedoms and finds their roots in a culture of community born from adversity. Shorto makes a compelling case for the foundation of the 18th-century Enlightenment (and its associated liberalism) lying in the Dutch iteration that took place a century early, disseminating across Europe via the works of Spinoza.

Dutch characteristics of practicality, defiance of accepted norms and ingenuity, Shorto finds, are what make this city ‘the cradle of liberalism’.

REBEL REMBRANDT Our cover illustrator, internationally acclaimed graphic artist Typex – aka Raymond Koot – is the author of a wonderful graphic biography of Rembrandt (published in English by SelfMadeHero), which details the artist’s stubbornness, his defiance in the face of convention and his compulsive spending (when forced to sell off his deceased wife Saskia’s grave, for example, he also bought himself a Holbein – because, priorities). Contrasting Rembrandt’s insatiable appetites with the Puritanism of the day, the drawings teem with life and themes run the gamut from life and death to love and bereavement, fame and loss. www.selfmadehero.com

During the height of his commercial success, Rembrandt’s studio comprised dozens of apprentices. In spite of losing his house, Rembrandt did not stop teaching in his later years.

Subtitled ‘Studying Under a Genius’, this exhibition at the Rembrandt House Museum focuses on Rembrandt’s influence, his teaching methods and the relationship between master and pupil.

Some 60 drawings and 20 paintings by artists including Nicolaes Maes, Willem Drost, Abraham van Dijck, Jacobus Leveck, Heyman Dullaert and Arent de Gelder reveal the extent to which these young artists’ grasp of composition, use of colour, style and approach to the subject were influenced by Rembrandt’s training.

12 February-17 May Rembrandt House Museum, Jodenbreestraat 4 www.rembrandthuis.nl

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NICOLAES MAES, GIRL AT A WINDOW (‘THE DAYDREAMER’), C. 1654, OIL ON CANVAS, RIJKSMUSEUM, AMSTERDAM

THE MASTER AS TEACHER

IN REMBRANDT’S FOOTSTEPS Rembrandt lived and worked most of his life right here in Amsterdam. And many of the places where he lived are still there.

You can get a pretty good impression of what the painter saw every day when you join one of the guided walking tours led by writer and Rembrandt expert Jacques Hendrikx. There are two varieties, the Night Watch Walk, focusing on the people and places connected with his greatest painting, and the Rembrandt’s Final Years tour, which corresponds with the current exhibition in the Rijksmuseum. It takes you through the western part of the Canal Ring area and the Jordaan. It was in this newer part of 17th-century Amsterdam that Rembrandt lived and worked during the final years of his life. The walk passes the houses of his friends and enemies, and tells the story of the painting ‘The Conspiracy of the Batavians Under Claudius Civilis’ (1661’62), which was commissioned and later refused by the City of Amsterdam.

Additionally, a series of events, including a walking tour and a boat trip, will be organised across Amsterdam in association with the Late Rembrandt exhibition (see www. rijksmuseum.nl for details). http://en.nachtwachtwandelingen.nl

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SELF-PORTRAIT WITH TWO CIRCLES, C.1665-’69 When Rembrandt’s mistress, Hendrickje Stoffels, died in 1663, he was unable even to pay the rent for her grave.

This vulnerable self-portrait – painted in his final years – shows all the signs of his suffering. And yet, there’s no self-pity here. The artist sits ramrod straight, his gaze defiant, confronting his sorrows instead of hiding from them.

The marks of wealth – a gold chain and fur-trimmed coat – are ethereal, rendered by swift, summarising strokes, and in stark contrast to his modest white cap. The paint brushes clutched in the artist’s left hand suggest an obstinacy: he would continue to paint in defiance of his critics as long as his energy levels permitted.

FROM THE LATE 1650S UNTIL HIS DEATH IN 1669, REMBRANDT WORKED TIRELESSLY TO CREATE AN EXPRESSIVE NEW STYLE OF PAINTING, WHICH REQUIRED HIM TO DEVELOP ALL KINDS OF NEW PAINTING TECHNIQUES, MANY OF THEM STILL CONSIDERED REVOLUTIONARY TODAY.

Where would Van Gogh have been without his brother?

Discover Vincent’s relationship with his family.

Come see the new presentation of our permanent collection now. Buy your tickets online: tickets.vangoghmuseum.com

Van Gogh engages you.

jan & feb 2015

PART II 18 20 22 25 26 27

ENTERTAINMENT

’MY FATHER WORKED IN AMSTERDAM, WHILE I WAS GROWING UP IN LEIDSCHENDAM. WHEN WE VISITED HIS OFFICE, I WAS IN AWE. HOW COULD PEOPLE EVER FIND THEIR WAY AROUND IN THIS IMMENSE CITY? FUNNY, BECAUSE NOW THAT I KNOW NEW YORK, AMSTERDAM SEEMS RELAVITELY SMALL.’

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SIMON STONE, TONEELGROEP AMSTERDAM CROSS-LINX FESTIVAL BEATRIX RUF, NEW STEDELIJK DIRECTOR 13 QUESTIONS FILM NIGHTLIFE ESSENTIALS DANCING LIGHT, LET IT MOVE YOU Photo and dance. Silence vs. movement. This apparent opposition is raised and explored in this extraordinary exhibition.

Along with film and video, photography turns out to be an ideal way to illuminate the characteristic emotion and transportive powers of dance – its ‘primal power’ to move us.

One of the most intriguing series in this exhibition shows the fusion of Japanese butoh (dance theatre) with Spanish flamenco, uniting seemingly incompatible opposites such as joy and sorrow or hope and despondency. The subtitle of the exhibition couldn’t be more apt: let it move you.

UNTIL 8 MARCH Huis Marseille, Keizersgracht 401 www.huismarseille.nl

Marqt co-founder Quirijn Bolle on his first Amsterdam memory.

JEAN DESMET’S DREAM FACTORY Subtitled ‘The Adventurous Years of Film (1907-1916)’ Eye Filmmuseum’s winter exhibition covers one of the most fascinating periods in film history. Dutch movie entrepreneur Jean Desmet (1875-1956) left behind an invaluable collection of films, posters, publicity material and his entire company archive, which was added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2011.

XAVIER MISERACHS, ANTOÑITA LA SINGLA

UNTIL 12 APRIL EYE Filmmuseum, IJpromenade 1 www.eyefilm.nl

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

‘The echo of antiquity’

simon stone

This winter, Australian enfant-terrible theatre director Simon Stone presents Medea at the Stadsschouwburg, bringing the Greek tragedy into the present day.

© JAN VERSWEYVELD

text Willemijn Kruijssen

T 21 JANUARY-28 MARCH Surtitles on Thursdays Stadsschouwburg Leidseplein 26 www.tga.nl

hat Ivo van Hove, the acclaimed director of the equally acclaimed theatre group Toneelgroep Amsterdam, has asked playwright Simon Stone (b. 1984) to temporarily take the helm is not as crazy as it sounds.

Stone has, despite his tender years, already proven himself one of the most acclaimed – albeit controversial – writers in the theatre world.

Two of his plays have previously been staged in Amsterdam – appropriately enough, at the bleeding-edge performing arts extravaganza the Holland Festival: The Wild Duck (2013) and Thyestes (last year). Both are

plays that linger in the mind, intense but also funny, with abrupt scene changes and set design that give the audience the feeling they’re eavesdropping on a private conversation. Of the original versions – by Ibsen and Euripides respectively – not much is left.

A fanatical Australian reviewer calculated that Stone used just three sentences from the original script of The Wild Duck. No doubt something similar will happen with Medea, the famous tragedy about a sorceress who, as revenge on her husband, kills their two children.

Because Stone (tall, looselimbed, long-haired) has

worked this way since he shook up the sleepy Australian theatre world at age 23 with his first adaptation of a stage classic. He extracts the essence of a story and then works with the actors to improvise the end result. So on the day of our interview, as the rehearsal process had only just begun, Stone did not yet know what his version of Medea would be.

THIS IS ABOUT ME Before he started writing, Stone first researched his actors: ‘I have written specifically for the actors, so they can really appropriate the characters. Marieke

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don’t miss these

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ONTDEK JE STAD

 24H OOST

OOST

24 UUR LANG! 14 -15 F EBRUA RY

Throughout 2015, 24H Amsterdam is exploring all corners of the city in several editions, each dedicated to a different part of town. Be you an old Amsterdammer, new to the city or a visitor passing through, 24H is a fantastic opportunity to discover all that the city’s neighbourhoods have to offer in a blistering 24hour period, as theatres, museums, churches, shops, bars, hotels and clubs open their doors.

Highlights this edition include the ‘Get High on Chocolate’ tasting event, Stargazing at the Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy and beginners’ t’ai chi.

12.00 -12.00

Saturday 14-Sunday 15 February Various locations, Oost www.iamsterdam.com

SCENE FROM MEDEA © JAN VERSWEYVELD

 IL VIAGGIO A REIMS

Heebink, for example, is very witty – even when something catastrophically bad is happening.’

Stone’s Medea is called Anna, and is played by Heebink. To make it a more contemporary piece, Anna is not only based on the tragic character of Greek mythology, but also on American doctor Debora Green, who poisoned her adulterous husband in 1995 and killed her children. Stone: ‘The situation Green found herself in can happen to so many middle-class women: they’re successful, but overshadowed by their spouse. In everyday life, you can hear

the echo of antiquity. We carry the same stories for thousands of years.’ And maybe that’s Stone’s main goal: to make the public think, Wow, this is about me.

‘Yes! I think that’s happening less and less with traditional performances,’ he says.

NEW AUDIENCE With his approach, Stone seems to interest alternative audiences – often younger, with a different background.

‘But I don’t want the old theatregoers to be replaced; I want a bigger audience. Theatres can still feel like a temple where everyone knows the rules except you.’

Medea is the first piece that Stone has directed in a foreign language (performances are in Dutch, with English surtitles on certain dates).

But because he lived in Switzerland until he was 13 he speaks German, which meant he picked up Dutch quickly. And he always wanted to return to Europe to work here.

As for the future, Stone is reticent to reveal his ambition: ‘That’s a secret process.

But I have to be careful that I don’t get too lazy and keep doing the same thing. At the same time, I won’t change myself unnecessarily just for the sake of change.’

Il viaggio a Reims was written to celebrate the coronation of Charles X of France – an event which also occurs within the opera. Rossini’s last work in the Italian language premiered in 1825, and is often acclaimed as one of his finest. In a fashionable hotel in a French spa, a colourful international company assembles on their way to Rheims for the coronation. But the journey is called off and the hotel guests decide to hold their own festivities, with each toasting the new king with a song in their national style.

Conductor Stefano Montanari leads an international cast for his Dutch National Opera debut.

20 January-8 February Dutch National Opera & Ballet http://operaballet.nl

 NATIONAL TULIP DAY

A quick glance at the floral offerings in any supermarket – or a sneaky peek through any unadorned Dutch window – and you’ll see that ‘tulip mania’ never really left the Netherlands. The Dutch national flower caused the world’s first speculative bubble in the 17th century, and it’s been indelibly linked to the country ever since. You’ll have to wait a month or two for the world-famous tulip fields and Keukenhof flower gardens to come into bloom, but on 17 January you can pick your own tulip for free from the picking garden on Dam square, which boasts 2,000 blooms, brightening the darkest of days.

17 January Dam square

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highlights

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Crossing genres: a musical mash-up

Annual multi-city music fest Cross-linx straddles musical boundaries, promoting refreshing combinations of indie and classical sounds. text Dara Colwell

C

rossing indie rock with avant-garde pop and progressive styles with classical music, Cross-linx is all about the experimental.

‘Most festivals just book artists to perform music. But for Cross-linx, the artists’ arrangements have been made especially for the programme. It’s all new music, something you won’t have heard before,’ says Shane Burmania of Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw, where the event takes place this February.

Created in 2001 as a joint project between Muziekcentrum Enschede plus platforms Vredenburg and Tivoli in Utrecht, Cross-linx has since spread to Rotterdam, Groningen and Amsterdam, where it sold out fêted pop temple Paradiso for three years running.

The event now takes place at the bleedingedge Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, lauded for its acoustics, and neighbouring Bimhuis, the city’s top jazz venue.

Cross-linx plays for one night in Amsterdam (11 February), then moves on to Eindhoven (12th), Rotterdam (13th) and Groningen (14th), allowing concertgoers to follow musicians across the country, seeing unrepeatable performances each night.

Topping this year’s line-up is former frontman of Screaming Trees-turned-serial collaborator Mark Lanegan (pictured).

Having left the Washington band that helped put grunge on the map, Lanegan’s barbed-wire baritone has made him the dark prince of gothic-grunge. Also on the bill is Squarepusher, aka Essex boy Tom Jenkinson, one of Britain’s most innovative techno artists

MARK LANEGAN © GULLICK

SQUAREPUSHER Electronic maverick and Essex boy Tom Jenkinson, better known as Squarepusher, has spent the last two decades running the musical gamut from acid jazz to drum’n’bass to musique concrete. A boundary crosser if ever there was one, together with the Metropole Orchestra, for Cross-linx he performs Squarepusher’s Orchestral Ufabulum: an orchestral version of tracks from the eponymous cult album described by The Quietus as ‘an almost physical experience’.

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don’t miss these 

GRAUZONE FESTIVAL

whose sound Mixmag dubbed ‘bassomatic wizardry’, and whose live shows never fall short of spectacular. Bryce Dessner, of indieband The National fame, is also a classically trained composer, and will present three world premieres wherein indie and classical meet.

But it’s not just the music that’s adventurous at Cross-linx: ‘We’re holding performances in unusual places,’ says Burmania, explaining the festival’s ‘music mining’ concept, whereby the audience is sent deep into the building – to the locker or boiler room, perhaps – to experience music out of context.

Cross-linx seeks to be innovative, experimental, boundary-pushing and unpredictable, and to provide an intimate musical experience, says Burmania: ‘There’s a lot to discover, all in a light-hearted entertaining way.’

For the price of a ticket (€35), anything could happen – musically, at least. Now that’s an invitation to be spontaneous…

11-14 FEBRUARY Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, Piet Heinkade 1 www.cross-linx.nl

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30 & 31 JANUARY Melkweg, Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.grauzonefestival.nl

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HAMLET To go or not to go, that is the question. The answer is, of course, yes. Featuring British cult band The Tiger Lillies – those dark purveyors of perverse Berlin cabaret – and Copenhagen’s Republique Theatre Company, this is Hamlet, but not as you know it. A long ways away from the Laurence Olivier version you may have had to watch back in school, think Tim Burtonesque alt-cabaret, with macabre Gothic soundtrack performed by bowler-hatted musicians in Day of the Dead face paint. Getting to the hideous heart of Shakespeare’s play through its poetry – plus circus skills and puppetry – this is Hamlet at its most digestible.

16-17 JANUARY Surtitled Stadsschouwburg, Leidseplein 26 http://stadsschouwburgamsterdam.nl

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REALISME With lofty claims to being the only art fair dedicated solely to figurative art (read: works clearly derived from real people and places, as opposed to abstract art), Realisme showcases established artists with a respectable oeuvre as well as young up-and-comers breathing new life into the genre.

With its history going back to the 17th century – the Golden Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer – figurative and realistic art is firmly rooted in the Netherlands. For its 12th edition, Realisme presents 27 national and international galleries, exhibiting (and selling) works by Dutch and foreign artists.

ZAKIROVA, NATALYA ZALOZNAYA, ZWALUW

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The best of new-wave music, art and film, Grauzone Festival celebrates the heyday of the 1980s new-wave movement with contemporary artists breathing new life into the genre. Music runs the gamut from synth-pop, electro and cold/darkwave to post-punk, death/goth rock and more. Headlining this year are The ‘mighty’ Fall (as BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel used to call them), one of Britain’s most distinctive and influential bands. They’re joined by Canadian synth-pop heroes TRUST (pictured), Bad Seed Mick Harvey, legendary anarchic punks Zounds and fresh Danish post-punk act Hand of Dust.

15-18 JANUARY Passenger terminal Amsterdam, Piet Heinkade 27 www.realismeamsterdam.com

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

highlights

Off the walls The Stedelijk’s new director Beatrix Ruf redefines space travel with a little help from artist Tino Sehgal.

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text Lauren Comiteau portraits Robin de Puy

T

aking over the stewardship of one of the world’s most prestigious modern-art institutions may seem like a daunting task, but as new Stedelijk director Beatrix Ruf ’s first curated exhibition, A Year at the Stedelijk: Tino Sehgal, demonstrates, for her, art is all about confrontation.

Sehgal is known for his ‘constructed situations’, where ‘interpretors’ (rather than actors) engage randomly chosen visitors in unexpected conversations or performances. Sehgal attempts to leave no trace of these social interactions and forbids visitors from filming or photographing them.

‘Many aspects in Tino Sehgal’s show are about challenging us, which is also what I find important for the Stedelijk and museums in general,’ says Ruf, who came to the Stedelijk in November from the Kunsthalle Zürich. ‘Sehgal thinks about how to continue conceptual art, which has

such a long history in the Stedelijk, bringing it into the experience of space and time.’

Sehgal’s 12-part survey is the first major one for the German-British artist, and opens in January. It will feature a new presentation each month over the course of a year and will virtually take over the recently revamped Stedelijk, using a different gallery space monthly for each of his unique takes on the exhibition as phenomenon. January’s instalment makes use of the museum’s permanent collection, with a ‘human figure’ assuming several positions referencing the works of Bruce Nauman and Dan Graham. By summer, look for larger ‘situations’ involving a number of players.

‘I’m sure there’ll be many surprises for the audience,’ says Ruf. ‘We’re travelling in time and space with these works, and we have to spend time with it.’

Continuing the Stedelijk’s tradition

of being on the cutting edge of contemporary art, Ruf ’s plans to bring the institution into the 21st century are not beyond a ‘rethink’ of its entire collection, with live art playing a prominent role.

Ruf, who is recognised as one of the most influential people in the international art world, calls Sehgal ‘one of the most radical artists of this era’ – an interesting epithet for a woman who herself has been lauded for her radical programming and proven past in generating debate and embracing experimentation in the institutions she oversees. As she nudges conceptual art in the Stedelijk beyond the material, one wonders what the museum’s walls are saying.

For sure, we will be listening.

A YEAR AT THE STEDELIJK: TINO SEHGAL 1 January-31 December Stedelijk Museum, Museumplein 10 www.stedelijk.nl

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featured artist

don’t miss these

‘I’d hate to hang around making theatre when they’re tired of it’

Strutting into town twice a year, the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam has fashionistas on the edge of their seats at the characterful Westergasfabriek for a sneak peak of the trends we’ll all be wearing in the future. Back for its 22nd edition in January, Amsterdam’s fashion week will again feature couture from the subtle to the bizarre, the sublime to the, frankly, ridiculous.

If your name’s not on the list, don’t despair: the Downtown programme features everything from pop-up designer stores to glitzy parties and stylish collaborations between designers and dancers.

© PETER STIGTER

FASHIONWEEK

16-26 JANUARY Various locations www.fashionweek.nl

KRAFTWERK THE CATALOGUE The German godfathers of electronica, Kraftwerk have been breaking new ground for 40-odd years, and are often credited with inventing the genre: without Florian Schneider and Ralf Hütter’s vocoder experiments in the early ’70s, there would have been no Joy Division, no Depeche Mode, no Aphex Twin. It’s a dystopian world we don’t want to imagine – and luckily, don’t have to. Kraftwerk will perform eight entire albums from their back catalogue – from 1974’s Autobahn to Tour de France (2003) – complete with 3D visuals for eight consecutive nights at Paradiso. Vorsprung durch Techno-pop.

KATIE MITCHELL Born: 23 September 1964 Talent: Major-league British director Katie Mitchell works predominantly in Europe, where audiences are more accepting of her avant-garde signature style. During February and March she is the Stadsschouwburg’s Brandstichter (firestarter). Four of her plays – The Forbidden Zone, Trauernacht, Glückliche Tage and Atmen – will be performed by German theatre companies with surtitles.

‘There’s a signature in every director’s work. Possibly because I’m more visual than other directors, the signature is stronger on the eye. But it’s the ideas that create the visual look… My aim is to communicate each play as clearly as I possibly can in the time in which I'm working… I never think: “Now it clicks.” I never think: “This is my style.” I just think, every ten seconds: “Is that good enough or not?” There’s no sense of arrival or achievement, no armchair at the end of everything; just another challenge.’

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SCENE FROM ATMAN

See pages 55-56 for details.

11 February-10 March Stadsschouwburg Leidseplein 26 http://stadsschouwburg amsterdam.nl

TOROBAKA A physical conversation between the celebrated dancers Akram Khan and Israel Galván, Torobaka is as much duel as duet, a fusion of the Indian and Spanish dance styles for which the two superlative artists are respectively famous.

Taking its name from a Maoriinspired phonetic poem by Tristan Tzara, the bull (toro) and the cow (vaca) are sacred animals in the dancers’ two traditions, and represent the coming together of dance styles. This is undoubtedly the highlight of the Flamenco Biënnale (16 January-3 February; www.flamencobiennale. nl), but check the website for more performances, workshops and song recitals.

16 -23 JANUARY Paradiso, Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl

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2-3 FEBRUARY Stadsschouwburg, Leidseplein 26 http://stadsschouwburgamsterdam.nl

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24

highlights

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

The unlikely answer

A perplexing rap-rave duo takes to the Amsterdam stage, hawking class rebellion, after a fashion. text Mark Smith

A A balletic gem of sparkling facets The Dutch National Ballet performs Balanchine’s ‘Crown Jewels’ – three odes to classical ballet. text Bregtje Schudel

R

ussian-American choreographer George Balanchine is no stranger to the Dutch National Ballet. The renowned dance company has a treasure trove of over 25 choreographies by the illustrious dance master in its repertory – and with good reason. ‘He was an artist of the same calibre as Picasso or Stravinsky,’ says Ted Brandsen, artistic director of the DNB. ‘He has revolutionised classical ballet, while staying true to its tradition. His works are timeless.’

Jewels (1967) certainly had to be timeless. Almost 40 years had passed before the Dutch National Ballet mounted the complete three-part production for the first time in 2006. ‘The George Balanchine Trust hadn’t released the rights for the whole evening before,’ explains Brandsen. ‘It also took us a while before we dared to take the leap. As ballets go, it’s all pretty abstract, so businesswise it’s more of a gamble than

a Swan Lake or a Sleeping Beauty. Luckily, the gamble paid off!’

Inspired by the lavish window displays of New York’s rarefied Fifth Avenue jeweller Van Cleef & Arpels, each ballet represents a different culture, and a different ballet tradition, as Brandsen explains: ‘Rubies, with music by Stravinsky, is an ode to America; really snazzy and jazzy, full of energy and life, inspired by the hustle and bustle of New York. Diamonds, accompanied by music by Tchaikovsky, is a throwback to the Russian Imperial Ballet before the Revolution; very lofty, very noble.’

Emeralds may be the hardest nut to crack: ‘It’s an homage to the French ballet style, really refined, really delicate.

It’s not as flashy as Rubies, nor as grand as Diamonds. It doesn’t divulge its secrets as easily. But the more you see, the more you get.’

12-26 FEBRUARY Dutch National Opera & Ballet Amstel 3 www.operaballet.nl

longside appearances

by American renegades Jack Black, Dita Von Teese, Marilyn Manson and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers, one of the more surprising celebrity cameos in Die Antwoord’s video for recent single ‘Ugly Boy’ (sample lyric: ‘I can make cash rain on your ass’) is an appearance from Cara Delevingne, mega-browed society supermodel and face of demure British heritage brand Burberry.

At first sight, appearing in a controversy-spattered promo for a white South African underclass-themed collective – as with Die Antwoord’s 2012 breakthrough hit, ‘Fatty Boom Boom’, the clip made tabloid headlines for its unsettling use of blackface – may seem a world away from the gilded catwalks of fashion week. But scrape past the surface and Die Antwoord – whose name is Afrikaans for ‘the answer’ – is actually the unlikely meeting point where high style and dirty pop do gimlet-eyed business.

Having joined forces in Cape Town in 2008, rapper Ninja, vocalist Yo-Landi Vi$$er and DJ Hi-Tek (a character

played by various people over the years) perform alternative hip hop that’s infused with the pulsating chemistry of cheap dance drugs. Visually, their trailer-park stylings are derived from an Afrikaans counterculture movement called ‘zef ’, defined by peroxide mullet-sporting Yo-Landi thus: ‘people who soup their cars up and rock gold and shit. You’re poor but you’re sexy, you’ve got style.’

In other words, ‘zef ’ is roughly equivalent to the British term ‘chav’, precisely the association that pre-Cara Burberry sought to shed, circa 2004, once poor people started to wear knock-off versions of its discreetly ostentatious clothes.

Cut to 2015, however, and the flywheel has come full circle.

Die Antwoord is shamelessly hawking for Alexander Wang (the designer provided clothes from his T range for the ‘Ugly Boy’ video) and Cara is slumming it for a piece of the urban action. It’s a funny old world.

THURSDAY 29 JANUARY Heineken Music Hall ArenA Boulevard 590 www.heineken-music-hall.nl

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13 questions Quirijn Bolle (b. 1975) is the founder of sustainable supermarket chain Marqt, which prides itself on its ‘real food’. The first Marqt opened in 2008 on the Overtoom.

In autumn 2014, the twelfth branch  opened.

text Anne-Rose Bantzinger

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   

‘A village of matchless beauty.’

1. BEST THING ABOUT LIVING IN AMSTERDAM? ‘It’s marvellous. I lived in New York for two years. When I came back, I started to re-appreciate Amsterdam. The centre resembles a village of matchless beauty, an open-air museum.’

2. FAVOURITE MUSIC VENUE? ‘This ranges from the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ (www.muziekge bouw.nl)  to Paradiso (www. paradiso.nl)  to the Ziggo Dome (www.ziggodome.nl)  – where I saw an amazing concert

by Radiohead in 2012. Paradiso has more character, soul and history, but really big names don’t fit in there.’

3. FAVOURITE CINEMA? ‘The Movies (www.themovies.nl)  programmes good films. And often documentaries that make the audience think about the importance of good food.’

4. TOP RESTAURANT? ‘The Italian restaurant Assaggi on Tweede Egelantiersdwars-

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straat (www.assaggirestaurant. nl) . One of the characteristics of the Italian kitchen is that everything relies on the quality of the ingredients.’

could people ever find their way around this immense city? Funny, because now that I know New York, Amsterdam seems relatively small.’

5. BEST MUSEUM? ‘I love photography. The new Philips Wing of the Rijksmuseum is completely dedicated to photography, with until 11 January the exhibition Modern Times (www.rijksmuseum.nl) . Unfortunately, I’ve never been to the Anne Frank House.

I’ve read the book, of course, but the long queues of people waiting for the Anne Frank House discourage me.’

8. WHAT’S THE BEST THING ABOUT AMSTERDAMMERS? ‘Amsterdammers are openminded about new developments. Like the Ceuvel development in Noord (http://deceuvel. nl) , an old shipyard that has become a sustainable cultural hotspot. The same goes for Roest – a café-restaurant with a beach (www.amsterdamroest.nl)  – and the Surinamese Café Waterkrant under the Q-Parking behind the bus station on Marnixstraat (www.waterkant amsterdam.nl) .’

6. WHAT DEFINES AMSTERDAM HUMOUR? ‘Amsterdammers put each other down very well – with airs and a smile.’

7. FIRST AMSTERDAM MEMORY? ‘My father worked in Amsterdam, while I was growing up in Leidschendam. When we visited his office, I was in awe. How

9. AND THE WORST? ‘I’m more focused on good characteristics than bad habits.’

10. FAVOURITE STATUE? ‘The blue violinist on the Tweede Marnixplantsoen . It was placed there by an anonymous sculptor. It’s good that the

 municipality said it could stay.’

11. WHAT BUILDING WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO SPEND THE NIGHT IN? ‘On the NDSM shipyard, in 2012 a crane was converted into the Faralda NDSM Crane Hotel (www.faralda.com) , with just three suites and an expansive view of the city, I imagine.’

12. WHAT SHOULD SOMEONE DO WITH A SINGLE DAY IN AMSTERDAM? ‘Explore the canals on a Sunday morning, very early. In a small boat, before the city awakes.’

13. AMSTERDAM HERO? ‘There are two: Jeroen Rijpkema and Walter Abma of Nursery Osdorp (www.kwekerij osdorp.nl). It’s where our tomatoes come from, and it’s also a social enterprise, providing work for people excluded from society. We sell their tomatoes and they are developing a ketchup, exclusively for Marqt.’ www.marqt.nl

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

film

Taking you through Amsterdam’s movie scene, one cinema at a time.

Melkweg Cinema

The Leidseplein pop temple has a secret: it houses one of the city’s best cinemas, where music meets movies.

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text Bregtje Schudel

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MELKWEG CINEMA Lijnbaansgracht 234a www.melkweg.nl/cinema

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elkweg Cinema is probably one of Amsterdam’s better-kept cinematic secrets.

Melkweg – the former sugar refinery-turned-milk factory-turned-cultural hotspot – may be best known as a pop stage, but if you’re willing to brave the stairs, it’s guaranteed worth your while. Melkweg’s third floor has a cultural ecosystem all its own, with a small theatre, a café and a onescreen, 90-seat cinema.

Cinema has played a part in the Melkweg since its beginning in the early 1970s, but it’s only recently that Melkweg Cinema has really found its niche in accordance with its primary function: films focused on music and pop culture, from documentaries and feature films to live recordings of musical icons like Led Zeppelin, Metallica and The Roll-

ing Stones.

For the past few years, Melkweg has teamed up with the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam to help programme their annual music documentary selection – usually coupled with live concerts. Other partnerships include those with Camera Japan (October), for Japanese anime, and the Brussel Offscreen Film Festival (4-22 March), for ‘outsider cinema’.

Here’s a selection of all the cinematic goodies Melkweg Cinema has on offer in the upcoming months. On 10 January music blog Foutmijn hosts a night of their favourite ‘foute’ (bad) video clips in De Foutmijn Videoclip Show, from obscure Dutch singers to ’80s kitsch to Asian awkwardness. On 16 January there’s a screening of Genesis – Sum of the Parts – the official and au-

thorised genesis of, well, Genesis, and the lead-up to their reunion tour in 2007.

For more actual human interaction, be sure to catch Supermensch on 17 January, the documentary debut of Mike ‘Austin Powers’ Myers. It’s a celebration of the fantastical life of manager Shep Gordon, whose eclectic clientele included Alice Cooper, Blondie, Groucho Marx and Pink Floyd (for a whole nine days). He’s also acquainted with the Dalai Lama.

Finally, don’t miss Helemaal Melkweg (28 February), a quarterly interdisciplinary event. Melkweg Cinema will be showing the documentary Take Me to the River, highlighting the musical influence of Memphis, followed by a live performance of the original ’80s soul group The Alfredo Brothers.

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highlight Our must-see film pick this issue…

The Tribe: just read the signs.

A

s devastating and unstoppable as a runaway bulldozer, since its world premiere in Cannes last year, The Tribe (Plemya), about a group of young delinquents at a deaf-mute community school in Ukraine, has left everyone speechless – in the case of the actors, quite literally. All the actors are deaf-mute, and all ‘speak’ Uzbek sign language. There are no subtitles; there is no voice-over. You’ll just have to read the signs.

It was a long-held dream of director Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy to make a silent movie. But it had to be a contemporary one. ‘Of course, there have been silent movies before, like The Artist,’ a chain-smoking Slaboshpytskiy told us during the Gent Film Festival, ‘but they’re all more about the aesthetic of the silent movie.

That’s just not my way. To make a modern silent film I needed a reason why the people in the movie didn’t speak. Also, people from the deaf-mute community communicate in a very direct way. They really wear their hearts on their sleeves. It’s a very cinematic mode of communication.’

It did make the search for actors something of a challenge, the Uzbek director admits: ‘There’s only a very small percentage of people who are deaf-mute – an even smaller percentage who can also act. I think we had about 300 auditions before we found our main two protagonists, Sergei (Grigoriy Fesenko) and Anna (Yana Novikova). Grigoriy really is a child of the streets. He has a lot of hobbies but still hasn’t decided what he wants to do in life. Yana is different. She’s really crazy about acting. She’s been travelling around with me promoting the movie. Everybody likes her; she’s like an angel. She has an agent in France now, and she’ll be in a zombie horror film. I really wonder which role she will play: zombies don’t talk, but she’d also be the ideal victim: a woman who can’t scream!’

Release: 5 February

nightlife essentials WINTER WOOFERLAND Headlining this event of oldschool house and techno music are late 1980s/early ’90s UK rave pioneers 808 State, consisting of Graham Massey, Martin Price and Gerald Simpson (aka A Guy Called Gerald, known for his acidhouse hit ‘Voodoo Ray’). The trio’s influence on the UK and European electronic scene can hardly be overstated; dozens of producers grew up listening to anthems such as ‘Cubik’ and ‘Pacific State’, as well as the some of trippiest acid house ever made (check out their Newbuild album on Aphex Twins’ Rephlex Records). Other elderly folks on the bill are Jaydee (Plastic Dreams, R&S Records), Cellie (Mazzo), Jurriaan, Jack de Marseille, Gino and JP.

ENNIO MORRICONE You may actually connect his name to cinema more than musical performance and that’s because Morricone’s compositions have appeared in dozens of films, including For a Few Dollars More, The Untouchables and Kill Bill.

Even so, his unmistakable tracks have a huge following and a 75-piece orchestra will perform them on a grand scale for this ‘The 50 Years of Music’ tour.

Sunday 1 February Ziggo Dome De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

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THE AFGHAN WHIGS

Singer/guitarist Greg Dulli, whose bourbon-soaked voice has found a partner in grunge survivor Mark Lanegan in reSaturday 24 January cent years, is back as frontParadiso man of The Afghan Whigs.

Weteringschans 6-8  These New Orleans rockers www.paradiso.nl are associated with the ’90s alt-rock scene but despite HARDWELL their hefty guitar sound they This DJ was born and raised were always mirroring the in Breda in the south of the (darker) R&B and soul sounds Netherlands and had pretty of the ’60s. The group technimuch conquered Europe’s cally called it quits in 2001 dance music scene by the but reunited a couple of years age of 26. In fact, he nabbed ago to relive the good times. the #1 slot in DJ Magazine’s They then went and released annual ‘Top 100 DJs’ list in a new album last summer that 2013 and again in 2014. De- has received plenty of good spite these accomplishments, words. he’s only now getting around Tuesday 10 February to releasing his first studio al- Melkweg bum, United We Are. Expect Lijnbaansgracht 234A  www.melkweg.nl a variety of technical skills and styles from the maestro DAN DEACON live behind the decks.

Equally adept at composing Saturday 24 January Steve Reich-channelling conZiggo Dome temporary classical music as De Passage 100  www.ziggodome.nl multicoloured, spasmodic 8-bit symphonies, Deacon is something of a sonic comSEAN LOCK mander. The beats are crazy Sean Lock is an expert at em- and the tunes catchy, but he’s bracing his inner idiot on TV best known for upping the atpanel shows, but he’s also a mosphere by making the aumasterful stand-up comedidience do weird and wonderan, having spent years on the ful things – from taking over UK touring circuit. These their mobile phone screens to days, that work has translat- generating his own light show ed into huge theatre and are- to telling everyone to get out na shows in his homeland, and dance around the block making this opportunity to while he plays on to an empty catch him in an intimate thea- room. tre all the more special.

Thursday 19 February Sunday 25 January Boom Chicago Rozengracht 117 www.boomchicago.nl

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Tolhuistuin Tolhuisweg 5 www.tolhuistuin.nl



Craftsmanship for over 69 years Gassan Diamonds HQ | Nwe. Uilenburgerstraat 173 - 175 | 1011 LN Amsterdam Gassan Dam Square | Rokin 1-5 (Dam) | 1012 KK Amsterdam Gassan Schiphol | Dep. Lounges 1,2,3,4 & Arrivalhall 3 | Schiphol Airport

www.gassan.com

jan & feb 2015

PART III

EAT DRINK CHIC ’I COME FROM THE JORDAAN, BUT I’VE WORKED AT THE DAPPERMARKT FOR ALMOST 25 YEARS. I THINK IT’S THE LIVELIEST MARKET IN AMSTERDAM.’ AMSTERDAM. West-end boy Bertus Damen on the charms of the east-end Dappermarkt.

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NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH: OOSTERPARK & DAPPERBUURT COLUMN EATING OUT ON THE MENU PRETTY THINGS SCANDI-CHIC SHOPS WHAT’S IN STORE

BACK TO BLACK COFFEE Tucked discreetly on the corner of the Weteringstraat and the Lijnbaansgracht, Back to Black is a cosy coffee bar with the obligatory concept store attached (think: furniture, books, bags and jewellery plus gallery wall).

The coffee’s artisanal, the staff super friendly and with the late-afternoon sun streaming through the window, life doesn’t get much better. In spite of its proximity to the Leidseplein, Back to Black is the newest addition to one of our favourite micro-’hoods, with impeccable Brazilian barbecue restaurant La Cacerola (www.restaurantlacacerola.nl) and quainterthan-quaint old-man’s pub Café de Wetering – complete with roaring fire – on the same block. Which means you can come for morning coffee and stay for late-night drinks…

Weteringstraat 48 www.backtoblackcoffee.nl

STEK Wibautstraat is arguably Amsterdam’s ugliest street, but undoubtedly one of its trendiest. Recently opened Stek was an instant hit with lunching locals. The décor is an eclectic mix of industrial and vintage finds and the atmosphere easy-going. Stop by for eggy breakfasts, open-faced sourdough sandwiches and seasonal fruit crumbles or linger over wine and local hors d’oeuvres.

Wibautstraat 95-97 www.stek-amsterdam.com

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

Neighbourhood watch

neighbourhood watch

OOSTERPARK & DAPPERBUURT

YLVA (27) & KAIRA VAN WIJK (29) campaign manager Fashiolista Agency & editor L’OFFICIEL magazine

‘East is the best neighbourhood to live in.

We like the cultural mix of people, the wide streets and the Amstel just around the corner. More and more cosy coffee bars and fancy restaurants are opening up. Our favourites are De Ruyschkamer, Bar Bukowski – and of course we love the Jaap Eden IJsbaan for ice skating during the winter.’

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Amsterdam’s formerly working-class Oost has climbed from obscurity to become a much-loved destination where hip clubs and cooperative cafés contrast with Surinamese supermarkets. text Karin Engelbrecht photos Elisah Jacobs map Monique Wijbrands/SaltyStock

Look Oost

M

any visitors to Amsterdam never look further than the roughly eight square kilometres that comprise the medieval Centrum neighbourhood – and they’re missing out. Today, some of the best restaurants, the trendiest bars and hippest clubs can be found outside of the Canal Ring at the eastern edge of the city.

But Amsterdam Oost wasn’t always so hip.

The city’s eastern city expansion, which began in the last quarter of the 19th century, transformed the marshy countryside where Amsterdammers once went for their Sunday walks into what has become a densely populated and increasingly popular borough.

Fast forward a few decades, and the post-war malaise hit the neighbourhood hard. Many of the original inhabitants who survived the war moved away to commuter towns such as Almere and Purmerend to escape the economic decline and increasing impoverishment.

Cut to now, and things look very different. As so often happens with unloved parts of town, Oost owes its recent resurgence, in part, to artists and bohemians, attracted by

the abandoned newspaper buildings on Wibautstraat. Creative initiatives such as Baut , Canvas  and the dearly departed Club Trouw brought vital lifeblood to the area, and as businesses and local government pumped further investment into the area, and new home owners refurbished their 19th-century properties, so the gentrification continued.

SHOPPING & DINING DISTRICT One of the borough’s biggest cleanup projects transformed the neglected Oostergasfabriek (‘Eastern Gas Works’) into a new shopping area known as Oostpoort (Polderweg 92; www.beleefoostpoort.nl). It combines modern architecture with the site’s historic buildings, which were designed by the same architect as the better-known Westergasfabriek in the 1880s. The new development includes dozens of Dutch chain stores, an organic supermarket and various cafés and restaurants.

Another cluster of restaurants and bars, at the newly refurbished Beukenplein , has become a central dining destination in the buurt. You could say that this development is

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neighbourhood watch

PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

As so often happens with unloved parts of town, Oost owes its recent resurgence, in part, to artists and bohemians. emblematic of a paradigm shift in recent years, with locals now preferring to dine at quality establishments in their own neighbourhoods, avoiding the city centre crowds and premium prices.

One of the highlights in the neighbourhood is VandeMarkt (Weesperzijde 144-147; www.vandemarkt.nl) with its seasonal Med-led menu.

For casual get-togethers, Michel-Inn (Steve Bikoplein 12; www.michel-inn.nl) offers pizza and pintxos and Pica Pica (Camperstraat 4850; www.restaurantpicapica.nl) serves some of the best tapas in town. Stop by STEK (Wibautstraat 95; www.stek-amsterdam.com) for eggy breakfasts, Beter & Leuk (Eerste Oosterparkstraat 91; http://beterenleuk.nl) for vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free food (don’t miss their outstanding carrot cake!) and the brand new Sla (Middenweg 55; http://ilovesla.com) for healthy DIY salads. Admire the masterful mix of modern and art-deco features at De Ysbreeker (Weesperzijde 23; www.deysbreeker.nl), a storied café-restaurant with outstanding bar snacks, stop by laid-back Berlin-style bar Ruyschkamer (Ruyschstraat 34H; www.deruyschkamer.nl) or head to Hesp (Weesperzijde 130-131; www.cafehesp.nl), one of the city’s most characteristic brown cafés, which offers 20 beers on tap and over 50 bottled brews.

RIJSEL

Marcusstraat 52 www.rijsel.com



OOSTERPARK EXPANSION Renovations have begun to double the size of the Oosterpark, the green heart of the Oosterparkbuurt, which was originally laid out in the English garden style by Dutch landscape architect Leonard Anthonij Springer in 1891.

A few blocks east of Oosterpark is the Dappermarkt. Named for Olfert Dapper (1635-1689), a Dutch physician, writer, humanist and champion for a multicultural society, it’s one of

© JANUS VAN DER EIJNDEN

Housed in one of the former domestic science schools often credited with ruining the international reputation of Dutch cuisine, Rijsel, with its delectable French-Flemish menu (think duck sausage with smoked duck slices, green beans and roasted hazelnuts) is effecting a culinary resurgence like a phoenix from the flames. With a sustainable ‘head-to-toe’ approach, an emphasis on the finest quality ingredients and simple, rotisserie-style cooking, this is every meatloving foodie’s dream.

>

© MARIE-CHARLOTTE PEZÉ

CANVAS OP DE 7E Canvas was the first of Wibautstraat’s trendy artists’ cooperatives. Situated at the top of the Volkshotel in a former newspaper printing press, Canvas has the advantage that at seven floors up, from the terrace you can’t see what many call Amsterdam’s ugliest street, with architecture reminiscent of the Eastern bloc. The easy vibe, along with a diverse line-up of film and club events, means that Canvas is still making news.

Wibautstraat 150 www.canvas7.nl

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 

 

 







BAUT

HARTOG’S VOLKOREN

Situated in a soon-to-be demolished former office, this temporary restaurant and bar (open until 31 March) marries experimental art, club nights and fine-yet-affordable food created by chef Michiel van der Eerde, who honed his skills at famous Michelinstarred establishments. The 14-dish menu consists of classic French, Italian, Dutch and Asian dishes, such as tournedos Rossini (€16.50) and mushroom risotto (€14.50).

What started as a small family bakery in 1896 with a production capacity of 12 breads has become a prize-winning artisan bakery, which mills its own flour and uses no additives or preservatives. Join the queue, which often snakes around the corner on to Wibautstraat, to sample the bakery’s dense whole-wheat bread and Dutch baked goods, such as speculaas cookies (gingerbread) and oliebollen, a kind of doughnut.



Wibautstraat 125 http://bautamsterdam.nl

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Ruyschstraat 68 www.volkorenbrood.nl

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

Canvas was the first of Wibautstraat’s trendy trifecta of artists’ cooperatives, catalysing the regeneration of Oost.

GOED VAN TOEN It’s always reassuring to find a shop selling hip kids’ togs manufactured using transparent processes. Owner and Oost resident Calidris Poorter sells colourful brands such as Duns, Lily-Balou and Dis Une Couleur. Eco-savvy adults should head to nearby Mhoom (Wibautstraat 20) for green fashion from Alchemist, and Les Racines du Ciel.

JAAP EDENBAAN

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Ruyschstraat 90 www.goedvantoen.nl

BAR BUKOWSKI ‘There’s always a reason to drink,’ said the writer Charles Bukowski, and at this eponymous park-facing bar with its cool mid-century interior, we’re only too happy to oblige. Drown your sorrows in darkly sweet local Brouwerij ’t IJ Struis beer (9%, NL) or the bitter blonde Hopus (8.5%, BE) or head to next door Henry’s Cocktail Bar for something even stronger.



Oosterpark 10 www.barbukowski.nl

BEUKENPLEIN When pioneer Erik Heinen opened Erik’s Delicatessen (Beukenplein 16; www.eriksdelicatessen.nl) in 1992, he was hopeful about the future of Oost’s most centrally located square. Since then, he’s built a reputation for excellence, seen a complete overhaul of the plein and gained many notable new neighbours. Popular Café Maxwell (no.

27; www.maxwellcafe.nl) opened in 2008, followed in 2010 by Bidou (no. 21; www.restaurantbidou. com), which serves terrific thincrusted wood-oven pizzas. A year later, Coffee Bru (pictured; Beukenplein 14H; www.coffeebru.nl), a must-visit for coffee aficionados, opened. Recent arrivals include Bar Brouw Oost (no. 17; barbrouw.nl) and Smokin Barrels (no. 22; www. smokinbarrels.nl), serving craft beer and smoked barbecue. 

Named for professional skater and cyclist Jaap Eden (18731925), Amsterdam’s largest and best-known ice-skating centre has an outdoor 400-metre rink (open October to March), an indoor rink and a beginners’ corner. It’s also home to the Amstel Tijgers professional ice hockey team, but the Saturday evening disco skating is the real draw.

Radioweg 64 www.jaapeden.nl

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> BERTUS DAMEN (66) works at the Dappermarkt

‘I come from the Jordaan, but I’ve worked at the Dappermarkt for almost 25 years. I think it’s the liveliest market in Amsterdam! I usually grab a sandwich at Boer Geert, one of my market neighbours, for lunch.’

HANNEKE PEETERS (33) owner Beter & Leuk

‘This is the best place to be. East has a variety of creative people. I opened up five years ago after discovering this concept of tea, lunch and fashion in Argentina. We’re opening up a take-away shop for tea, soup and hot meals next door. My favourite place in this neighbourhood is Marits Huiskamer, where you can dine in Marits’ real living room.’

Amsterdam’s oldest and liveliest outdoor street markets, with some 250 stalls selling everything from tulips and textiles to fish and fresh fruit. It’s the place to search for bargains and hard-to-find ingredients for your most exotic recipes (Dapperstraat 279; www.dappermarkt.nl).

A little further south, Frankendael Park, dating from the 17th century, is Amsterdam’s last manorial estate (Middenweg 72; www. park-frankendael.nl). Today, rose-ringed parakeets swoop from tall trees in the period- and landscape gardens, and families amble around the park’s pretty pathways. Join the free historic tour of Frankendael Manor House (12.00, Sundays) and enjoy the juxtaposition of 18th-century rooms and modern art. Afterwards, dine at slow food-specialist Merkelbach, in a former coach house, or fashionable farm-to-table De Kas, in a converted greenhouse (Kamerlingh Onneslaan 3, www.restaurantdekas.nl).

For a taster of all Oost has to offer, head to 24H Oost on 14 & 15 February, which showcases the best of the buurt in a 24-hour period.

Theatres, museums, churches, shops and bars throw open their doors for unique events. See www.iamsterdam.com.

TROPENMUSEUM In the shade of Oosterpark, a beautiful brick building from the 1920s houses the Tropenmuseum (‘Museum of the Tropics’), a leading ethnographic museum with a permanent collection focused on Dutch colonial history and thought-provoking temporary exhibitions on non-Western cultures around the world. Don’t miss Javanese artist Jompet Kuswidananto’s Grand Parade theatrical installation currently on show in the lovely Lichthal (‘light hall’). The museum is also known for its child-friendly exhibitions, such as MixMax Brazil, a fun exploration of Brazilian culture.

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Linnaeusstraat 2 http://tropenmuseum.nl

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PART III

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EAT, DRINK & CHIC

When in Amsterdam…

After 18 years here, native New Yorker Lauren Comiteau is still working out how to ‘go Dutch’.

BLUE MONDAY?

L Lauren Comiteau is a journalist and writer who has been covering the Netherlands for TIME magazine, CBS Radio and others since 1996. She lives in Amsterdam with her two daughters.

egend has it, or at least a few good publicists, that the third Monday in January is the most depressing day of the year. It’s when we take to the Cherry Garcia or light up those broken cigarettes in sad resignation that our New Year’s resolutions have come, once again, to naught.

Dutch writer Arnon Grunberg, whose awardwinning novel Blue Mondays lends him some authority on the matter, has said that a blue Monday is indeed a day when you can’t finish what you’ve started.

There have been different Amsterdam initiatives over the years to combat these alleged January doldrums: the ‘world’s biggest laughing meditation’, led by a certified laughter coach and benefiting the NGO Operation Smile, which facilitates reconstructive surgery for kids with cleft lips or palates around the world, rocked club Paradiso a few years ago.

Singing urbanites on the Kattenslootbrug, meanwhile, serenaded commuters through one dark, dreary (and presumably wet) January morning in 2013. This year, Blue Monday is said to fall on 19 January.

But just because the holiday lights have gone the same way as your resolutions, waistline and bank account doesn’t mean you have to bury your head under the duvet until the first tulip bulbs rear their heads. Here are some local activities that help turn the winter blues into a winter wonderland.

Nothing chases away the blues like a healthy dose of blues. Head to the world-renowned hole-in-the-wall blues bar Maloe Melo (www.

maloemelo.com), where you can lose yourself in live acts all night long (and until 3am on Mondays).

Named not for its mood but for its colour, the modernist ’t Blauwe Theehuis, or Blue Teahouse, is a national monument-cumcafé in the centre of the Vondelpark (www. blauwetheehuis.nl). A steaming hot chocolate and slice of Dutch apple pie will keep you warm even if braving its tremendous outdoor terrace.

Keep an eye out for the park’s resident Day-Glo green parakeets for a portent of spring.

Book a Balcony Arrangement at the Tuschinski Theater (www.pathe.nl/bioscoop/tuschinski).

As if it’s not enough to watch a movie in the splendour of this ode to art deco and nouveau, there’s nothing like a little bubbly and, erm, nachos to up the old-world glamour. Delivered direct to your loge, of course.

Make like the Dutch and take to the ice – if not on the city’s canals, then behind the Rijksmuseum. Nothing says ‘Amsterdam’ more than gliding by a 19th-century landmark on blades (www.iceamsterdam.nl).

Or make a commuter’s day in Amsterdam’s Central Station by playing a tune on the baby grand, courtesy of local piano shop Bol. Or watch some other Gershwin-in-training try their hand, or two.

The country’s trademark flower gets its due on National Tulip Day, when you can pick your own from the tens of thousands temporarily planted in Dam square. Falling on 17 January, your bloom will be alive and well come Blue Monday…

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

EATING OUT

Our top dining options, from firm favourites to precocious newcomers.

text Karin Engelbrecht

FOODHALLEN

T

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Bellamyplein 51 http://foodhallen.nl

NEW

>

here’s no doubt that this cavernous new food hall was Amsterdam’s most hotly anticipated opening of recent years. Inspired by the famous indoor food markets in Copenhagen, London and Madrid, with food stalls lining the outside of the hall, De Hallen is located in the refurbished belly of what was once a tram depot in West. A wealth of original architectural features – concrete floors with exposed tram rails, raw brickwork walls, arched olive doors and soaring glass ceilings – remind of the building’s original function. In the centrally located food court, neighbourhood locals of every age and persuasion sit around tiny tables with young families, hipsters, older epicures and guests from the next-door De Hallen hotel. With 20 quality food stands to choose from, some indecision will surely be on the menu. Our advice? Start with a glass of wine from the bar with truffle bitterballen from De Ballenbar, which specialises in this popular local bar snack. We also recommend The Rough Kitchen’s popular ‘hot pigs’ platter, Shirkhan’s Indian tandoori lamb wraps, Viêt View’s healthy rice-paper rolls and Petit Gâteau’s yuzu meringue tarts – and a bigger belt.

eating out

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 

39 trendy OOLONG KITCHEN East meets West in this chic dim sum restaurant, which combines pink and aqua chinoiserie with factory lighting.

Fashionable diners can be found sipping cocktails such as the Jalaja, with sake, elderflower liqueur, tart grapefruit and Himalaya salt, and the Old Square, a potent whisky-based mélange. There are plenty of small plates to share, from crowdpleasers such as deep-fried prawn dumplings and scallop dim sum to vegetarian dumplings. Save a little room for the chicken and shiitake dim sum and the steamed oysters with black bean sauce.

Ferdinand Bolstraat 13-15 http://oolong.kitchen

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critic’s choice ELKAAR

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Alexanderplein 6 www.etenbijelkaar.nl

classic CAFÉ MODERN

quick & simple IL PASTIFICIO The pastaio (artisan pasta maker) at this little de Pijp ‘pasta factory’ comes from Gragnano, a city with a 500-year history of pasta making. Pick up authentic – and surprisingly affordable – day-fresh pastas, such as hand-rolled orecchiette or ravioli with pear and caprino cheese to cook at home, or packs of dried pasta for your store cupboard.

Eerste Sweelinckstraat 18 www.ilpastificio.nl

© MARIE-CHARLOTTE PEZÉ

I

n 1811 Napoleon rode victoriously through Amsterdam’s neoclassical Muiderpoort city gate with his entourage, and promptly demanded refreshments. Perhaps he should’ve headed to Restaurant Elkaar, where he could’ve sampled local flavours by way of slow-cooked pork bitterbal with curried mayonnaise and cream of mustard soup served with a warm, rustic little loaf. He might’ve chosen a three-course Bib Gourmand menu, with a starter of crisp pork belly with delicate scallops, lobster foam and roast pumpkin purée, followed by tender venison fillet with braised and pickled red cabbage, potato purée, French beans and breaded salsify with an earthy morel sauce. And, he could’ve wolfed down the molten chocolate cakes with amarena cherry mousse and dense pistachio ice cream. This petite Plantagebuurt restaurant is not only the ideal setting for visiting royalty, however; it’s perfect for date nights, with its attentive service and classic, candle-lit tables set far enough apart for whispered conversations about sweet nothings… or world domination. Ask for the upstairs window seat, which has a view of that storied city gate.

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Confusingly, Café Modern is not a café, but a casual fine-dining restaurant with an upstairs hotel, by the same people behind that other northern hit Hotel de Goudfazant (a restaurant which isn’t a hotel). With its pale mustard palette, baby’s breath bouquets and Fifties’ Formica, the décor may be more retro than modern, but the location in a former bank situated in a still-gritty part of Van der Pekbuurt is pioneering and the food is very much of the moment. The four-course set menu (€40) changes weekly, but one thing remains: bearded chef Sander van Melick’s unexpectedly delightful combinations, such as lobster and pork belly or guinea fowl with beet.

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Meidoornweg 2 www.modernamsterdam.nl

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

ON THE MENU

Three of a kind to suit every taste. text Karin Engelbrecht

child-friendly cafés

comfort -food classics

flame-grilled prime rib

NEL

CAFÉ PAPENEILAND

CAFÉ REURING

Situated on Amsterdam’s prettiest and leafiest square, Café Nel is where the bakfiets brigade comes for rosé and croquettes in the afternoon, while their little ones live it up in the adjacent playground. If you can find someone to babysit, check out their live jazz nights on Mondays.

This old-style Dutch brown café has been run by the same family for almost 400 years. Its name, ‘Papists’ Island’, dates back to the Reformation, when Catholics used a secret tunnel to visit a clandestine church across the canal. Today, divine comfort comes by way of traditional Dutch apple pies – some of the city’s best.

This cosy corner café expertly combines a lively pub atmosphere with a level of cooking you’d expect from a member of EuroToques, the network of artisanal restaurants that aims to preserve European culinary traditions with carefully sourced and naturally produced foods.

Amstelveld 12 http://nelamstelveld.nl

STADSCAFÉ VAN MECHELEN This Belgian-inspired eetcafé attracts all sorts – from young families to older locals – thanks to its informal, inclusive vibe and hip post-industrial décor.

Van Mechelen is owned by the people behind Belgian beer pub De Zotte, which shows in the beer list: eight on tap, 15 bottled and a seasonal assortment.

Prinsengracht 2 www.papeneiland.nl

Albert Lutmastraat 99 www.cafereuring.nl

UNITED PANCAKES

CANNIBALE ROYALE

This diminutive pancake house is a world away from the centre’s tourist traps.

With exposed brick walls, composite wood tables and industrial lighting, the vibe is more hipster than happy families, but the menu generally attracts a few of those too. We recommend the spelt pancake with crispy bacon, melted cheese and Dutch apple syrup (€7.50).

Urban cavemen cluster over hefty slabs of steak at this meat-lover’s Mecca, which scores masculinity points with its gallows humour and quirky interior. We recommend the ‘L’exceptionnel’, 600 grams of rubicund rib roast, and sticky and tender ‘Cannibale’s favourite ribs’.

Late-night diners take note: the kitchen’s open until 03.00 on weekends.

Sloterkade 96-97 www.stadscafevanmechelen.nl

Eerste van der Helststraat 57 www.united-pancakes.nl

FLINDERS CAFÉ

DE BAKKERSWINKEL

In this child-proof caféslash-design store there’s Prosecco and WiFi for you and a play corner for junior.

Facilities include Stokke baby chairs, a changing table with free nappies, a microwave for baby bottles and a children’s menu with house-made organic baby food. All furniture – by Moooi, Vitra, Ferm Living and Hay – is for sale.

With its easy-going deçor, family-style seating and reliably delicious croissants, quiches, scones and cakes, De Bakkerswinkel (‘the bakers’ shop’), which is situated in the old regulator’s house of Amsterdam’s former Western Gas Works (Westergasfabriek), is always rammed with young families, gossiping girlfriends and creatives tapping their touchscreens.

Frederik Hendrikplantsoen 36 http://flinderscafe.nl/ amsterdam

Polonceaukade 1 www.debakkerswinkel.nl

Handboogstraat 17A www.cannibaleroyale.nl

BAR-BECUE CASTELL Never mind the silly eat-onyour-lap formula or the retro fruit garnishes and pre-fab sauces. You’ve bothered to enter Castell for some of the most standout steaks and raciest ribs in town. Ask for the offmenu 21-day dry-aged Black Angus prime rib and insist on butter with your baked potato instead of that cloying ‘knoflooksaus’.

Lijnbaansgracht 252-254 www.castellamsterdam.nl

on the menu

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CHICKEN TONIGHT

Rotisserie chicken trend takes flight in Amsterdam.

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hile restaurants such as Hotel de Goudfazant and Rijsel Rotisserie (see page 32) plus beer bars like Biertuin have been doing excellent renditions of rotisserie chicken for a while now, the concept only really took off in Amsterdam when two restaurants offering spit-roasted chicken recently opened on the same street in West. At Rotisserie Amsterdam, crisp-skinned rotisserie chicken is the signature dish (€7.50 for a half chicken), but barbecued ribs and some of the city’s best burgers are on offer, too. The vanilla of proteins gets a makeover at hipster magnet Van ’t Spit, which elevates its humanely reared 100% Dutch birds (€10 for a half chicken) with house-made piri piri and apple

sauce, organic fries and coleslaw. The ubiquitous backdrop of raw brick and plenty of wood is evident at both new establishments. It’s all very Williamsburg – which is appropriate, considering that the recent resurgence in gourmet chicken restaurants almost certainly started in the USA. HOTEL DE GOUDFAZANT Aambeeldstraat 10H www.hoteldegoudfazant.nl BIERTUIN Linnaeusstraat 29 | www.debiertuin.nl VAN ’T SPIT De Clercqstraat 95 | http://vantspit.nl ROTISSERIE AMSTERDAM De Clercqstraat 81 http://rotisserieamsterdam.nl

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

pretty things

PRETTY THINGS Purses at the ready: these tempting stores will have you reaching for your credit card. text Elisah Jacobs

HILFIGER DENIM STORE

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NEW IN TOWN

From the ultimate East Coast prep uniform to hip hop’s label of choice in the ’90s, the Tommy Hilfiger brand has been many things to many people. These days, the classic collection represents affordable, quality classics – but it’s the edgier, cooler Hilfiger Denim line that’s got us excited.

It’s often said that denim is in the Dutch DNA. As the aptly named Jason Denham of the eponymous jeans label puts it: ‘Amsterdam is the personification of everything jeans represent: slightly rebellious, adventurous,

opinionated, never afraid to make a statement and always uniquely individual.’ Which could just as easily apply to the new Hilfiger Denim Store on Amsterdam’s main shopping thoroughfare.

Like an old factory converted into an industrial New York loft, the store features industrial elements like raw wood, concrete, high windows, polished steel and a tin ceiling in a nod to the Victorian North American architectural trend popular during denim’s inception. At the Hilfiger denim bar (no cocktails, sadly – although you can score a coffee)

you’ll find the latest denim trends. Elsewhere in the store, shop the complete Hilfiger Denim collection for men and women, including bags, leather accessories, shoes and watches.

You’ll even find perfume, underwear and the typical ‘huispakken’ (comfy lounge wear). Don’t want to wander around downtown Amsterdam toting your purchases? Then order your new outfit online via the in-store iPads and get it delivered straight to your door.

We love this place already...

Kalverstraat 117 eu.tommy.com

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43 green

HET FAIRE OOSTEN

friends, coffee & design KOKO COFFEE & DESIGN Coffee & fashion; coffee & art; coffee and design: the possibilities for caffeinated combos seem endless – and show no sign of going away. Head to the Red Light District for one of Amsterdam’s nicest iterations, courtesy of Koko Coffee & Design. Inspired by the lively coffee culture in Australia and New Zeeland, close friends Caroline and Karlijn opened up shop back in 2012. Grab a coffee to go or buy beans to brew at home. We like to take our time sitting at the cosy second-hand furniture, then peruse the racks afterwards shopping for Hope’s minimalistic dresses and Wood Wood’s printed hoodies for her, and Stutterheim Raincoats and Libertine Libertine’s basic sweaters for him. programme.

Oudezijds Achterburgwal 145 www.ilovekoko.com

This fun place in the east of Amsterdam is a shop, gallery and workshop space in one where sustainability is key. You can shop for furniture, fashion, bags, beauty products, ceramics, cookbooks and fair-trade chocolate, and also get to know more about the designers behind products. See Het Faire Oosten (translated: The Fair East) as a platform for creative talent.

More than 50 designers sell their work here, so there’s plenty to choose from. What about a piece of affordable art? Or sign up for a yoga or martial-arts class – or stop by for a wine tasting.

Cheers to that.

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Waldenlaan 208 www.hetfaireoosten.nl

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lifestyle ZENS When you need a moment to find your centre, enter this shrine-like temple to Chinese design, ZENS’ first European store. Specialising in beautiful Asian crockery and glassware (think tea sets, bowls, jugs), the designs are minimalist and pure but luxurious. The interior, meanwhile, is the perfect fusion of East meets West, with the angularity of the soft blue rods that encase the walls and ceiling softened by mellow colours and calming lighting. Find your Zen – and the perfect teacup at the same time.

Oudezijds Voorburgwal 306 www.zenslifestyle.com

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© RONALD TILLEMAN

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

Shopping: the Scandinavian way

scandinavian shopping

One after another, Scandinavian shops are opening up across Amsterdam. Nordic fashion and furniture have never been so chic. text Inger van der Ree translation Sharon Wezeman

HAY Chic furniture and home accessories, with splashes of bright colour (pictured).

Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 326 www.hay.dk

A PIECE OF FINLAND Coffee bar and design store, selling home accessories, fashion and jewellery.

Haarlemmerdijk 66 www.apieceoffinland.nl

HOPE Scandi-chic fashion for men and women.

Hartenstraat 26 www.hope-sthlm.com

NORDIC NEW Furniture and interior design.

Rozengracht 196 www.nordicnew.nl

FLYING TIGER Eclectic furniture, lighting and home accessories.

Rembrandtplein 2 www.flying-tiger.nl

SCANDINAVIAN EMBASSY Coffee and food meet Scandinavian fashion.

Sarphatipark 34 www.scandinavianembassy.nl

RUM AMSTERDAM Nordic womenswear by Day Birger et Mikkelsen, Hunkydory, Dante6 and more.

HAY

Huidenstraat 11 www.rum-amsterdam.nl

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wo Finnish women are standing behind a small bar, while a painted reindeer on the wall behind them looks on. People are drinking cups of tea – with honey squeezed from a green, toothpaste-like tube – as they browse Finnish books, laced rain boots and handmade fur bags. Anna Kelhu and Ramona Korhonen-Breukel have brought Finland to the Haarlemmerdijk with their store A Piece of Finland. ‘Many Finnish people living in Amsterdam miss Finnish food – like Kornelia cake, made from rye, rice, egg and butter,’ says Anna Kelhu from behind the wooden bar. ‘We wanted to provide this for Finns, of course, but for Dutch people as well.’ In addition to food, A Piece of Finland also sells Finnish clothing and design. During the past six months, the shop’s clientele has expanded to include Dutch locals and tourists, as well as homesick Finns.

UNBREAKABLE A Piece of Finland is far from Amsterdam’s only Nordic store. Scandinavian clothing and furniture shops are popping up like mushrooms.

And we’re not talking about mega chains like Ikea and H&M. To give you an idea: last year Hope, RUM Amsterdam and the Scandinavian Embassy all opened in Amsterdam. ‘Scandinavians are known for their great taste and their practical, timeless and stylish products,’ says Jo Watson, coordinator of the Fashion Branding course at the

Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI). ‘The economic crisis made consumers think more critically about the way they spend their money. Scandinavian products are more expensive, but very durable and therefore a good investment.’

The owners of A Piece of Finland agree: ‘Yesterday a little boy ran through the store. He accidentally nudged a wine glass and it bounced several times on the floor without breaking! I knew Iittala’s products were very strong, but this strong?’ says Anna Kelhu, laughing.

SELF-EMPLOYED ERA Ruud Duijf owns Nordic New, the oldest Scandinavian furniture shop in Amsterdam. He’s seen a change in the buying behaviour of Dutch customers in recent years. ‘Many people realise that after their “cheap” closet is broken, it really is time for one that will last at least 20 years.

Finnish brand Artek will buy back your closet – after as many as ten years – for almost the same price you bought it for.’ Annet van Lenning, store manager of Danish furniture shop Hay, confirms that many customers choose Scandinavian furniture because they’re fed up with overpriced design. ‘Scandinavian furniture is also more comfortable and practical. In an era when many self-employed people use their living room as a workplace, that’s important. Scandinavian fashion is pragmatic and also very tasteful. What more can I say?’

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what’s in store

WHAT’S IN STORE Fashion-forward style – for him (M) and her (F).

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text Elisah Jacobs

DE MERKENWINKEL (M/F)

BRUUNS BAZAAR (M/F)

In this inspiring place in the lively Pijp neighbourhood you’ll find frequent fashion and lifestyle pop-up shops and galleries. Keep an eye on their Facebook page for the latest temporary resident, and don’t forget to check out their fancy neighbours (ANNA + NINA, Miuse, Felice, Charlie & Mary and Blond Amsterdam), which makes this one of our favourite streets in the Pijp.

The Danish fashion brand established by brothers Teis and Bjørn Bruun features well cut and understated classics with a sexy twist. The latest collection includes modern daywear with sporty elements for him and her. Bruuns Bazaar also has a younger line for women, BZR. You can shop the Bruuns Bazaar collection at Dutch department store de Bijenkorf.

KLEIN BERLIJN (M/F)

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Dam 1 shop.bruunsbazaar.dk © IRIS OOMS

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Gerard Doustraat 76 www.demerkenwinkel.nl

GEITENWOLLENWINKEL (M/F) There’s a Dutch saying for a sustainable lifestyle: ‘geitenwollensokken’ (translated: socks made of goat’s wool). Not a particularly euphonic word, but the new geitenwollensokken store is very nice indeed. All about sustainable fashion with a modern touch, find eco-fabulous fashion made of organic cotton and stylish accessories by brands including Mad Rabbit Kicking Tiger and Oat Shoes, plus beautiful art from Skulljan Art.

Bringing a little of Berlin’s casual cool to Amsterdam, Klein Berlijn vintage shop in the west of Amsterdam is chock full of eclectic goodies, from jewellery, fashion and shoes to furniture and artwork curated by collector-at-large Aya. Good news: Klein Berlijn recently opened a second store in the east of Amsterdam.

Admiraal de Ruijterweg 9 Middenweg 36 http://kleinberlijn.com

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Utrechtsestraat 37 www.geitenwollenshirts.nl

CITIZENS OF HUMANITY (M/F)

UGG (M/F)

Founded in 2003 by 25-year veteran of the denim industry Jerome Dahan, Citizens of Humanity’s jeans have plenty of (celebrity) fans because they fit like a second skin. From skinny, straight and flared to boot-cut and boyfriend, choose from vintage-styled jeans, printed fabrics or classic washes for him and her. You’ll also find tops, jackets and shirts. Find this brand at Angel Basics.

Years after the global UGG hype the brand’s still up and running today, having diversified with loungewear, bags and even a home deçor collection including rugs, pillows, blankets and pouffes. For next season (SS15) the collection is all about colours. You can find the UGG collection at Cosmic Cowboys.

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PC Hooftstraat 47 www.uggaustralia.nl

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Utrechtsestraat 132 http://citizensofhumanity.com

& OTHER STORIES (F) Move over, Victoria’s Secret! LoveStories is a tempting Dutch lingerie brand founded by fashion and interiors stylist Marloes Hoedeman. All about mix-and-match, the collection features cute bras, tights, shorts and body suits, as well as ‘underwear as outerwear’ (think fancy printed PJs made of heavenly silk, because even when we sleep we like to be fashionable…).

Herengracht 296 http://lovestoriesintimates.com

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© FLOOR KNAPPEN

LOVESTORIES (F)

For those too old for the rapid-cycling trends of H&M but not quite ready for the architectural magnificence of sister brand COS, the Swedish high-street giant introduces & Other Stories. The designers’ pedigree includes Acne and Sonia Rykiel, and the collection includes shoes and bags, beauty products and make-up. It’s fashion savvy without being slavishly trendy, and the accessories especially look way more expensive than their moderate, mid-range price tags would suggest.

Heiligeweg 26-28 www.stories.com

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January -February — Language no problem — For complete overview: operaballet.nl

Dutch National Opera

Dutch National Ballet

Gioachino Rossini — Sparkeling voices

By the 20th century’s most important choreographer: George Balanchine — 12 - 26 February 2015

IL VIAGGIO A REIMS 20 January - 8 February 2015

JEWELS

PART IV

THE

jan & feb 2015

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FESTIVALS/MUSIC/ CLUBBING/EXHIBITIONS/ STAGE/FAMILY/SPORTS/ GAY & LESBIAN

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SEYDOU KEÏTA, UNTITLED, 1958-1959

For complete listings, see www.iamsterdam.com

LOOK AT ME Harmless form of self-expression or symptom of Western society’s narcissism, the ‘selfie’ – smartphone self-portrait, often shared via social media – proliferation shows no sign of abating. While Neil Armstrong went to the moon and took a total of just five snaps of himself, reality TV starlet Kim Kardashian (famous for a leaked sex tape and being married to Kanye ‘Yeezus’ West) is publishing a whole book of ’em. But it turns out – technology aside – that this is not a particularly new phenomenon. The Tropenmuseum (Museum of the Tropics) has delved into its photo archive and presents 19th-century portraits from colonial Indonesia, plus photos from West Africa in the ’50s and ’60s, that look remarkably like historical selfies.

Until 15 March Linnaeusstraat 2 http://tropenmuseum.nl

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PART IV THE A-LIST

FESTIVALS & EVENTS FESTIVALS & EVENTS SONIC SOIREE Sonic Soiree is a smaller, more intimate version of Sonic Connections, the festival for up-andcoming Belgian & Dutch pop and rock bands. Head along every first Thursday of the month (and sometimes on other days) for a dose of the latest musical stars.

Dedicated to programming bands guaranteed to make music lovers’ hearts beat a little faster, Sonic Soiree is a great chance to check out new alternative pop and rock bands from the Netherlands and Flanders.

Thur 8 & Sat 24 Jan, Brakke Grond, Nes 45, www. brakkegrond.nl. Various times, €12 REALISME This annual art fair welcomes a huge range of renowned galleries from the Netherlands and abroad as they present (and sell) works

by Dutch and international artists working in various mediums within the figurative and realistic genres. See page 21.

Thur 15-Sun 18 Jan, Passenger Terminal Amsterdam, Piet Heinkade 27, www.realismeam sterdam.com. 11.00-19.00, €12.50 WHISKY WEEKEND AMSTERDAM Peaty, oaky, creamy, smoky – those are just a few words to describe whisky like a pro at the sixth edition of this event. Tickets include a welcome whisky with souvenir glass and a bottle of water. Take a break from nosings and tastings (expect a small surcharge for the more exclusive whiskies) to light up a cigar in the basement, sample whisky-friendly cheeses and other Scottish products or simply take in the traditional music.

Fri 16 & Sat 17 Jan, Posthoornkerk, Haarlemmerstraat 124-126, www.whiskyamsterdam.nl.

Various times, €37.50 MERCEDES-BENZ AMSTERDAM FASHION WEEK Held twice each year, this international fashion event brings together the cream of the international scene while also reaching out to the general public with its Downtown programming. The international event always does its utmost to involve Amsterdam residents and visitors, organising unique events at some of the city’s leading cultural locations. See page 23.

Fri 16-Mon 26 Jan, various locations, www.fashionweek.nl/en.

Various times, free

Choice festivals

FLAMENCO BIËNNALE Celebrating its fifth edition, the Flamenco Biënnale brings the vanguard of contemporary flamenco to the Netherlands. This renowned festival showcases the rich flamenco tradition, interspersed with modern dance performances and intimate song recitals at various locations across the city. In sparkling rhythms and passionate song and dance, a new crop of flamenco makers explore the boundaries of the ancient flamenco art and unite tradition and experimentation in extraordinary concerts and performances.

Thur 22 Jan-Tue 3 Feb, various locations, www.flamenco biennale.nl/en. Various times & prices

AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL The Amsterdam Light Festival literally puts the beautiful city centre and its canals in the limelight. Centred on the theme of ‘A Bright City’, the third edition of the event features a canal cruise (aka Water Colors) and walking route (aka the Illuminade) taking in this year’s selection of spectacular illuminated artworks. Until Sun 18 Jan, various locations, www. amsterdamlightfestival.com.

Various times & prices

HELEMAAL MELKWEG This recurring event does exactly as the name (literally: Complete Melkweg) suggests, throwing open the whole of this former dairy factory for an evening of music, performance, exhibition and cinema action.

Special guests at this edition include jazz outfit the New Cool Collective, Nederhop pioneer Def P and Bosnian group Dubioza Kollektiv.

Sat 28 Feb, Melkweg, Lijnbaansgracht 234a, www. melkweg.nl/en. 19.00, €10

HELEMAAL MELKWEG es in excess of 120 stands offering JUNIOR a huge selection of LPs, CDs and DVDs alongside an impressive The successful ‘Complete collection of pop merchandise.

Melkweg’ formula gets its own Sat 24 Jan, Amsterdam RAI, Eukids’ edition! This new junior ropaplein, www.rai.nl. 10.00, €7 version of the event features an afternoon packed with music IMPRO AMSTERDAM performances, magical theatre NATIONAL TULIP DAY Featuring world-class improv shows and hilarious films for It’s as synonymous with the Neth- festivalgoers aged four and over. actors from all over the globe, this international improvisation theaerlands as windmills and cheese, Highlights include the Dutch but while the tulip remains one of Soul Sista’s, who’ll be hitting the tre festival celebrates its 20th edition this year. Alongside the main Amsterdam’s most notable icons, stage with their best creative few visitors get to experience the moves, percussion group 4Beat performances, there are late-night shows, workshops, improv talks, flower this early in the year. But and a special junior edition of National Tulip Day should bring Encore, rounding the day off with an open stage and an after-party to top it all off. This year, the festisome much-needed colour to top R&B and hip-hop tunes. a cold January weekend, with Sun 18 Jan, Melkweg, Lijnbaans- val welcomes guests from the US, visitors invited to a huge tempo- gracht 234a, www.melkweg.nl/en. UK, Norway, the Philippines and the Netherlands. rary tulip garden on Dam square 19.00, €5 Mon 26-Sat 31 Jan, Compagniewhere they can pick their own RECORD & CD FAIR theater, Kloveniersburgwal 50, blooms. See page 19. www.impro-amsterdam.nl.

Sat 17 Jan, Dam square. Time to Calling all vinyl (well, and plastic) Various times & prices be announced, free lovers! This annual event promis-

GRAUZONE Dessner (of The National fame) and acclaimed New York-based The multidisciplinary festival violist Nadia Sirota. See page 20. returns to take over the entire Wed 11 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan Melkweg with two evenings of the best in new-wave music, art ’t IJ, Piet Heinkade 1, www.crosslinx.nl. Various times & prices and film. Grauzone links the heyday of the 1980s new-wave POP ARTS FESTIVAL movement with artists currently Contrary to what you may breathing new life into the genre. expect, the annual Pop Arts And it’s a genre with plenty to Festival presents the latest offer, spanning a large musical developments in the world of spectrum offering everything from synth-pop, electro and cold/ international puppet and object theatre, dance, mime and visual darkwave to post-punk, death/ artistry. Entering its sixth year goth rock and more. Headliners in 2015, the festival hits town at this edition include The Fall, for three days of action spread Trust, DAF, Mick Harvey and over the three festival locations Clan of Xymox. See page 21.

(Theater Bellevue, De Krakeling Fri 30 & Sat 31 Jan, Melkweg, and Ostadetheater), staging Lijnbaansgracht 234a, www. grotesque puppet shows, bizarre grauzonefestival.com. €32.50 animations and challenging BACH DAY miniatures.

Bach Day returns to Utrecht and Fri 13-Sun 15 Feb, various locations, www.popartsfestival.nl.

Amsterdam for its fifth edition.

Various times & prices Featuring a packed day of performances by talented musicians CHINESE NEW YEAR including Bach’s suites for cello and sonatas for viola da gamba as In 2015, Chinese New Year falls well as young talent labs for up- on 19 February. While it may still be a bit chilly outside, there’ll be and-coming Bach devotees. plenty of partying to warm things Sun 1 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan up and celebrate the dawning of ’t IJ, Piet Heinkade 1, www.oude muziek.nl. Various times & prices the Year of the Goat. Festivities traditionally take place around BREAK A LEG FESTIVAL the historic Nieuwmarkt neighbourhood on the Saturday folStreet-style dance festival fealowing the event, so look out for turing performances, a crew impromptu parades, fireworks competition, one-on-one battles, and hot and tasty Asian foods. showcases, DJs, live art and an Thur 19 Feb, various locations, urban art market. Enter your www.iamsterdam.com. own crew or head along and Various times, free watch the dancers battle it out in the hip-hop, krump and house HOMEMAKER’S FAIR categories.

Having sprung into life as an Sun 1 Feb, De Meervaart, Meer en Vaart 300, www.break-a-leg.nl. opportunity to sell various homewares to Dutch housewives, 11.00, €7.50 the modern-day version of the AMSTERDAM SALSA Homemakers’ Fair has thankFESTIVAL fully diversified beyond vacuum It may still be a bit chilly outside, cleaners and kitchen aids. These days, fashion, beauty, food & but you’re sure to feel the heat at the 8th edition of this annual drink and entertainment all play leading roles at this huge event – event. Presented by the Meinwhich celebrates its 70th jubilee inger Hotel, the festival features this year. three days of dance workshops, Sat 21 Feb-Sun 1 Mar, Amsterperformances by Dutch and indam RAI, Europaplein, ternational dancers and blowout www.huishoudbeurs.nl. theme parties.

11.00, €19.50 Fri 6-Sun 8 Feb, Rhone Congress & Party Centre, Rhoneweg 12-14, NINE MONTHS FAIR www.amsterdamsalsafestival.nl.

For five days, Amsterdam’s Various times & prices cavernous convention centre is DIRTY DUTCH: transformed into a paradise for METAMORPHOSISM (prospective) parents. The Nine Months Fair welcomes parents The internationally acclaimed from all walks of life as they look dance-music phenomenon refor baby-related inspiration, turns! After a sell-out ‘Back to from nursery decorating ideas to the Original Core’ edition last baby clothes and more. year, Dirty Dutch hits the Bijlmer Wed 25 Feb-Sun 1 Mar, Boulevard for another night of Amsterdam RAI, Europaplein, debauchery and heavy dance www.negenmaandenbeurs.nl. tunes. Expect local and interna11.00, €19.50 tional names to join Dutch house legend Chuckie on stage as he SONIC ACTS takes on a mammoth nine-hour Entitled The Geologic Imaginastint behind the decks. tion, this festival blends culture Sat 7 Feb, Heineken Music Hall. and science to explore how the Arena Boulevard 590, fields are charting developments 22.00, €49.50 in our ever-(irreversibly) changCROSS-LINX FESTIVAL ing world. The festival features a three-day conference, masterThis annual, multi-city festival straddles musical boundaries by classes, concerts, installations, a film programme and a selection promoting refreshing combinations of indie and classical music. of workshops, inviting artists and theorists to reflect on how we see Headliners at the 2015 edition the world and natural systems include the Mark Lanegan Band and processes. and Squarepusher, both of whom Thur 26 Feb-Sun 1 Mar, various will be accompanied by the locations, www.sonicacts.com.

Metropole Orkest. Other names Various times & prices already announced include Bryce

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jan & feb 2015

MUSIC/POP & JAZZ POP & JAZZ AMSTERDAM KLEZMER BAND Led by saxophonist, rapper and all-round ‘loose cannon’ Job Chajes, this all-encompassing act throws together everything from Hendrix-style guitar solos to hip hop and Balkan beats.

Fri 2 Jan, Bimhuis, 20.00, €13-€16 DENISE JANNAH QUARTET Jannah has performed for everyone from Princess Beatrix to Nelson Mandela. At this show, along with her band, she’ll perform the songs of Ella Fitzgerald as well as her own tracks.

Sat 3 Jan, North Sea Jazz Club, 21.00, €15-€18

tugal. She’s the granddaughter of Amália Rodrigues, the legendary singer who helped popularise fado around the world. Tonight, however, Branco takes a trip through The Great American Songbook.

Sun 18 Jan, North Sea Jazz Club, 21.00, €24-€28

PERE UBU Led by frontman David Thomas, this long-running American band is known for its experimental fusion of avant-garde, blues, industrial, garage-rock and beyond.

Wed 28 Jan, Paradiso, 20.30, €17.50

the role of strutting and swinging the mic stand.

Fri 30 Jan, Ziggo Dome, 20.00, €55-€75

MIKE STUD While at Duke University, this American hip-hop star traded a possible career as a baseball pitchNIPSEY HUSSLE ORLANDO JULIUS & THE er for the music biz after his debut HELIOCENTRICS This up-and-coming rapper has single ‘College Humour’ went vibeen compared to fellow Los ral. It’s since racked up 35 million This afro-pop pioneer is considAngeles natives Ice Cube and Ice ered a living legend in Nigeria and views on YouTube.

T. His latest album, Victory Lap, is he’s played alongside jazz greats Fri 30 Jan, Paradiso, 22.30, €10 due in 2015. like singer Lamont Dozier and THE KOOKS Tue 20 Jan, Melkweg, 19.30, €18 The Crusaders. Here he’s joined The Kooks routinely bounce

by The Heliocentrics, a nine-piece CYMBALS EAT GUITARS across the North Sea and have musical collective from London.

Their name was inspired by a Wed 28 Jan, North Sea Jazz Club, put in recent appearances at Lowquote from Lou Reed but their lands, Pinkpop and the Heineken 21.00, €18 sound is closer to that of ’90s-era Music Hall.

DIE ANTWOORD alt-rock bands.

Sat 31 Jan, Heineken Music Hall, Tue 20 Jan, Tolhuistuin, 20.00, €36 Since bursting on to the scene in 20.30, €12.50

PARADISO CHOIR DAYS JAZZ CLUB It may be a modern-day pop temple but Paradiso was originally Vocalist Humphrey Campbell and a church. So it’s fitting that every guitarist Maarten van der Grinten pair up to play a combination of January the entire venue gets turned over to every type of choir their own tunes and classics from the Great American Songbook. imaginable (from near and far), Fri 23 Jan, Concertgebouw, 19.30 resulting in approximately 140 & 21.30, €10-€28 performances over the weekend.

Sat 10 & Sun 11 Jan, Paradiso, INTERPOL 11.00, €3 Following on from the release of JAMES ‘BLOOD’ ULMER their fifth album El Pintor (an anagram of their name) these Ulmer has been kicking down sharply dressed post-punk barriers in the worlds of gospel, indie-rockers from New York are jazz and funk since the ’70s. The back on the road.

Village Voice once described the innovative guitarist as ‘the missing Fri 23 Jan, Heineken Music Hall, 20.00, €39 link between Jimi Hendrix and Wes Montgomery on one hand, BOOKER T JONES between P-Funk and Mississippi Considered one of the founders of Fred McDowell on the other’. modern soul, Jones has recorded Thur 15 Jan, Bimhuis, alongside fellow musical greats 20.30, €20 like Ray Charles, Willie Nelson RUCHADZE BAND and Neil Young.

The son of a Russian opera singer, Fri 23 Jan, North Sea Jazz Club, 21.00, €26-€30 Konstantin Ruchadze escaped Stalin’s regime at a young age and AFTERPARTEES headed west. His passionate style These garage rockers hail from of ‘Western music’ landed him Horst, a small town down in in hot water with Communist officials in Prague a few years later Limburg. Their lyrics are all about parties, road trips and greasy before he eventually took up residency in Amsterdam. Join him for late-night snacks sprinkled with a heavy dash of good ol’-fashioned a night of blues, funk, and fusion. sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll.

Thur 15 Jan, North Sea Jazz Club, Sat 24 Jan, Bitterzoet, 21.00, €10-€14 20.00, €10 KRAFTWERK HARDWELL Kraftwerk, one of the most innoThis DJ was born and raised in vative and influential electronic Breda in the south of the Nethacts ever, is setting up in Amstererlands and had pretty much dam for eight nights, performing conquered Europe’s dance music one of their iconic albums per scene by the age of 26. In fact, he show. See page 23. nabbed the #1 slot in DJ MagaFri 16-Fri 23 Jan, Paradiso, zine’s annual ‘Top 100 DJs’ list in 20.30, €64 2013 and again in 2014.

STARS Sat 24 Jan, Ziggo Dome, 22.00, €49.50 This Canadian indie-pop act specialises in contrasting bursts of TOVE LO dreaminess and energy, amplified Stockholm-based Tove Lo comby the boy-girl vocals of Amy Milbines lyrics full of raw honesty lan and Torquil Campbell. with sugary sweet electro-pop.

Sat 17 Jan, Bitterzoet, Her single ‘Habits (Stay High)’ has 21.00, €12.50 become a hit all across Europe.

ANTON GOUDSMIT Tue 27 Jan, Melkweg, 19.30, €15 Acclaimed guitarist Anton GoudCRIOLO smit joins the Millenium Jazz Kleber Gomes, better known by Orchestra for a night of ‘big band’ his stage name ‘Criolo’, grew up on standards and other favourites the hard streets of São Paulo. His from the world of jazz. eclectic songs fuse hip hop with Sun 18 Jan, Bimhuis, samba, reggae and afrobeat. They 20.30, €15-€18 also don’t shy away from the injusCRISTINA BRANCO tice, poverty and corruption of his native land.

Branco specialises in jazz and fado, the music of her native Por- Tue 27 Jan, Bitterzoet, 21.00, €15

Choice pop & jazz

SNOWAPPLE While their sound is rooted in pop and three-part harmonies, this Amsterdam-based act has begun to experiment with more diverse genres, tossing in everything from classical to Krautrock.

Mon 2 Feb, Paradiso, 20.00, €10 PHILIP SELWAY Radiohead drummer Phil(ip) Selway likes to show a different side to his music when he gets the chance to break out on his own.

Unlike the electronic and classical projects of his bandmates, Selway shines as a simpler singer-songwriter, focusing more on earnest acoustic numbers.

Tue 3 Feb, Tolhuistuin, 20.30, €20 RYAN BINGHAM The hoarse vocals of this Texan troubadour evoke the dusty highways and forgotten towns of the American South.

Tue 3 Feb, Bitterzoet, 21.00, €16 LIGHTS This Canadian pop songstress is known for her energetic and upbeat music. However, her most recent album, 2014’s Little Machines, was inspired by more enigmatic performers like Bjork and Patti Smith.

Thur 5 Feb, Melkweg, 19.30, €16

GAZELLE TWIN Brit songwriter Elizabeth Bernholz has received plenty of comparisons to The Knife and Fever Ray in the past thanks to her take on exceedingly dark electronics and dance beats – and also the masking and make-up she’s used to obscure herself during performances. But her latest album, Unflesh, saw her taking that sound and making it her own. The result is a form of David Cronenberg-inspired cinematic dance music that blends claustrophobia with bursts of horror, pulsing bass and original moments of pop respite. Wed 4 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 21.00, €10

K-CI & JOJO A successful collaboration with Tupac Shakur and the 1998 single ‘All My Life’ made K-Ci and JoJo big names in the R&B scene.

Thur 5 Feb, Melkweg, 20.00, €27.50 CHE SUDAKA Socially conscious lyrics and a vibrant blend of ska, reggae and mestizo rhythms form the potent musical sangria that has become the trademark of this energetic Barcelona band.

Fri 6 Feb, Melkweg, 19.30, €14 JASON MRAZ This soulful folk-pop performer cut his teeth while performing in tiny cafés around San Diego.

He’s come a long way since then, netting two Grammy Awards in recent years.

Fri 6 Feb, Ziggo Dome, 20.00, €44-€59

ENNIO MORRICONE You may actually connect his name to cinema more than musical performance and that’s because Morricone’s compositions have appeared in dozens of NEIL COWLEY TRIO films. Even so, his unmistakable CRAIG TABORN QUARTET tracks have a huge following and The Neil Cowley Trio has released Taborn is an inspirational Ameri- a 75-piece orchestra will perform four critically acclaimed albums can jazz pianist whose improvised them on a grand scale for this ‘The and they’re known for cliché-bust50 Years of Music’ tour. works veer from true jazz to classiing music that’s been dubbed Sun 1 Feb, Ziggo Dome, cal, blues and beyond.

‘Radiohead for jazz fans’.

20.00, €35-€85 Thur 29 Jan, Bimhuis, Sat 7 Feb, Bimhuis, 20.30, €18 20.30, €20 SLIPKNOT THE AFGHAN WHIGS JUSTIN TOWNES EARLE This metal band is back in action These New Orleans rockers are after mourning the tragic death This singer-songwriter has spent associated with the ’90s alt-rock much of his career trying to escape of founding member Paul Gray in scene but despite their hefty guitar 2010. Best known for their fierce sound they were always mirroring his drug-fuelled past and the metal, the iconic ‘horror’ masks shadow of Steve Earle, his famous the (darker) R&B and soul sounds they wear during their live shows father. But much like the elder of the ’60s. and plenty of pyrotechnics, they Earle, Justin’s music ranges from Tue 10 Feb, Melkweg, 19.30, €27 seem to be hitting their best and soulful country to bluegrass to OK GO most ferocious form in more than rockabilly. a decade.

Thur 29 Jan, Paradiso, This American outfit has enjoyed Sun 1 Feb, Heineken Music Hall, 20.00, €12.50 much more video success than 20.00, €49 radio plays, but for good reason.

QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT ’Course, their power pop/alt rock WAXAHATCHEE Okay, so they’re never gonna reis pretty fun too,.

While their lyrics delve into place Freddie but Bryan May and Tue 10 Feb, Bitterzoet, 20.30, €15 heart-breaking tales of loneliness Roger Taylor can’t resist the urge VIET CONG and abandonment, Waxahatchee’s to rock out to their greatest hits music is hopeful and energetic. once more. Former American Idol When their acclaimed former Sun 1 Feb, Paradiso, 20.00, €10 competitor Adam Lambert has band Women fell apart after an 2008, this controversial South African rap-rave duo has made jaws drop all the way from the Yukon to the South Pole. See page 24.

Thur 29 Jan, Heineken Music Hall, 20.00, €29

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MUSIC/POP & JAZZ / CLASSICAL onstage fist fight, two members struck out on their own to form this garage-rock outfit.

Tue 10 Feb, Paradiso, 21.30, €10

They’ve dived headlong into electronica, trip hop, rock and more.

Fri 20 Feb, Melkweg, 19.00, €21

Ivo Boswijk and led by Bulgarian singer Galina Durmushliyska.

Sun 4 Jan, Amstelkerk, 15.00

the NJO Symfonieorkest for this vibrant evening of works by Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky and more.

Sun 11 Jan, Concertgebouw, 20.15, €19-€34

BEAR’S DEN VAN SWIETEN SOCIETY TV ON THE RADIO The London-based Bear’s Den has Celebrate the New Year with this PURE ROMANTIC With frontman Tunde Adebimpe been compared to fellow folk-rock eclectic ensemble noted for its use at the helm, Brooklyn’s own TV acts like Mumford & Sons and of traditional instruments during Conductor Ivor Bolton leads on the Radio has been melding Noah and the Whale. live performances. the Netherlands Philharmonic together just about every genre Mon 23 Feb, Melkweg, 19.30, €14 Sun 4 Jan, Muziekgebouw aan ’t Orchestra for an illuminating proimaginable within their indie IJ, 15.00, €10-€25 gramme of works by Mendelssohn THE BLACK KEYS framework for over a decade now. and Beethoven.

THE PARADISO Wed 11 Feb, Paradiso, 20.30, €25 This garage-rock duo got their Mon 12 & Tue 13 Jan, ConcertgeORCHESTRA’S NIGHT start in Akron, Ohio back in 2001. bouw, 20.15, €19-€48.50 CAMPBELL BROTHERS AT THE OPERA Since then, their catchy riffs have CAPPELLA AMSTERDAM These three brothers specialise in turned them into full-fledged The evening will feature ‘The a unique brand of gospel centred superstars.

Poet’, a short opera featuring mu- MaNOj Kamps takes the helm of around electric-steel guitars.

Mon 23 Feb, Ziggo Dome, Fri 13 Feb, Bimhuis, 20.30, €20 20.00, €39-€49 JESSIE WARE This pop singer-songwriter from London has been networking hard, collaborating with the likes of SBTRKT and Joker and writing songs with Ed Sheeran.

Fri 13 Feb, Paradiso, 20.30, €16 TARAF DE HAÏDOUKS Now in their 25th year, this Romanian act performs gypsy love songs and ballads with a Turkish twist. These dudes vary in age from early 20s to late 80s, but rest assured that their tunes – be it ballads or fiery instrumentals – make for an evocative gypsy party.

Fri 13 Feb, Tolhuistuin, 20.30, €20 GAZ COOMBES No longer fronting the popular Britpop group Supergrass, Coombes has been easing himself into a solo career having initially released his first album in 2012.

Mon 16 Feb, Bitterzoet, 21.00, €17 DAN DEACON Equally adept at composing Steve Reich-channelling contemporary classical music as multi-coloured, spasmodic 8-bit symphonies, Deacon is something of a sonic commander.

Thur 19 Feb, Tolhuistuin, 20.30, €14 SCOTT BRADLEE & POSTMODERN JUKEBOX This unconventional jazz and ragtime band is best known for its reinterpretations of modern pop songs.

Thur 19 Feb, Paradiso, 20.30, €21.50 ARCHIVE For over two decades, Archive has challenged its fans with a divergent array of musical styles. advert

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IGOR STRAVINSKY’S

FIREBIRD SYMPHONIC CINEMA WWW.ORKEST.NL

TEAM ME These dynamic indie rockers hail from Norway, and To the Treetops!, their debut album, earned them a Norwegian Grammy.

Mon 23 Feb, Paradiso, 21.30, €9

Choice pop & jazz

ALEX G Alex G’s music wildly bounces from twisted guitar riffs to quiet acoustic moments.

Wed 25 Feb, Paradiso, 22.00, €8 PAOLO CONTE After years of penning tunes for other singers and releasing solo efforts, Conte finally hit it big in in the mid-’80s with ‘Gli Impermeabili’. The Italian legend now has over 25 releases to his name.

Fri 27 Feb, Royal Theatre Carré, 20.30, €64-€88 DOTAN This Dutch troubadour has enjoyed enormous success over the past year. His album 7 Layers stormed the charts in the Benelux and is one of the most played records on Spotify here.

Sat 28 Feb, Royal Theatre Carré, 20.00, €17-€35

CLASSICAL LUNCHTIME CONCERTS Who said there’s no such thing as a free lunch (concert)? The Royal Concertgebouw’s lunchtime concerts are exactly that, showcasing everything from young, upcoming talent to chamber music and public rehearsals by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Every Wed, Concertgebouw, 12.30, free

LIONEL RICHIE The famous soul crooner returns to Amsterdam for a bout of dancing on this arena’s very high ceiling. The five-time Grammy winner is known for silky smooth songs like ‘All Night Long (All Night)’ and ‘Say You, Say Me’. And this tour is all about the hits. ‘All the hits, All night long’, in fact.

Probably not ‘You Mean More to Me’, the ultra-schmaltzy B-side of the already schmaltzy ‘Hello’.

Thur 5 Feb, Ziggo Dome, 20.00, €44-€59 sic by Mozart, and a programme filled with arias chosen by the audience in an online poll.

Thur 5 Feb, Paradiso, 20.30, €25

THE DECEMBERISTS Like a character from one of their albums, The Decemberists recently rose from the dead after a lengthy hiatus.

The Portland indie-folk band is beloved by English Lit majors all over the world thanks to the rich storytelling at the heart of each song. They also can’t get enough of their trademark acoustic-driven rock that mashes together historical titbits and folk tales with thunderous guitar riffs and singalong choruses. Mon 23 Feb, Paradiso, 20.30, €24 Cappella Amsterdam for a programme of works by French composers, including Vivier, Messiaen and Dusapin.

Wed 14 Jan, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50

JORGE LUIS PRATS PLAYS ‘IBERIA’ The flamboyant and passionate master pianist tackles the ‘Iberia’ piano suite, one of Spanish composer Isaac Albéniz’s most legendary works.

Sun 18 Jan, Concertgebouw, 20.15, €30-€50 NICOLAS VAN POUCKE & FRIENDS The acclaimed Dutch pianist is launching a new piano series at Amstelkerk, presenting regular performances by young and upcoming talents.

Sun 18 Jan; & Sun 15 Feb, Amstelkerk, 16.00, €15 THE CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA WITH BLOMSTEDT AND MARIA JOÃO PIRES Portuguese pianist Maria João Pires teams up with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra for Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.17 and Tchaikovsky’s emotive Sixth (‘Pathetique’).

Wed 21 & Thur 22 Jan, Concertgebouw, 20.15, €30-€122.50 FALVETTI’S ‘IL DILUVIO UNIVERSALE’ Originally written in 1682 by Michelangelo Falvetti, a Sicilian priest-composer, ‘The Great Flood’ has rarely been performed since the 17th century. Over 300 years later, it will finally debut in the Netherlands at this concert led by conductor Leonardo García Alarcón and performed by Chœur de Chambre de Namur and Cappella Mediterranea.

Sat 24 Jan, Concertgebouw, 14.15, €37-€43 FAIRY-TALE RUSSIA The Naardens Kamerorkest teams up with the Russian School of Arts from Rotterdam to delve into a few magical and moving Russian classics.

Sat 24 Jan, De Duif, 20.00, €17 MATANGI QUARTET The Dutch chamber music specialists present works by Joaquin Turina, Maurice Ravel and Jean Françaix.

Sun 25 Jan, Amstelkerk, 15.30, €16

CLOSE-UP: PORTRAIT OF THE RCO ORCHESTRA ACADEMY ENSEMBLE KLANG WHAT ABOUT CHINAAA! Some of the brightest young tal- ‘In the spirit of Bang on a Can’, Enents in the Netherlands will team semble Klang (and guests) will tap Setting the mood for Tan Dun’s NOORDERKERK CONCERTS up with the pros from the Royal into the energy and daring of New run of shows (see highlights), the Concertgebouw Orchestra for this York’s Bang on a Can All Stars. ever-daring Nieuw Ensemble preFrom September through May, performance.

Thur 15 Jan, Muziekgebouw aan sents a look at some of the most Amsterdam’s Noorderkerk hosts ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 innovative music and composers a one-hour classical concert every Tue 6 Jan, Concertgebouw, 20.15, €27.50-€32.50 currently doing the business in Saturday afternoon.

THE BERLAGE SAXOPHONE China, closing with Dun’s own Every Sat, Noorderkerk, 14.00, TO SPAIN AND ITALY QUARTET Concerto for Pizzicato Piano and prices vary WITH JANSONS AND THE The latest programme of this Ten Instruments. Next up is piaROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW LUNCH CONCERT young group of talented musinist Ralph van Raat who performs ORCHESTRA cians, ‘SaxoFolk’, includes works a late-night set of Dun’s work, Weekly performances in the foyer The world-renowned orchestra by Shostakovich, Grieg and others. including the world premiere of of the Dutch National Opera & will embark on a vivid continental Fri 16 Jan, Concertgebouw, The Banquet Concerto (reworked Ballet. journey, featuring selections in20.15, €10-€33 for piano).

Every Tue, Dutch National Opspired by each nation and classic Wed 28 Jan, Muziekgebouw aan era & Ballet, 12.30, free works including Claude Debussy’s ROUND-TRIP TO ITALY WITH ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 VASILY PETRENKO WELTKLASSIK ‘Ibéria’.

TRACKS – VRIJ! Conductor Vasily Petrenko and Every second Friday of the month Wed 7, Thur 8 & 11 Jan, Concertgebouw, various times, the Radio Philharmonic OrViolinist Rosanne Philippens the Amsterdam City Archives pre€10-€122.50 chestra will take their audience on travelled all the way to Hungary sents a classical recital. a musical trip with works inspired to master the art of ‘gypsy music’.

Every 2nd Friday of the month, LUCAS JUSSEN PLAYS by the history and culture of Italy, Along with pianist Julien Quentin, Amsterdam City Archives, 17.00 RACHMANINOFF including, perhaps most notably, she’ll perform a selection of gypsy ENSEMBLE CUBRICA Young pianist Lucas Jussen and Respighi’s ‘Pini di Roma’. folk songs. cellist Harriet Krijgh join forces Sat 17 Jan, Concertgebouw, Wed 28 & Thur 29 Jan, ConcertA New Year’s programme of Bul14.15, €31-€36 gebouw, 21.00, €10-€25 garian choral songs, conducted by with conductor Xian Zhang and

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MUSIC/CLASSICAL

ALEXANDRA DARIESCU AND JU-NI LEE Dariescu is a Romanian pianist who earned one of the UK’s prestigious ‘Women of the Future’ awards back in 2013. She’ll join violinist Ju-Ni Lee and pianist Jung-Eun Kim for a programme that includes works by Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann and more.

Sun 1 Feb, Concertgebouw, 14.30, €36 BACHDAG Celebrate a day of the grand master as soloists, ensembles and orchestras offer up an entire day of concerts that delve into his life’s work.

Sun 1 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, various times & prices ERARD ENSEMBLE A performance of Schubert’s Winterreise, with baritone Mattijs van de Woerd guesting.

Tue 3 Feb, Amstelkerk, 20.15, €18 THE LABÈQUE SISTERS AND THE ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA Marielle Labèque and her sister Katia perform Mozart’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Strauss’s An Alpine Symphony.

Thur 5 & Fri 6 (20.15); Sun 8 Feb (14.15), Concertgebouw, €25-€97.50 MUSIKFABRIK EXPLORES THE LIMITS OF THE (IM)POSSIBLE The innovative ensemble from Cologne will perform selections penned by Helmut Lachenmann and a few of Nicolò Paganini’s most ambitious compositions.

Sat 7 Feb, Concertgebouw, 14.15, €31-€36 ESSENTIALS: EINE ALPENSINFONIE The Russian conductor helms this electrifying concert for a performamce of Richard Strauss’s final symphonic poem, An Alpine Symphony, and Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto.

Sat 7 Feb, Concertgebouw, 21.00, €22.50-€50 VERDI AND WAGNER Soprano Grazia Doronzio and the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Wagner’s Prelude from Parsifal and Verdi’s Quattro pezzi sacri.

Sun 8 Feb, Concertgebouw, 11.00, €19-€25 CALEFAX This reed quintet loves to surprise.

This evening they show that they’re just as comfy looking backwards as forwards, performing Bach’s Die Kunst der Fuge.

Sun 8 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 DVORÁK’S EIGHTH SYMPHONY Conductor Mei-Ann Chen and violinist Vadim Gluzman will join

Choice classical

semble dedicates an evening Christian Tetzlaff, will grapple to ‘In Vain’, a work by Austrian with two of the greatest Russian composer Georg Friedrich Haas works ever composed. Shostakthat is regarded by musicologist ovich’s defiant ‘Violin Concerto in and author Alex Ross as one of the A’ was written to protest the Soviet most important masterworks of regime in the late 1940s, while the 21st century.

Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony reFri 13 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t mains one of the finest Romantic IJ, 20.30, €28.50 symphonies of all time.

Sat 21 (20.15), Sun 22 (14.15) & GÓRECKI AFTER THE Tue 24 Feb (20.15), ConcertgeLAMENTATIONS bouw, €19-€48.50 Russian composer Dmitri ShosTRACKS: GYPSY SWING takovich battled against a tidal wave of poor health while creating This edition of the concert series his Second Cello Concerto in the features Dominic Seldis, a bassist mid-1960s. This landmark work, who has performed alongside pop along with stirring selections by stars including Tom Jones and the Henryk Górecki and Jean Sibelius, Spice Girls. At this show, he’ll voyis the highlight of this afternoon age into the world of gypsy swing THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL PASSION performance. music along with video accompaSat 14 Feb, Concertgebouw, niment by artist Jurjen Alkema.

Composer David Lang was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for this 14.15, €31-€36 Wed 25 & Thur 26 Feb, Concertsurreal musical adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The gebouw, 21.00, €10-€25 Little Match Girl. Join a dedicated crew of performers and CONCERTGEBOUW musicians as they bring the classic fairy-tale to life in modern CLASSICS CELEBRATE LOVE COLIN CURRIE & GUESTS oratorio form. Take heed, however. This contemporary proThe populist programme includes The acclaimed percussionist duction isn’t always an easy listening family-friendly experispicy selections from Spain, Cuba teams up with pianist Ralph van and Argentina that are a perfect Raat and friends to perform works ence, instead embracing minimalism, polyrhythms and hefty fit for a romantic Valentine’s Day

by John Adams, Dave Maric and melodic shifts. The programme also includes Lang’s cello date.

Among them: Leo Brouwer’s Béla Bartók. work World to Come and Memory Pieces for piano. Fri 9 Jan, Tres danzas concertantes and As- Thur 26 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 tor Piazzolla’s Otoño Porteño. ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 Sat 14 Feb, Concertgebouw, GESUALDO CONSORT 20.30, €10-€49 AMSTERDAM BACH CHOIR AND Performances of Paul Hindemith’s ORCHESTRA OF THE 12 madrigals, inspired by the great NETHERLANDS Renaissance composers – includSoprano Olga Zinovieva joins ing Gesualdo himself. these Bach masters for three Sat 28 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t performances that instead celeIJ, 20.15, €28.50 brate the works of Mozart. The ADDRESSES programme includes his final masterpiece, Requiem, in addition Amstelkerk to several of the composer’s arias.

Amstelveld 10 Sun 15, Sat 21 & Sun 22 Feb, www.amstelkerk.net CHINA HERE FIREBIRD Concertgebouw, various times, Amsterdam City Archives The charismatic Chinese com- Dutch film director Lucas van €50-€75 Vijzelstraat 32 poser and conductor Tan Dun Woerkum returns to Amsterhttps://stadsarchief.

THE ROMANTIC CELLO amsterdam.nl returns to Amsterdam to lead dam for a burst of Symphonic WITH BENEDICT Bimhuis the Royal Concertgebouw Cinema, his ongoing experKLOECKNER Piet Heinkade 3 Orchestra in a programme imental film series. This time Two of the world’s best-known http://bimhuis.nl that examines the impact around, he’ll combine his romantic cello works will be Bitterzoet of contemporary Chinese talents with conductor Pablo featured at this concert helmed Spuistraat 2 composition. The programme González and the Netherlands by conductor Peter Santa. Along www.bitterzoet.com includes several of Tan Dun’s Philharmonic Orchestra for an with the Amsterdam Chamber Bourbon Street Orchestra, he’ll dive into TchaiLeidsekruisstraat 6-8 compositions, including ‘Nu extravagant performance of kovsky’s Rococo Variations and www.bourbonstreet.nl Shu: The Secret Songs of ‘The Firebird’. While González Dvorák’s Serenade.

De Duif Women’, a new work that conducts the musicians, Van Wed 18 Feb, Concertgebouw, Prinsengracht 756 takes inspiration and uses Woerkum will ‘conduct’ the 20.15, €50 http://deduif.net texts from a rediscovered custom visuals on a film screen Heineken Music Hall secret language that was behind them with his iPad. NETHERLANDS WIND ArenA Boulevard 590 ENSEMBLE used by women in the Hunan Together, they’ll create a rich www.heineken-music-hall.nl Soprano Johannette Zomer, Melkweg province where Dun grew up. tapestry of music and mesmerbaritone Frans Fiselier and tenor Lijnbaansgracht 234A Please keep in mind that the ising film footage that adds Bernard Loonen join for a nonwww.melkweg.nl exact programme varies per new dimensions to Stravinsky’s staged performance of Strauss Jr’s Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ performance. Thur 29 Jan-Sat masterpiece. Sat 31 Jan (20.15 Die Fledermaus.

Piet Heinkade 1 31 Jan, Royal Concertgebouw, & 22.30) & Tue 3 Feb (20.15), Thur 19 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan www.muziekgebouw.nl 20.15, €20.25-€46 Concertgebouw, €19-€34 ’t IJ, 20.15, €35 Noorderkerk Noordermarkt 48 VILDE FRANG AND THE the Netherlands Philharmonic conductor Mariss Jansons will www.noorderkerk.org AMSTERDAM SINFONIETTA Orchestra to celebrate one of the focus on Strauss’s Der Bürger als North Sea Jazz Club best-known works of Antonín Edelman and Mahler’s Fourth, Acclaimed violinist Vilde Frang Pazzanistraat 1 Dvorák. one of the composer’s most fanciand the Amsterdam Sinfonietta www.northseajazzclub.com Mon 9 & Tue 10 Feb, Concertgeful works. perform Czech composer Leoš Paradiso bouw, 20.15, €19-€48.50 Wed 11 & Thur 12 Feb, Concertge- Janávek’s ‘Intimate Letters’. The Weteringschans 6-8 bouw, 20.15, €30-€122.50 1928 string quartet was written www.paradiso.nl LUNCH CONCERT & TOUR as a tribute to his complex relaRoyal Concertgebouw NIEUW ENSEMBLE Free performance in collaboration tionship with Kamila Stösslová, Concertgebouwplein 10 with the Nationaal Muziekin‘New’ is in the name and new is a married woman some 38 years www.concertgebouw.nl strumenten Fonds. Tours of the what they love. Once per year they his junior.

Royal Theatre Carre concert hall take place before the also dedicate an entire show to Fri 20 Feb, Concertgebouw, Amstel 115 /125 performance (11.00/price: €8.50). completely new works by young 20.15, €10-€40 https://carre.nl Tue 10 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan ’t compositional talents.

Tolhuistuin RUSSIAN TITANS: SHOSTAKIJ, 12.30, free Thur 12 Feb, Muziekgebouw aan Tolhuisweg 5 OVICH AND TCHAIKOVSKY ’t IJ, 20.15, €28.50 www.tolhuistuin.nl ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW The Netherlands Philharmonic Ziggo Dome ORCHESTRA INSOMNIO Orchestra and conductor Marc De Passage 100 Soprano Genia Kühmeier and The Dutch contemporary enAlbrecht, along with violinist www.ziggodome.nl © PETER STERLING

WINTERREISE The icy twist this evening is that the lead is performed by a woman: alto Nathalie Stutzmann, who’s also released a critically acclaimed recording of this wellknown cycle.

Sat 31 Jan, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20.15, €39.50

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PART IV THE A-LIST

CLUBBING & NIGHTLIFE CLUBBING BREAKFAST CLUB With a live set from Basic Channel and Model 500-inspired Texan producer Convextion – plus fatigue-defying techno DJs Joey Anderson (Dekmantel), Jaime Frias and Tom Liem – chances are you’ll keep on dancing till closing time, which is around the hour of the day your parents finish watching the annual ski-jumping sessions at Garmisch Partenkirchen.

Thur 1 Jan, Canvas, 07.0015.00, €22.50 TROUWENS The largely local line-up of this pre-farewell party for this iconic venue represents the Trouw sound nicely, with veteran DJs such as Clone’s head honcho Serge, local bon-vivants Awanto 3, aka Steven de Peven and Carlos Valdes, Utrecht’s Nuno Dos Santos, techno don ROD (Benny Rodrigues) and Cinnaman (Colors) sharing the bill with relative newcomers who started their career at Trouw such as Jean Pierre Enfant, Elias Mazian and Malawi.

Thur 1 Jan, Trouw, 09.00, €22 AWAKENINGS The longest-running of all techno events returns to the iconic gas holder – a round red brick building from the early industrial age – just a few hours after the last NYE DJ dropped his final beats.

Expect sophisticated and warm sounds from openers Doka and Nina Kraviz before Benny Rodigues, Tim Wolff, Berghain’s Ben Klock, Len Faki, The Advent (live) and Industrialyzer (live) are set to let hell break loose.

Thur 1 Jan, Gashouder, 17.00, €49.50 LOVELAND 20-YEAR ANNIVERSARY A very techno-ish edition of Loveland, with German electro veteran Anthony Rother (live), Aril Brikha (Transmat, live), the Burden brothers’ live techno act Octave One, Canada’s Mathew Jonson (Wagon Repair), Vince Watson (Delsin, live) plus local producers Arjuna Schiks (live), Egbert (live) and more.

Thur 1 Jan, Mediahaven, 17.00-05.00, €37.50 HARDCORE CLASSICS A celebration of the sole electronic musical genre to emerge from the Netherlands: hardcore/gabba is superfast 4/4 music from the 1990s, produced with Roland’s 909 drum machine among other devices.

Subgenres spun tonight include early hardcore and old school as well as millennium hardcore. With Bass-D, Buzz Fuzz, Gizmo, Ruffneck, Apac, the Irritainer and many more.

Sat 3 Jan, Amsterdam Studios, 21.00-05.00, €22.50 ALKALINO Local lads Courgette and Eindbaas don’t take themselves too seriously but play a seriously

good mix of humorous and funky electronics. Expect good, non-offensive vibes in an eclectic Amsterdam tradition.

Fri 9 Jan, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 22 SESSIONS Iran-born, Rotterdam-based artist Sevdaliza tried her crea-

Melon to jam away his sorrow over the recently closed club, while former CEO of the now-defunct Club Risk imperium doesn’t get to play out his selection of soulful and abstract American four-to-thefloor beats all too often – which leads us to expect this jock will be well excited, which usually

Choice clubbing

I LOVE VINYL This club night centred around the ‘black gold’ invites Chicago’s Rahaan, one of the most admired house DJs from the Windy City since the mid-1990s. Both musically and technically, Rahaan knows what he’s doing; this man confidently breathes the history of house music, which is what’s required of a jock playing a gig in the city where every man or woman on the street has his/her opinion ready on sexy electronic 4/4 grooves. Fri 2 Jan, Canvas, 23.00-04.00, €10

TROUW’S VERY LAST NIGHT Not surprisingly, our contact at Trouw was tight lipped about tonight’s line-up; apparently it’s so secret even the staff is clueless.

But whatever this last night sounds like, this is a historical event. It’ll be like having sex with a break-up looming the next day. Hug your friends, shed a few tears and dance the night, morning and afternoon away during this marathon final session. Sat 3 Jan, Trouw, 22.00, €22 tive luck with Dutch-language hip hop before converting to her current, futuristic style of hip hop/R&B filled with abstract (English) vocals and leftfield synths, not unlike those of Hudson Mohawke, Rustie, Kelela or MIA. Sat 10 Jan, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 NOO FILTER Two knowledgeable and experienced house heads reign over Canvas’s decks tonight.

Expect former Trouw resident

RENEGADES OF RHYTHM Top-notch Californian turntablists DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist pay homage to early hip hop and electro pioneer Kevin Donovan, aka Afrika Bambaataa, in a way nobody’s ever paid homage to a musician before. The duo spent weeks digging through Bambaataa’s 40,000 piece record collection, resulting in a live DJ set full of sounds that lead to the birth of hip hop. Thur 19 Feb, Melkweg, 20.00, €20 + membership translates to more people dancing the night away.

Fri 16 Jan, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 WINTER WOOFERLAND Headlining this event of oldschool house and techno music are late 1980s/early 1990s UK rave pioneers 808 State, consisting of Graham Massey. The trio’s influence on the UK and European electronic scene can hardly be overstated; dozens of producers grew up listening to anthems such as ‘Cubik’ and

‘Pacific State’, as well as the some of trippiest acid house ever made.

Sat 24 Jan, Paradiso, 21.00, €25 DIE ANTWOORD LIVE Enigmatic, creepy South African duo Die Antwoord’s show was among the highlights of the Lowlands festival last summer, and their explosive, ultra-weird and aggressive mix of hip hop, electro, EDM and punk (attitude-wise, mainly) will no doubt tear down the walls of this Amsterdam Zuidoost venue. See page 24.

Thur 29 Jan, Heineken Music Hall, 20.00 €29.50 LIGHT HOUSE INVITES LUMBERJACKS IN HELL Three sick DJs from all over the globe. Canada’s old-school house and hip hop selector Eddie C recently re-joined the music scene after a tenyear sabbatical. Melbournite Inkswel, a house music remixer (Darwin Theory, Rondenion, Tevo Howard etc.) has a strong love for 1980s disco-boogie. The third crate digger is German-born, Amsterdam-based, disco-loving DJ Marcel Vogel, CEO of the Lumberjacks in Hell label.

Fri 30 Jan, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 MAJOR LEAGUE With the 21-year-old Joe Ford headlining alongside June Miller, Maztek, Mefjus and Rene LaVice, and Swift MCing, this night will no doubt please the hardcore fans of the 20-year-old drum’n’bass genre.

Fri 6 Feb, Melkweg, 23.3005.00, €19 DIRTY DUTCH METAMORPHOSISM DJ Chuckie was one of the first to unite high and low culture in club music: no genre remains untouched by this ultimate crowd pleaser who flirts with German schlager music as well as gabba and reggaeton.

Sat 7 Feb, Heineken Music Hall, 22.00-05.00, €45 KLEAR 1-YEAR ANNIVERSARY This one’s very much a UKthemed night with indie-garagey act Bondax playing alongside influential garage producer MJ Cole and others who are yet to be announced.

Fri 13 Feb, De Marktkantie, 23.00-06.00, €17.50

influences, and Reza Athar playing sunny, Balearic beats.

Sat 14 Feb, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 DE RAAD VAN 11 In celebration of Carnival, the Techno Viking – one of YouTube’s biggest rave stars – has been booked to entertain the masses alongside the entire local record-spinning population, including DJ Jean (of the legendary 1990s club iT), Melon, Patrice Bäumel, Detroit Swindle, Aron Friedman, Carlos Valdes, Arjuna Schiks, Jorn Liefdeshuis, Lupe, Sandrien, Sven & Tettero, Jean-Pierre Enfant and Cinnaman.

Sun 15 Feb, De Marktkantine, 23.00-04.00, €10 BORDELLO A PARIGI Originally from The Hague, the people behind Bordello A Parigi bring Italo disco, a blend of electro, disco and pop with Mediterranean-sounding vocals filtered through vocoders. Cheesy? Yes. Fun? Positive. Tonight’s headliner is American old-school legend Mickey ‘Mixin’ Oliver, who is coming over for his first ever European performance. And that’s no lie.

Sat 21 Feb, Canvas, 23.0004.00, €10 ADDRESSES Amsterdam Studios HJE Wenckebachweg 173 www.amsterdamstudios.nl Canvas Wibautstraat 150 http://volkshotel.nl/canvas Gashouder Klönneplein 1 www.westergasfabriek.nl Heineken Music Hall ArenA Boulevard 590 www.heineken-music-hall.nl De Marktkantine Jan van Galenstraat 6 http://marktkantine.nl Mediahaven MA Reinaldaweg 2D http://mediahaven.nl Melkweg Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.melkweg.nl Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl Studio 80 Rembrandtplein 17 www.studio-80.nl Trouw Wibautstraat 127-131 www.trouwamsterdam.nl advert 22, 29 jan 5 feb

surtitled in english

PIXEL Forward-thinking electronic dance-floor music night Pixel flies John Talabot-associated producer Pional over from Madrid for a live show tonight.

Fri 13 Feb, Studio 80, 23.00, €15 HORIZON This edition of Horizon brings an odd mix of musical styles, with Canadian skateboarder-cum-artist Fairmont performing a live set where he blends techno with indie-pop

medea

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EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS TEMPORARY EXHIBITIONS

Choice exhibits

MODERN TIMES. PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE 20TH CENTURY The Rijksmuseum’s collection of 20th-century photography steps into the spotlight as a largescale exhibition is dedicated to it for the first time. The works demonstrate the technological and aesthetic developments in 20th-century photography, from the breakthrough of photography as an art form to its uses as a journalistic medium.

Some 400 photographs are on display, including works by Man Ray, László Moholy-Nagy and Helen Levitt.

Until 11 Jan, Rijksmuseum WHEN ELEPHANTS COME MARCHING IN Guest curated by art historian Mark Kremer, this exhibition examines (the lasting effect of) art in the turbulent years of the 1960s. Subtitled ‘Echoes from the Sixties in Today’s Art’, the group exhibition investigates the tumultuous inheritance that ’60s art movements such as psychedelic art and conceptualism have left for contemporary artists. It features works by 14 artists, ten of whom have created new work for the exhibition.

Until 11 Jan, de Appel Arts Centre ATTACKS WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES Flemish artist Pieter van den Bosch’s exhibition of video

MARLENE DUMAS – THE IMAGE AS BURDEN Large-scale retrospective of work by the South-Africanborn, Amsterdam-based painter Marlene Dumas – widely considered to be one of the most significant and influential painters working today. Featuring over 100 works from the late 1970s to the present day (drawn from collections all over the world), this is the most comprehensive survey of Dumas’ work to date in Europe. Until 4 Jan Stedelijk Museum

NEW YORK, NY

MASTERPIECES FROM THE HOWARD GREENBERG COLLECTION Following great success in Lausanne, Paris and Budapest, this photography exhibition comes to Amsterdam, showcasing approximately 150 photos from the private collection of New York-based gallery owner Howard Greenberg.

Until 11 Jan Jewish Historical Museum

SCHAAM MEISJE

THE HIDDEN PICTURE A selection of works from the ING bank’s international art collection is brought together for the first time. The collection from the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland and Britain is the result of 40 years of collecting and comprises more than 70 works of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures.

Until 4 Jan Cobra Museum of Modern Art BAD THOUGHTS – COLLECTION MARTIJN AND JEANNETTE SANDERS Featuring a diverse range of several hundred paintings, sculptures, photographs, drawings, text-based artworks, films, videos and installations by over 350 (mostly European and American) artists, the Sanders Collection is one of the most important private collection in the Netherlands.

Until 11 Jan, Stedelijk Museum

CACHE APPARELS Amsterdam’s Museum of Bags and Purses showcases a selection of bags by the Filipino designer Ditta Sandico of Cache Apparels, who uses materials from the Philippines for her hand-woven and handmade designs.

Until 25 Jan, Museum of Bags and Purses

VIVIAN MAIER, STREET PHOTOGRAPHER Vivian Maier became an international sensation after her collection of more than 100,000 negatives was discovered in 2007. Working as a nanny for most of her life, Maier documented street life in major American cities such as New York and Chicago in her free time. The quality of her work has been compared to famed contemporaries including Joel Sternfeld, Joel Meyerowitz, Elliot Erwitt and Garry Winogrand.

This exhibition showcases black-and-white and colour photographs shot between the 1950s and 1980s. Until 1 Feb, Foam installations explores attacks on and in public spaces and tries to document the exact moment of impact. To that end, Van den Bosch instigated a series of attack scenes in the form of fire installations that were accessible to participants but didn’t pose any actual danger.

Until 18 Jan, de Brakke Grond TRACES – 100 YEARS ASGER JORN This exhibition (or rather, set of exhibitions) marks the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Asger Jorn (1914-1973), one of the founders of Cobra (1948-1951), the International Situationists (1957-1972) and other groups. Jorn worked in a

ARAKI OJO SASHU – PHOTOGRAPHY FOR THE AFTER LIFE: ALLURING HELL The first major retrospective of work by acclaimed photographer Nobuyoshi Araki, without doubt one of the most celebrated Japanese artists of our time. Best known for his focus on daily life and the intertwining themes of life (sex) and death, Araki’s works range from being personal and sentimental to anarchistic and vulgar. This exhibition includes several series never before displayed in the Netherlands. Until 11 Mar, Foam wide variety of media and also wrote 25 books and hundreds of articles, leaving a legacy of artworks, writings and – ultimately – a way of thinking.

Until 18 Jan, Cobra Museum of Modern Art ADRIAAN DE LELIE AND THE 18TH-CENTURY FAMILY PORTRAIT Billed as the largest-ever exhibition dedicated to the renowned 18th- and 19th-century painter, most of the works by De Lelie on display are drawn from private collections and have therefore not been accessible to the public for many years.

Until 19 Jan, Museum van Loon

LEIDEN CELEBRATES! HIGHLIGHTS FROM AN ACADEMIC COLLECTION A selection of 75 17th-century drawings drawn from the rich collection of Leiden University.

The university’s collection of drawings and prints originated in the gifting of a private collection to the university.

Since then, the university has expanded this collection, these days focusing on contemporary artists.

Until 25 Jan, Rembrandt House Museum SOULMADE. JASPER KRABBÉ MEETS THE TROPENMUSEUM Dutch artist Jasper Krabbé has been given free rein to rummage around the Tropenmuseum archives to pick out objects and art for his personal exhibition. Krabbé roamed past magic wands from Sumatra, carnival costumes from Bolivia, cassava graters from Suriname and the many other secrets of the museum’s archives to pick around 1,000 exhibits on the grounds of intuition and recognisability as well as colours, shapes and materials. The result is a very personal interpretation of the museum’s inner life.

Until 25 Jan, Tropenmuseum BREITNER’S AMSTERDAM: IMPRESSIONS OF THE CITY, 1886-1923 Countless sketches by the Dutch painter George Hendrik Breitner (1857-1923) have been digitalised and are now displayed alongside a selection of his paintings and watercolours. Breitner used his sketchbooks on a daily basis, recording his impressions of a rapidly changing city. Nowadays, his sketches afford the viewer a glimpse into an Amsterdam of horse-drawn trams, busy servants next to stately canal-side homes and rapid urban renewal.

Until 1 Feb, Amsterdam City Archives HOW FAR HOW NEAR Exhibition exploring the ambiguous relationship that the museum has had with much non-Western art. Although the Stedelijk has built up a reputation as a distinguished museum for international contemporary art ever since WWII, artistic developments emerging in large parts of the world have largely been ignored, according to the museum. How Far How Near explores the background and reasons underlying this paradox and includes paintings, photography, video, graphic work and archive documents.

Until 1 Feb, Stedelijk Museum

THE BEST DESIGNED BOOKS A presentation of the best-designed books of 2013. Exhibits include projects by acclaimed publishers to museum catalogues and rare, privately published books.

Until 15 Feb, Stedelijk MAGICAL AFRICA – MASKS AND SCULPTURES FROM THE IVORY COAST Major international exhibition featuring more than 200 enchanting and mysterious art objects from the Ivory Coast, including some world-famous masks and sculptures.

De Nieuwe Kerk, until 15 Feb SUPERBOX. DESIGN ACQUISITIONS Featuring the museum’s latest acquisitions of applied art & design. From woollen sweaters to a 3D-printed wardrobe and a visual identity in porcelain letters, the acquisitions showcase an extraordinary range of techniques and innovative use of materials.

Stedelijk Museum, until 15 Feb ON THE MOVE Subtitled ‘Storytelling in Contemporary Photography and Graphic Design’, this exhibition focuses on recent developments in photography and reveals the numerous ways in which artists and photographers build their narratives in dialogue with graphic designers.

Until 22 Feb, Stedelijk Museum DINING WITH THE TSARS The Hermitage Amsterdam celebrates its fifth anniversary with a lavish exhibition showcasing olden-times dinner-table glories from the court of the Tsars.

Subtitled ‘Fragile Beauty from the Hermitage’, the exhibition presents eight magnificent porcelain services from the collection of the Hermitage in St Petersburg in a setting that aims to allow visitors to experience what the balls and banquets of the Tsar’s court were like.

Until 1 Mar, Hermitage Amsterdam FOREVER VINTAGE Sure to appeal to fashion historians and Downton Abbey fans alike, this exhibition showcases vintage pieces dating from the years between 1920 and 1994 alongside ‘retro’ bags that were inspired by these classics in terms of shape, colours and materials.

Until 1 Mar, Museum of Bags & Purses GIANTS OF THE ICE AGE Embark on a fascinating journey all the way back to prehistory! This major travelling exhibition introduces visitors to extinct Ice Age animals including the mammoth, sabre-tooth tiger and cave bear, while exploring what life was like for Neanderthals 30,000 years ago. Giants of the Ice Age looks at how they hunted, the tools they used and the mystery surrounding the world’s oldest art forms: the European cave and rock paintings.

Until 1 Mar, Amsterdam EXPO

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A-LIST. PART IV THE A-LIST

GALLERIES 1. JANIS RAFA

Rijksakademie resident Janis Rafa presents video work representing life in the outskirts of Athens in a realistic yet poetic way, always balancing between authentic representation and empirical perception.

UNTIL 24 JANUARY Martin van Zomeren Hazenstraat 20

Photo: A Sign of Prosperity to the Dreamer, video still, 2014.

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2. ROBBY MÜLLER COLOR & MOTION

Cinematographer Robby Müller selected early works from Ed van der Elsken’s archive to be presented in dialogue with his own Polaroids. The result explores the relationship between light, camera and photographer.

UNTIL 22 MARCH Annet Gelink Gallery Laurierstraat 187-189

Photo: Robby Müller, Santa Fe, 1985.

3. MEETING POINT II

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Lumen Travo’s Meeting Point exhibitions articulate the gallery’s role as platform for shared artistic perspectives.

This edition presents works

by Franck Bragigand (FR), Meschac Gaba (BEN), Ni Haifeng (CHN) and Otobong Nkanga (NGA).

UNTIL 24 JANUARY Lumen Travo Lijnbaansgracht 314

Photo: Otobong Nkanga, Social Consequences IV The Dreamer, 2014

4. AB-STRECHING THE CANVAS

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Five artists – Andrea Kvas, Mohamed Namou, Alek O, Gino Saccone, Yonatan Vinitsky and Jessica Warboys – explore the medium of painting, stretching its two-dimensional boundaries.

UNTIL 24 JANUARY Jeanine Hofland Gallery De Clercqstraat 62

Photo: Jessica Warboys, Sea Painting, Dunwich, 2012

5. ROBBERT-JAN GIJZEN New work from the Dutch painter, which is based on a combination of abstract expressionism and conceptual art.

17 JANUARY-14 FEBRUARY Slewe Gallery Kerkstraat 105A

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Powered by Capital A www.amsterdamart.com

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS ALI & LAILA, AN AMSTERDAM FAMILY HISTORY Featuring new work by photographer Kadir van Lohuizen, this exhibition focuses on the Dutch-Moroccan family Rharib from Amsterdam-Oost. Van Lohuizen spent a year with them back in 1993, and returned 20 years later to see how things have changed for the family.

Until 8 Mar, Amsterdam Museum DANCING LIGHT, LET IT MOVE YOU Photography and dance are often considered to be poles apart – the former characterised by stillness and the latter by movement – but this exhibition sets out to prove the opposite. Alongside film and video, photography is in fact an ideal means of capturing the primal power of dance, even possessing the potential to illuminate the mysterious, intangible concept of ‘duende’.

Until 8 Mar, Huis Marseille SELAMAT SJABBAT The Jewish Historical Museum dedicates an exhibition to the oft-hidden history of Jews in the former Dutch colonies, drawing on a wealth of documents, objects, interviews, photos, historical film fragments and home movies to give an overview of Jewish life from colonial times until today.

Until 8 Mar, Jewish Historical Museum

teresting periods in film history, between the years 1907 and 1916.

Desmet’s unique collection was added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2011 and provides an unrivalled insight into the film industry in the early 20th century: exciting times that saw the development of film as a form of amusement and widespread experimentation with the possibilities offered by the new medium.

Until 12 Apr, EYE PORTRAIT GALLERY OF THE GOLDEN AGE A collaboration between the Hermitage, Amsterdam Museum and the Rijksmuseum, this exhibition features an impressive selection of more than 30 huge 17th- and 18th-century group portraits, many of which haven’t been on public display for decades. Works selected for the exhibition include some of the largest created during the Dutch Golden Age, painted by artists such as Rembrandt, Govert Flinck and Nicolaes Pickenoy. Due to their immense size, they’re rarely displayed in public, making this new gallery truly one of a kind.

Until 31 Dec 2016, Hermitage Amsterdam COLLECTION D’ART This exhibition tells the story of the renowned and influential Amsterdam gallery Collection d’Art. The gallery was home to numerous developments in contemporary art – from realism through inspired geometry to post-war expressionism – between 1969 and 2004.

17 Jan-19 Apr, Cobra Museum of Modern Art

drawings and 30 prints, the impressive exhibition is organised in collaboration with the National Gallery in London, where it is on display until mid-January. With artworks on loan from leading international museums and private collections, the exhibition offers a unique opportunity to view an exhaustive overview of works painted in the period between around 1652 and Rembrandt’s death in 1669. During these years, the artist experimented with graphic and painting techniques and succeeded in giving his work unprecedented depth, producing some of his most distinctive, innovative works. See pages 8-15.

12 Feb-17 May, Rijksmuseum ED ATKINS – RECENT OUIJA Another Amsterdam premiere as the Stedelijk Museum presents the Netherlands’ first solo exhibition of British artist Ed Atkins.

Atkins is among the vanguard of ‘digital natives’ artists, making extensive use of cutting-edge digital technologies such as high-definition computer-generated imagery, surround-soundtracking and extensive digital compositing. For the exhibition, the 1,100-square-metre lower-level gallery in the new wing is transformed into an immersive environment of monumental operatic videos, collages and drawings.

21 Feb-31 May, Stedelijk Museum

TONY OURSLER – I/O UNDERFLOW A selection of new works by acclaimed American video artist Tony Oursler, created especially for the space in the church. The performances were recorded in his studio in New York but they make the church’s arches, walls and stained-glass windows appear in a completely new light.

Earlier works by the artist are on display in adjoining rooms.

Until 23 Mar, Oude Kerk

STEDELIJK IN THE WAR Major new exhibition exploring the wartime history of the museum based on recent research into the provenance of its artworks.

Many moving and fascinating World War II stories emerged in the course of the research and MELANIE GILLIGAN these are now narrated using A three-part experimental draarchive material and a selection ma, presented in Amsterdam, of works from the museum’s colUtrecht and Haarlem. The Com- lection. Wartime stories include mon Sense is a film investigating those of collectors and artists the transfer of sensations be– many of them Jewish – who tween people. The experimental were forced to hand over their drama is set in a future where art; the transfer of the Stedelijk new technologies enable one per- collection to a huge bunker near son to feel another’s sensations the sea with almost 500 other and experiences. collections; and the museum’s 24 Jan-8 Mar, de Appel arts involvement in helping the ‘Moncentre uments Men’ to retrieve stolen art after the Netherlands was QUALITIES OF VIOLENCE liberated.

Michael Dean makes sculptures 21 Feb-31 May, Stedelijk of cast concrete and other inMuseum dustrial materials, often making JEWS IN THE CARIBBEAN. these materials appear to be in FOUR CENTURIES OF HISconflict with their actual physical TORY IN SURINAM AND attributes: rigid, cold cement CURACAO seems to be soft and flexible.

Dean’s sculptural work is accomWith paintings, prints, ritual panied by short, poetic texts. objects and model ships, numer24 Jan-8 Mar, de Appel arts ous photographs and interviews, centre this exhibition tells the stories of the Jewish communities in the VAN LOON IN FOAM colonial tropics – countries such As the Museum Van Loon – caas Brazil, Curaçao and Surinam nal-side mansion and former – a society in which plantations, residence of the Van Loon family slavery and the mixing of cultures – is closed for renovation, the explayed a large role. tensive photography collection of Jewish Historical Museum, the family is exhibited in Foam, 30 Jan-30 Jun the photography museum handily situated across the canal.

6 Feb-29 Mar, Foam PERMANENT

JEAN DESMET’S DREAM FACTORY The Amsterdam film museum’s major winter exhibition draws on the collection of Jean Desmet to examine one of the most in-

LATE REMBRANDT Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum presents its first comprehensive Rembrandt retrospective to focus on the Dutch Master’s later work. Featuring 40 paintings, 20

LOOK AT ME This photography exhibition attempts to chart the history of the selfie, presenting photographic self-portraits from three distinct periods and cultures: 19th-century colonial Indonesia, West Africa’s decolonisation period of the ’50s and ’60s and multicultural Western society today.

Until 15 Mar, Tropenmuseum GRAND PARADE ART INSTALLATION Acclaimed Asian artist Jompet Kuswidananto created this unique art installation especially for the Tropenmuseum, bringing together dozens of his famous mechanical figures to form an impressive theatrical artwork.

Complete with drums, weapons and horses, Kuswidananto’s figures assemble in a ‘square’ in the museum, springing into life in a spectacular Grand Parade performance.

Until 22 Mar, Tropenmuseum

EXHIBITIONS

ANNE FRANK HOUSE Prinsengracht 263 is where Anne Frank lived in hiding with her family for more than two years

55

jan & feb 2015

STAGE during World War II. Now converted into a museum, it contains a sobering exhibition about the persecution of the Jews and persecution in a wider context.

BODY WORLDS After captivating visitors the world over, the oft-controversial exhibition of human specimens including whole-body plastinates, organs and translucent body slices takes up permanent residence in central Amsterdam.

Featuring an extensive selection of authentic human specimens, the emphasis of this exhibition is on the various aspects of life.

EYE FILM MUSEUM Cinematography museum home to an internationally renowned collection of films covering the whole history of cinema, from the first silent movies to the latest contemporary productions.

GEELVINCK HINLOPEN HOUSE A decadent canal-side mansion showcasing 17th-century patrician wealth, located on the Golden Bend of the grandest canal of all, the Herengracht.

Highlights include ornamental gardens as well as sumptuous themed salons.

HET GRACHTENHUIS (MUSEUM OF THE CANALS) A tribute to the Canal District, with multimedia exhibitits showing how the engineering marvel was built on swampland during the 17th-century expansion.

HORTUS BOTANICUS For nearly four centuries, Amsterdam’s Hortus Botanicus has regaled visitors with its lush greenhouses and exotic plants.

Originally founded in 1638 to serve as a herb garden for the city’s doctors and pharmacists, it’s one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world.

HOUSEBOAT MUSEUM Located in the Hendrika Maria, a former freighter moored on the Prinsengracht,the Houseboat Museum gives fun insight into life on Amsterdam’s canals – a uniquely Dutch way of life.

MUSEUM VAN LOON Closed for renovation. See the photgraphy collection in Foam.

The Van Loons belonged to the city’s governing elite, and were among the founders of the mighty Dutch East India Company back in 1602. The collection comprises paintings, antique furnishings and objects d’art.

ONS’ LIEVE HEER OP SOLDER (OUR LORD IN THE ATTIC) This clandestine church in a 17th-century canal house attic dates back to the Reformation, when Catholics were not permitted to practice their faith in public. Today, it’s one of the city’s most unique attractions in the heart of the Red Light District.

REMBRANDTHUIS The house that Rembrandt called home for nearly 20 years boasts an impressive collection

of drawings and paintings by the Old Master himself as well as by his contemporaries. The Rembrandthuis is also home to 290 of Rembrandt’s etchings – a near complete collection – and an alternating selection is on permanent display.

RIJKSMUSEUM After a decade of unprecedented renovation, the Rijksmuseum finally showed off its new (and old) look in April 2013. Visit the state museum and embark on a journey through Dutch art and history from the Middle Ages and Renaissance right up until the 20th century A not-to-bemissed experience.

HET SCHEEPVAART MUSEUM (NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM) The National Maritime Museum comprises a series of small exhibitions exploring various elements of maritime life. Moored outside is the Amsterdam, an exact replica of a famous Dutch East India Company ship.

ROYAL PALACE The Koninklijk Paleis (Royal Palace) on Amsterdam’s Dam Square is one of three palaces still in use by the Dutch royal family. It is used for state visits, award ceremonies and other official receptions. When the palace is not being used by the royal family, it is open to the public.

Visitors can explore the magnificent interior and discover the rich history of the building.

STEDELIJK MUSEUM The museum’s permanent collection is now on display in the beautifully restored historical building, with fixed spots for highlights such as ‘The Beanery’ by Edward Kienholz and works by Willem de Kooning and Andy Warhol. Half of the ground floor is reserved for the best pieces from the design collection.

TROPENMUSEUM The ‘Museum of the Tropics’ has eight geographically themed permanent exhibitions and an ongoing series of temporary presentations, including both modern and traditional visual arts and photographic work.

WILLET-HOLTHUYSEN MUSEUM The only completely period furnished canal-side house in Amsterdam open daily to the public, with a remarkable collection of Golden Age art and silverware.

ADDRESSES Allard Pierson Museum Oude Turfmarkt 127 www.allardpiersonmuseum.nl Amsterdam City Archives Vijzelstraat 32 http://stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl Amsterdam Expo Gustav Mahlerlaan 24 www.amsterdamexpo.nl Amsterdam Museum Kalverstraat 92 http://amsterdammuseum.nl Anne Frank House Prinsengracht 263-267 www.annefrank.org de Appel arts centre

Prins Hendrikkade 142 www.deappel.nl Museum of Bags & Purses Herengracht 573 www.tassenmuseum.nl Biblical Museum Herengracht 366-368 www.bijbelsmuseum.nl Body Worlds Damrak 66 http://bodyworlds.nl De Brakke Grond Nes 45 www.brakkegrond.nl Cobra Museum Sandbergplein 1, Amstelveen www.cobra-museum.nl Dutch Press Museum Zeeburgerkade 10 http://persmuseum.nl Dutch Resistance Museum Plantage Kerklaan 61 www.verzetsmuseum.org EYE Filmmuseum IJpromenade 1 www.eyefilm.nl Foam Keizersgracht 609 http://foam.org Geelvinck Hinlopen House Keizersgracht 633 http://geelvinck.nl Van Gogh Museum Paulus Potterstraat 7 www.vangoghmuseum.nl Het Grachtenhuis (Museum of the Canals) Herengracht 386 http://hetgrachtenhuis.nl Hermitage Amsterdam Amstel 51 www.hermitage.nl Hollandse Schouwburg Plantage Middenlaan 24 www.hollandscheschouwburg.nl Hortus Botanicus Plantage Middenlaan 2a http://dehortus.nl Houseboat Museum Prinsengracht 296 K www.houseboatmuseum.nl Huis Marseille Keizersgracht 401 www.huismarseille.nl Imagine IC Frankemaheerd 2 www.imagineic.nl Jewish Historical Museum Nieuwe Amstelstraat 1 www.jhm.nl Museum Van Loon Keizersgracht 672 www.museumvanloon.nl Mediamatic Fabriek VOC-kade 10 www.mediamatic.net De Nieuwe Kerk Dam square, www.nieuwekerk.nl Ons’ Lieve Heer Op Solder (Our Lord in the Attic) Oudezijds Voorburgwal 40 www.opsolder.nl Rembrandthuis Jodenbreestraat 4 www.rembrandthuis.nl Rijksmuseum Jan Luijkenstraat 1 www.rijksmuseum.nl Royal Palace Amsterdam Dam square www.paleisamsterdam.nl Het Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Musuem) Kattenburgerplein 1 www.hetscheepvaartmuseum.nl Stedelijk Museum Museumplein 10 http://stedelijk.nl Tropenmuseum Linnaeusstraat 2 www.tropenmuseum.nl Willet-Holthuysen Museum Herengracht 605 www.willetholthuysen.nl

THEATRE, DANCE & COMEDY THEATRE: ANNE This ongoing production is directly based on the Diary of Anne Frank and the Frank family archives. A dedicated translation system is available in English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Russian. Spectators using a free e-tablet can choose between text or audio translations (or both).

Various dates & times in Jan & Feb, Theater Amsterdam, €20-€75 COMEDY: SMART PHONES, DUMB PEOPLE! A new collection of Boom Chicago’s favourite scenes plus brand new improvisations with a focus on high-tech comedy. The show traces life from the Nokia 3310 to the iPhone 6 and from MySpace to Instagram.

Various dates & times in Jan & Feb, Boom Chicago, €22.50 COMEDY: THE SEVEN DEADLY DUTCH SINS The Amsterdam comedy troupe explores life in Dutchland even further. Along the way they touch on Dutch birthdays, weddings, the Royals, health service and more.

Various dates & times in Jan & Feb, Boom Chicago, €22.50 COMEDY: 21 YEARS OF MOCKERY Incorporating high-tech tools and live music, 21 Years of Mockery examines the culture clash that happens when American comedians set up in Amsterdam.

The resulting show is two hours of laughs and edge-of-the-seat improvisation.

Every Thur & Sat, Boom Chicago, various times, €10-€35 COMEDY: EASYLAUGHS This international comedy group performs a hilarious, hi-octane, completely improvised show at the CREA Café every Friday night. There’s also an early-bird show, guest performers, various formats, themes and open podiums.

Every Fri, Crea Café, 20.00 & 21.00, €5-€10 COMEDY: SHOT OF IMPROV Shot of Improv sees the entire Boom Chicago cast take to the stage, so the laughs are guaranteed to keep on comin’. Completely different each week, it’s a show that starts big and never slows down.

Every Sat, Boom Chicago, 22.30, €14 PERFORMANCE: WORLD CHRISTMAS CIRCUS Featuring only the crème de la crème of the circus world, including world-famous clown David Larible.

Until Sun 4 Jan, Royal Theater Carré, various times, €10-€54 PERFORMANCE: WINTER CIRCUS AMSTERDAM Still relatively new to Amsterdam’s festive scene, the Winter Circus takes place in a custom tent next to the ArenA and fea-

tures a mixture of old and new performance techniques.

Until Sun 4 Jan, ArenA Park, various times, €15-€49 PERFORMANCE: THE AMERICAN COUNTRY LEGENDS Dip your cowboy boots into an authentic pool of country tunes during this musical hoedown. A cast of 11 international musicians will walk the line through the history of the genre, from Johnny and Rosanne Cash through to Shania Twain.

Sat 3 Jan, RAI Theater, 15.00 & 20.00, €47.50-€59.50 VIDEO/PERFORMANCE: FIVE TRUTHS Designed by artist Katie Mitchell, this video installation was inspired by five of the 20th century’s most influential theatre directors. It explores their contrasting styles and examines how each would direct an actress playing Ophelia in the infamous ‘mad scene’ from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. It can be experienced at Stadsschouwburg, acting as an introduction to Mitchell’s own Brandstichter series. On show until 4 April.

From Mon 5 Jan, Stadsschouwburg BALLET: SWAN LAKE Once upon a time, a young prince fired an arrow at a swan that transformed into a beautiful woman. So begins one of Tchaikovsky’s greatest masterpieces.

This production of the timeless ballet features The State Opera and Ballet of Tatarstan, one of Russia’s top dance and performing arts companies.

Sun 11 Jan, Meervaart, 14.30, €30-€35 PERFORMANCE: HAMLET This madcap production of Shakespeare’s immortal tragedy features The Tiger Lillies, a cult British band that favours Brechtian cabaret stylings, and Theatre Republique from Copenhagen. With their powers combined, they’ll conjure up a musical theatre bombardment of explosive images, sounds, circus acts, video and puppets.

See page 21.

Fri 16 & Sat 17 Jan, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €20-€37.50 FILM/OPERA: THE MERRY WIDOW The great Renée Fleming stars as the beguiling femme fatale who captivates all Paris in Lehár’s enchanting operetta, seen in a new staging by Broadway virtuoso director and choreographer Susan Stroman. It’s broadcast live from New York in one of Amsterdam’s most striking cinemas.

Sat 17 Jan, Pathé Tuschinski, 19.00 (rescreened on Sun 8 Feb at 11.00) COMEDY: CARL DONNELLY & MARKUS BIRDMAN These two UK comedians are returning to one of Amsterdam’s most popular comedy clubs.

Birdman is a veteran of the scene while Donnelly has appeared in countless fests and clubs and on TV. Sun 18 Jan, Toomler, 20.30, €15

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PART IV THE A-LIST.

STAGE

OPERA: DON GIOVANNI This production of Mozart’s classic opera wowed audiences during a recent run in Switzerland. Conductor Jan Willem de Vriend leads these two performances, which will once again tell the tale of the legendary lothario, who’ll attempt to seduce you with song before he’s engulfed in flames.

Tue 20 & Wed 21 Jan, Royal Theater Carré, 20.00, €19-€75 OPERA: IL VIAGGIO A REIMS Conductor Stefano Montanari and director Damiano Michieletto are teaming up for this production of the classic Rossini opera, which was first performed in 1825. See page 19.

Tue 20 Jan-Tue 3 Feb, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, various times & prices FILM/OPERA: DIE MEISTERSINGER VON NÜRNBERG James Levine returns to Wagner with this epic comedy, performed at the Met in NYC for the first time in eight years.

This performance was filmed live in December 2014 and is rescreened today.

Sun 25 Jan, Pathé Tuschinski, 11.00 COMEDY: SEAN LOCK Like his Brit colleague Alan Davies (see right), Sean Lock is an expert at embracing his inner idiot on TV panel shows, but he’s also a masterful stand-up comedian, having spent years on the UK touring circuit.

Sun 25 Jan, Boom Chicago, 20.00, €17.50 OPERA: RAMBLE TO REIMS Having successfully adapted Der Ring des Nibelungen into the friendlier Ringetje, the Dutch National Opera presents Ramble to Reims: a companion piece to Il viaggio a Reims that is geared specifically toward young audiences (and their advert 22, 29 jan 5 feb

surtitled in english

medea

parents). Please note that this adaptation is sung in Dutch.

Fri 30 Jan-Sun 1 Feb, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, various times & prices

Choice theatre

DANCE: TOROBAKA This production stars Akram Khan & Israel Galvan, two world-famous dancers. It focuses on their efforts to refine and defy the norms of Indian kathak traditions and Spanish flamenco. See page 23.

Mon 2 & Tue 3 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 20.30, €12.50-€47.50 DANCE: JUNIOR COMPANY This young ballet ensemble is an initiative of the Dutch National Ballet, having staged its first performances in 2013. The ensemble is comprised of 12 talented young dancers who’re being trained up as the ballet stars of tomorrow. This tour sees them performing old and new fragments, including dance works by resident choreographer Hans van Manen.

Fri 6 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €10-€35 COMEDY: RICH HALL His delivery is as dry as the desert, but this US comedian has carved out a career for his sharp yet low-voiced insights. Over the past decade Hall has been a big hit in the UK, making frequent appearances on stand-up and panel shows. If you’ve only experienced those segments, it can be quite a shock to discover that his deadpan tales bleed into audience improv and musical interludes.

Sun 8 Feb, Boom Chicago, 20.30, €17.50 PERFORMANCE: DREAM GIRLS The beloved musical will hit the stage at Carré for five performances. Dream Girls follows an American soul group as its three members contend with fame, fortune and the meddling of an opportunistic manager during the tumultuous ’60s and ’70s.

Please note: while the songs remain in English, the narrative is in performed in Dutch.

Wed 11-Thur 19 Feb, Royal Theater Carré, 20.00, €19-€49 THEATRE: THE FORBIDDEN ZONE This new play centres around Claire Haber, a scientist and refugee from Nazi Germany trying to recover from the horrors of World War II while coming to grips with the tragic legacies of her family. It’s part of Katie Mitchell’s Brandstichter series, performed in German and English with Dutch surtitles.

Wed 11-Fri 13 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €20-€37.50 DANCE: JEWELS Originally crafted by dance innovator George Balanchine in 1967, Jewels is a tribute to not only the precious gemstones but also various French, American and Russian styles of ballet. See page 24.

Thur 12-Thur 26 Feb, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, various times, €15-€58

COMEDY: ALAN DAVIES You may be familiar with this UK comedian from his many appearances on British quiz show QI. In that role he famously plays the fool to Stephen Fry’s know-it-all as they quibble over assumed facts. With acting also taking up a chunk of his time, Davies had been off the road for quite some time, but as with so many old pros of the stand-up circuit, when the time came he couldn’t resist the urge to get back on the boards. In this role he thrives as a natural storyteller, mixing up observational skits and more personal moments, delving into truthful family tales. Wed 28 Jan, Meervaart, 20.15, €28

© RAHI REZVAN

DANCE: BUILT TO LAST Led by choreographer Meg Stuart, this dance production follows the triumphs and struggles of a group of performers attempting to convey the spirit and emotions of several masterpieces from the world of classical music. In the process they’ll let themselves be moved by works by Beethoven, Schönberg and more.

Tue 20 Jan, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €20-€37.50

DANCE: SADEH21 This hypnotic dance production has toured the world since its premiere back in 2011. Created by Ohad Naharin in collaboration with Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company, it’ll take you on a fairy-tale-like journey full of electrifying passion and daring choreography. Fri 9 & Sat 10 Jan, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €20-€37.50 COMEDY: DA BOUNCE COMEDY NIGHTS The renowned Da Bounce Comedy Nights crew sets up for another night of raucous laughs in Amsterdam. Each session invites a handful of comics from the US (and sometimes UK), plus Dutch guests and MCs. Fri 13 Feb, Meervaart, 20.30, €25 COMEDY: VALENTINE’S SPECIAL Piercing their arrow directly into the comedic gut rather than the heart, the Boom Chicago crew sets itself up for a night of romance, sex and heartbreak – naturally making for the perfect night out for couples.

Sat 14 Feb, Boom Chicago, time & price to be confirmed PERFORMANCE: TRAUERNACHT Director Katie Mitchell and conductor Raphaël Pichon collaborated on this unique operatic production. It serves as

DANCE: STRIKE ROOT Along with two premieres of new dance cycles, this production includes ‘Safe as Houses’. The piece was created by Dutch choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot in 2001 and was inspired by I Ching, a classic work of Chinese literature. Fri 20-Sun 22 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 20.00, €22.50-€40 a theatrical tribute to the church cantatas composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. Through a tale about four young adults reminiscing about their late father, Trauernacht explores the themes of these timeless compositions. In German with Dutch and English surtitles.

Sat 14 & Sun 15 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, various times, €10-€35 DANCE: INSIDE OUT Dancer and choreographer Conny Janssen is known for shows that are powerful, theatrical and emotional. Inside Out, her latest effort, is sure to feature new talents, seasoned pros, exciting live music and her trademark vibrant style.

Fri 20 Feb, Meervaart, 14.30, €30-€35 OPERA: THE PEARL FISHERS The Dutch Touring Opera breathes new life into this Bizet opera from 1863. Written in his early twenties, the music still

feels youthful and vital, with ‘The Pearl Fisher’s Duet’ remaining one of the most familiar songs in Western opera.

Mon 23-Wed 25 Feb, Royal Theater Carré, 20.00, €15-€70 OPERA: TAMERLANO Händel’s classic opera returns to Amsterdam. The plot concerns Bajazet, a Turkish sultan who was captured by the warrior king Tamerlano in the early 15th century. When Tamerlano develops an unrequited love for his prisoner’s daughter, their entangled fates take a tragic turn.

While performed by the Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Tamerlano and Alcina (below) will be performed in Stadsschouwburg to recreate an authentic, 18th-century theatre experience that includes painted backdrops and a lighting system designed to replicate candlelight.

Tue 24, Thur 26 & Sat 28 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 19.00, €15-€130 OPERA: ALCINA George Frideric Händel’s 1735 operatic masterpiece follows the adventures of Alcina, an enchantress with a complicated love life. She gets much more than she bargained for when she sets her sights on the dashing knight Ruggiero. Alcina makes for a fantastic counterpoint to Tamerlano (above, performed on alternative dates), with the feminine role taking the seductive lead this time round.

Wed 25 & Fri 27 Feb, Stadsschouwburg, 19.00, €15-€130 ADDRESSES Boom Chicago Rozentheater, Rozengracht 117 020 423 0101 www.boomchicago.nl CREA Theater Nieuwe Achtergracht 170 020 525 1400, www.crea.uva Dutch National Opera & Ballet Amstel 3, 020 625 5455 www.operaballet.nl DeLaMarTheater Marnixstraat 404, 0900 3352627 http://delamar.nl Frascati Nes 63, 020 626 6866 www.theaterfrascati.nl The John Adams Institute West-Indisch Huis Herenmarkt 97, 020 624 7280 www.john-adams.nl Meervaart Meer en Vaart 300 020 410 7777 www.meervaart.nl Pathé Tuschinski Reguliersbreestraat 26-34 www.pathe.nl RAI Theater Europaplein, 020 549 1212 www.raitheater.nl Royal Theater Carré Amstel 115/125 0900 2525255, https://carre.nl Stadsschouwburg Leidseplein 26 020 624 2311 www.stadsschouwburg amsterdam.nl Theater Amsterdam Danzigerkade 5 www.theateramsterdam.nl Toomler Breitnerstraat 2, 020 670 7400 www.toomler.nl

57

SPORTS AJAX V FC GRONINGEN the locals in an Amsterdam bar.

Having lost to this team from Sun 25 Jan, Amsterdam ArenA, ArenA Boulevard, www.ajax. the north of the Netherlands FRIDAY NIGHT SKATE nl. 12.30, various prices earlier in the season, Ajax are Get your skates on for the sure to be out for revenge at the JUMPING AMSTERDAM weekly Friday Night Skate, home match. Young star Richaian institution in Amsterdam! ro Živkovic made the move from Celebrating its 56th edition this year, this international event Departing from the Vondelpark, Groningen to Ajax this season, is an annual highlight on the the skating routes take in all recently making his Champion’s Dutch equestrian calendar that areas of the city.

League debut for his new club. never fails to draw the world’s Every Fri, Vondelpark PavilFri 16 Jan, Amsterdam ArenA, ion, www.fridaynightskate.

ArenA Boulevard, www.amster best riders, including Olympic champions. The event includes com. 20.30, free damarena.nl. 20.00, show-jumping and dressage various prices FRIDAY NIGHT RUN competitions, shows, evening VONDELPARKLOOP entertainment, an exhibition Organised by the Phanos atharea plus bars and restaurants. letics association every second A sporting event for the whole Thur 29 Jan-Sun 1 Feb, AmFriday of the month, this free family, the Vondelparkloop sterdam RAI, www.jumping group running event is open weaves through the famous park amsterdam.nl. Various to both recreational and more in Amsterdam, following the times & prices serious sportsters. Beginners main pathways to distances of can join in the 40-minute run at up to 10km. Part of the charm AJAX V AZ a slower tempo and there’s also of the event is its accessibility, the standard one-hour run. so even if you don’t fancy a run, Legendary Ajax manager Louis van Gaal took AZ Alkmaar all Fri 9 Jan & 13 Feb, Olymcome along and support those pic Stadium, www.friday taking part. Following last year’s the way to league cup success in nightrun.nl. 19.30, free successful inaugural illuminated the late Noughties and another footballing legend, Marco van run, the special 10km ‘Light the FRIDAY NIGHT RUN Basten, is currently assistant Night’ makes an appearance on NIEUW-WEST trainer at the club. the eve of the main event.

Thur 5 Feb, Amsterdam ArenA, The district of Nieuw-West gets Sat 17 & Sun 18 Jan, Vondelin on the evening running acpark, www.vondelparkloop.nl. ArenA Boulevard, www.amster damarena.nl. 20.45, tion with their very own Friday Various times & prices various prices Night Run organised by the AJAX V FEYENOORD AAC athletics association. The AJAX V FC TWENTE route varies each week and there The intense rivalry between After winning the league title are two groups to join: one deAjax and the club from Rotin 2009/’10, a year later Twente parting for a 30-minute run and terdam means that fireworks (aka the Tukkers) faced Ajax another that takes on the more are always guaranteed at these in a final match of the season challenging one-hour variant. football matches (especially afDates to be confirmed, Sportter Ajax won the away fixture at showdown for the title. Ajax tripark Ookmeer, Willinklaan 7, Feyenoord earlier in the season). umphed and took home the title (as they did in the subsequent www.aacamsterdam.nl.

And if you don’t manage to get year, the year after that, and the 19.30, free tickets, pull up a pew and join

EVENTS

year after that).

Sun 15 Feb, Amsterdam ArenA, ArenA Boulevard, www.amster damarena.nl. 16.45, various prices

Dijksgracht 2, www.deklim muur.nl. Various times & prices

KNIJN BOWLING Ten-pin bowling for everyone: ICE-SKATING suitable for family events, beginWhen the temperatures dip, the ners or competitive players. One Dutch start dreaming of another of its most popular occasions is frozen winter and the prospect Disco Bowling. of ice-skating outdoors. But Scheldeplein 3, www.knijnbowl even if the canals don’t freeze ing.nl. Various times & prices this year, there are plenty of LASERCITY AMSTERDAM spots in Amsterdam to practice your jumps and twirls: the Jaap Less painful than paintballing, Eden rink is open throughout the laser gaming adventures on winter and a number of smaller offer here are perfect for large rinks pop up around the city and small group outings. (those at Museumplein and VOC-kade 14, www.laser Leidseplein are traditional fagamenamsterdam.nl. Various vourites). times & prices Jaap Eden IJsbaan, Radioweg SKI INN AMSTERDAM 64, www.jaapeden.n. Various times & prices Whether you’re looking to warm up for a winter vacation or just curious to try your hand at a spot of skiing or snowboarding, you can do just that in the heart LOCATIONS of Amsterdam.

KLIMHAL AMSTERDAM WG Plein 281, www.ski-inn.nl.

Various times & prices The perfect place for the beginner and the advanced climber.

SLOTEN GOLF COURSE Its main wall is 21 metres high.

This nine-hole golf course on Naritaweg 48, www.klimhal the outskirts of Amsterdam amsterdam.nl. Various times features both wooded and water & prices areas. Head on to the fairway or DE KLIMMUUR practice your swing at the driving range. Day memberships Rock climbing in the centre of are available.

Amsterdam. Enjoy a fun and Sloterweg 1045, www.golf safe event for beginners, or a baansloten.nl. Open Mon-Fri more challenging climb for the 08.30-18.00, various prices experienced. Various courses are available.

hop on hop off

canal cruise amsterdam

Buy your tickets at canal.nl and receive a 10% discount.

+31 20 217 0501 canal.nl

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create your own sightseeing tour

58

PART IV THE A-LIST.

KIDS & FAMILY ANNE FRANK HOUSE This is the hiding place where Anne Frank wrote her diary during World War II. Quotations from the diary, photographs, films and original objects – including Anne’s diary – all serve to illustrate the events that occurred here. Suitable for children over ten.

Prinsengracht 267, www.anne frank.org. Open daily 09.0019.00, Sat until 21.00; €9, ages 10-17 €4.50 ARTIS ROYAL ZOO Admire the tropical fish in the Aquarium and travel through time in the Planetarium. See giraffes galloping amongst the zebras and wildebeests. Surround yourself with hundreds of fluttering butterflies in the Butterfly Pavilion or stroll through the historical park with its centuries-old trees and a multitude of plants. And don’t miss the latest attraction: Micropia, the world’s first microbe zoo.

Plantage Kerklaan 38-40, www. artis.nl. Open daily 09.0018.00; €19.95, ages 3-9 €16.50 BLEEKMOLENS RACE PLANET Burn off some steam and rubber at this indoor go-karting track. Minimum age for karting is eight years old, minimum height is 1.4 metres; helmets and protective clothing are included. There’s also a large indoor playground, bowling alley and restaurant.

Herwijk 10, www.raceplanet. com. Open Mon-Fri 13.0023.00, Sat & Sun 12.00-23.00; €15.75 for karting, various packages available JAAP EDEN ICE-RINK Amsterdam’s largest and bestknown ice skating centre, with a 400-metre outdoor rink (open October to April), an indoor rink and a beginners’ corner.

Facilities include a restaurant, showers and lockers. Don’t miss the disco skating every Saturday.

Radioweg 64, www.jaapeden.nl.

Various times & prices KINDERKOOKKAFE The ‘Kids Cook Café’ is a delightful and unique restaurant located near the Vondelpark.

Here children (ages five to 12) do absolutely everything to help run the restaurant, including cooking, serving, bartending, tidying up and running the cash register.

Vondelpark 6B, www.kinder kookkafe.nl. Open daily 10.0017.00; various prices LOVERS POWERZONE For some action-packed fun with friends or family head over to the Lovers Powerzone, located just a short walk from Central Station. Strike it big at one of the six glow-in-the-dark bowling alleys or pit yourself against the enemy on the laser-tag battleground.

De Ruyterkade 153, www.lovers powerzone.nl. Various times & prices MADAME TUSSAUDS AMSTERDAM Step into the amazing world of

Madame Tussauds. The collection of wax figures include the gorgeous Brad Pitt, the outrageous Lady Gaga and the brilliant Einstein. Pose for photos with the likes of Justin Bieber and Beyoncé.

Dam 20, www.madametus sauds.nl. Open daily 10.0018.30; €22, ages 5-15 €18, under-5s free MIRANDABAD SWIMMING POOL Subtropical swimming pool complex with a beach, palm trees, several indoor and outdoor pools and wave machines.

Other amenities include squash courts, a solarium and a restaurant.

De Mirandalaan 9, www. mirandabad.nl. Various times & prices PANCAKE BOAT A cosy boat, all-you-can-eat pancakes and a view of Amsterdam’s canals make the Pancake Boat a great activity for all ages. Choose from a number of cruises every week and, for a set price, everyone can eat as many pancakes as they like with a wide variety of tasty toppings.

Ms van Riemsdijkweg opposite nr 38, www.pannenkoekenboot. nl. Various times & prices

advertorial

Highlight OBA

FEEL AT HOME AT THE OBA Step through the doors of one of the branches of the Public Library Amsterdam (OBA). With a central library and 25 branches across town, there’s always an OBA nearby. The Central Library on Oosterdokseiland, with an area of 28,000 square metres, is the largest library in the Netherlands and well worth a visit. On the 7th floor you get a spectacular view of the city.

All branches of the OBA con be visited for free. As a member of the OBA you can also borrow materials and use the internet and WiFi. You also get 50% off tickets for OBA activities and can quietly read your favourite newspaper in peace, because the OBA has an extensive collection of international newspapers and magazines. English, German and French books are also available.

AGENDA PUBLIC FLAMENCO MASTERCLASS BY FARRUQUITO Dancing in the library? Yes! During the Flamenco Biënnial, Juan Manuel Fernández Montoya-Farruquito gives a unique masterclass to professional dancers that visitors can watch. Every 45 minutes, two professional dancers receive a lesson from the maestro, giving the audience a unique insight into the flamenco tradition.

Where Farruquito dances, the audience becomes electrically charged. He leaves no one untouched.

Tue 27 Jan, Theater van ’t Woord, Central Library, Oosterdokskade 143, 20.00.

OBA members €5; regular ticket €10

SCHEEPVAARTMUSEUM (NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM) Het Scheepvaartmuseum has a variety of exhibitions designed just for kids. Sal & Lori and the Circus at Sea is an underwater fairy-tale for the youngest visitors, while older children will enjoy The Tale of the Whale or See You in the Golden Age. Moored just outside the museum is the Dutch East India Company ship Amsterdam.

Kattenburgerplein 1, www. scheepvaartmuseum.nl. Open daily 09.00-17.00; €15, ages 5-17 €7.50, under-5s free SCIENCE CENTER NEMO NEMO introduces young and old to the world of science and technology. Five floors are filled with exhibitions, theatre performances, films, workshops and demonstrations. Smell, hear, feel and see how the world works. Everything is interactive!

Oosterdok 2, www.e-nemo.nl.

Open daily 10.00-17.30; €15, under-4s free TROPENMUSEUM JUNIOR Tropenmuseum Junior was created especially for children from ages six to 13 and is focused on non-Western cultures. The interactive exhibits introduce children to new cultures in playful ways that spark their curiosity.

Linnaeusstraat 2, www.tro penmuseum.nl. Open Tue-Sun 10.00-17.00 (& Mon during public and school holidays); €12.50, ages 4-18 €8, under-4s free.

TUNFUN TunFun is an indoor paradise for children under 12. Under adult supervision, kids can enjoy hours of fun in a huge 4000m2 indoor playground.

There’s something for every

For more information, see www.oba.nl/english age and interest: soft slides and mini ball pool for babies and infants, trampolines and jungle gyms for the older kids and crafting and painting for the future Van Goghs.

Mr Visserplein 7, www.tunfun. nl. Open daily 10.00-18.00; ages 1-12 €8.50, accompanying adults free VERZETSMUSEUM JUNIOR The Dutch Resistance Museum details the history of the Dutch Resistance in World War II during the country’s occupation

by Germany from May 1940 to May 1945. A ‘Junior’ building shows young visitors (ages nine to 14) how four peers lived during wartime.

Verzetsmuseum, Plantage Kerklaan 61, www.verzetsmuseum. org. Open daily 10.00-17.00, Sat-Mon from 11.00; €8, ages 7-15 €4.50, under-7s free

EVENTS WORLD CHRISTMAS CIRCUS Featuring only the crème de la crème of the circus world, the internationally renowned World Christmas Circus returns to this former circus theatre for another seasonal run. Already confirmed for this year’s show is the world-famous clown David Larible, while a host of other major names are sure to be making an appearance.

Until Sat 3 Jan, Royal Theater Carré, Amstel 115, https://carre. nl. Various times; €10-€54 SUNDAY MARKET Artists, designers and craftspeople flog their wares and delicious food and drink is on offer to fuel your shopping frenzy.

There’s always some form of en-

tertainment or crafty workshop on, and plenty of kids’ clothing and toy stalls to browse.

Sun 4 Jan (New Year’s Market) & Sun 1 Feb, Westergasfabriek, www.sundaymarket.nl. 12.0018.00; free WINTER CIRCUS AMSTERDAM The Winter Circus takes place in a custom tent next to the ArenA and features a mixture of old and new performance techniques – acrobatics and plate-spinning will be joined by the likes of a motorcycle stunt team, Russian juggler Semen Viktor Krachinov and horse whisperer Guillome Assire Becar.

Until Sun 4 Jan, ArenA Park, www.wintercircusamsterdam. nl. Various times; €15-€49 AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL The Amsterdam Light Festival puts the beautiful city centre and its canals in the limelight.

Centred on the theme of ‘A Bright City’, this visual feast for young and old showcases a spectacular selection of illuminated artworks. There is a dedicated ‘Water Colors’ canal cruise and an ‘Illuminade’ walking route. An extensive side programme sees a host of activities at museums, restaurants and other locations across the city.

Until Sun 18 Jan, various locations, www.amsterdam lightfestival.com. Various times & prices THE IMPRESARIO Two ‘prima donnas’ battle it out in this (timeless) story of fame and vanity. Composed and – in this case – performed by a marionette version of Mozart himself. Tip: take a behind-thescenes look into the world of marionette theatre on 22 Feb. Sun 25 Jan 15.00; Sun 8 Feb 15.00; Amsterdam Marionette Theatre, Nieuwe Jonkerstraat 8, www.marionettentheater.nl. €16, under-14s €7.50 ICE*AMSTERDAM A unique ice-skating experience on Amsterdam’s Museumplein, with the Rijksmuseum as a phenomenal backdrop. Head along for a spot of skating or simply to watch the action and take in the great atmosphere. Skates are available for hire.

Until 1 Feb; Museumplein, www.iceamsterdam.nl advert

maria stuart surtitled in english

15, 22, 29 jan

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jan & feb 2015

GAY & LESBIAN ZONDERBROEK Every Friday and Sunday night and every first Saturday of the NAKED SWIMMING month, drop all your pretences The Marnixbad pools contain and dance without pants at Club much less chlorine than most – Church in Amsterdam. which is good news since you’ll be Every Fri & Sun, Church, various exposing your sensitive bits. times, €10 Every Tue, Marnixbad, 21.00, GAY PUB CRAWL various prices Does exactly what it says in the TUESDAY BLUESDAY tin, taking in ‘Gay Street’s finest Club night with a special focus drinking establishments. on blues, soul and contemporary Every Sat, departs Taboo, 20.00 music.

IT’S SHOWTIME FOLKS Every Tue, Same Place, 21.00 It’s show time almost every night DRINK & COCKTAIL EVENING at Lellebel, but Saturdays are Every Thursday, enjoy a especially fabulous, with the bar’s mouth-watering cocktail at drag most glamorous stars coming show bar Lellebel on the corner of together.

Rembrabdtplein.

Every Sat, Lellebel, 20.00 Every Thur, Lellebel, 20.00 BUBBLES & BITES BLUE Free bites from 17.00-1900; cheap Kooky clubbing with Amsterbubbles – just €2.50 – all night. dam’s drag supremo Jennifer Every Sun, Prik, 16.00 Hopelezz. Drinks are just €2.50.

DOUBLE HAPPY HOUR Every Thur, Church, 22.00, €5 Because why wouldn’t you want THE PONY CLUB to start the working week with Three floors of DJs spin an enera hangover? Line up for bargetic mix of pop, disco, house and gain-priced cocktails and shots. electro alongside performances Every Sun, Taboo, 18.00 to lift your spirits. Arrive before LADY GALORE’S DRAG NIGHT midnight and get in for free.

Every Thur, Club NYX, 23.00, €5, Come and join Lady Galore and free before midnight her wonderful assistant Annie Alcohol along with some guest THANK GOD IT’S FRIDAY performers and surprises.

Celebrate the weekend with Every Sun, Amstel Fifty Four, tunes, nibbles and drinks.

20.00 Every Fri, Engel van Amsterdam, SUNDAY CAROUSEL 17.00, free Be transported to exotic climes THANK GODDESS, IT’S FRIDAY with Arabian and Turkish music Welcome the weekend with live courtesy of old and new divas performances and an open stage. from Lellebel.

Every Fri, Lellebel, 20.00 Every Sun, Lellebel, 22.00

REGULAR EVENTS

ONE-OFF EVENTS UNLEASHED FETISH UNDERGROUND Welcome in the New Year with kink, bubbles and sparkles at this adult playground. Play areas, equipment, a maze of seduction and high-energy DJ sets round out the evening.

Sat 3 Jan, Panama, 22.00, €30 KISS BANG AFFAIR A no-nonsense party with friendly staff, sexy house beats, a live video booth and your chance to be voted Miss Kiss or Mister Bang – the gay singles of the month.

Sat 3 Jan & 7 Feb, Abe, 22.0005.00 GAY MOVIE NIGHT Nurse your hangover in the dark, while enjoying a screening of the gems of gay cinema.

Wed 7 Jan & 4 Feb, Pathé de Munt, 21.00, €10 NETHERBEARS AT THE QUEEN’S HEAD Bi-weekly get-together by Netherbears, the slightly less stocky bear men (according to their website).

Sun 11 & 25 Jan, 8 & 22 Feb, The Queen’s Head, www.netherbears. nl, 19.00 FURBALL Hairy men dance party for the butch & bears. Men only.

Sat 17 Jan, Church, 22.0005.00, €10 GARBO FOR WOMEN Single ladies strut their stuff at this regular ladies-only meet-up.

Sat 17 Jan & 21 Feb, Strand West, 18.00, €8

SPANK! For those who’ve been naughty, an afternoon of spanking, caning, OTK (over the knee), flogging and all types of corporal punishment. Men only.

Sun 18 Jan, Church, 16.0020.00, €10 HORSEMEN & KNIGHTS Big willy gay sex party. Dress code: naked or underwear. Drop ’em and if you measure up, entrance is free.

Sun 18 Jan & 15 Feb, The Warehouse, 15.00, €8 UNDERCOVER Hot naked mask party! Masks supplied at door (€5 deposit).

Men only.

Sat 24 Jan, Church, 22.00 LGBTQ OOSTERPART & LGBTQ CAFE Low-key neighbourhood drinks in the east of the city.

Fri 30 Jan & 27 Feb, Eden Amsterdam Manor Hotel, 21.00, free LADZ – THE WINTER WHITE EDITION Special white-themed winter edition of the gay dance party for lads, scallies, gabbers, sneakerand sportswear boys, with tunes courtesy of DJs Glaucio Duarte and RW. Sat 31 Jan, Church, 22.0005.00, €10 RAPIDO Popular gay circuit party with international DJs attended mainly by men, almost all of whom take of their shirts; many wear just sport shorts.

Sun 15 Feb, Paradiso, 15.00, €25/€30

ADDRESSES Abe Amstelstraat 30 www.clubabe.com Amstel Fifty Four Amstel 54 www.amstelfiftyfour.nl Church Kerkstraat 52 www.clubchurch.nl Eden Amsterdam Manor Hotel Linnaeusstraat 89 www.lgbtqoosterpark. blogspot.com Engel van Amsterdam Zeedijk 21 www.engelamsterdam.nl Lellebel Utrechtsestraat 4 www.lellebel.nl Marnixbad Marnixplein 1 www.hetmarnix.nl Club NYX Reguliersdwarsstraat 42 http://clubnyx.nl Panama Oostelijke Handelskade 4 www.panama.nl Pathé de Munt Vijzelstraat 15 , www.pathe.nl Prik Spuistraat 109 www.prikamsterdam.nl The Queen’s Head Zeedijk 20 www.queenshead.nl Same Place Nassaukade 120 www.sameplace.nl Strand West Stavangerweg 900 www.garboforwomen.nl Taboo Reguliersdwarsstraat 45 www.taboobar.nl The Warehouse Warmoesstraat 96 www.warehouseamsterdam.com

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FIRST CLASS TICKETS LAST MINUTE PRICE LASTMINUTETICKETSHOP.NL

VISITOR INFORMATION

VISITOR INFORMATION

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jan & feb 2015

Find u s @ iamst erda .com m

I amsterdam Visitor Information Centres are your one-stop shops for everything you need to know about the city.

THE AMSTERDAM & REGION DAY TICKET This ticket entitles you to unlimited travel in Amsterdam and the surrounding region – day and night – on bus, tram and metro for 24 hours. Within the region are great tourist attractions including historic Haarlem, the fortified towns and castles of the fortress stretch, historical country estates along the River Vecht, and the peaceful Amstel River countryside – and of course, your journey to and from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. A ticket costs just €13.50 and can be purchased from Visitor Information Centres or from GVB, EBS and Connexxion ticket points.

VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRES FOR INFORMATION AND TO BOOK EXCURSIONS, VISIT ONE OF THE VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRES IN AMSTERDAM: Tel: +31 (0)20 702 6000 Open Mon-Fri 09.00-17.00 info@iamsterdam.com www.iamsterdam.com http://twitter.com/Iamsterdam VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRE CENTRAL STATION* Stationsplein 10 (across from Central Station) Open Mon-Sat 09.00-17.00; Sun 09.00-16.00 *Last Minute Ticket Shop VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRE SCHIPHOL AIRPORT Schiphol Airport, Arrivals 2 at Schiphol Plaza Open daily 07.00-22.00

I AMSTERDAM CITY GUIDE APP Visit Amsterdam and leave your guidebook at home! You’ll find everything you need to know on the I amsterdam City Guide app. Download for free at iTunes App Store (for iPhone, iPad & iPod touch), Google Play Store (for Android devices).

LAST MINUTE TICKET SHOPS Enjoy discounted theatre tickets on the day of performance. Check the Last Minute Ticket Shop screens and buy tickets at the following locations for same-day performances: VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRE CENTRAL STATION Stationsplein 10 (across from Central Station) Open Mon-Sat 09.00-17.00; Sun 09.00-16.00 STADSSCHOUWBURG AMSTERDAM Leidseplein 26 Open Mon-Sat 12.00-18.00 AMSTERDAM PUBLIC LIBRARY (OBA) Oosterdokskade 143 Open Mon-Fri 10.00-19.30; Sat & Sun 10.00-18.00 www.lastminuteticketshop.nl

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beyond amsterdam

CLOSING

BEYOND

‘AS CAMP AND FUN AS IT IS NERDISHLY PACKED WITH FACTS, PRODUCTION SKETCHES, STORYBOARDS AND COSTUME DRAWINGS.’

A’DAM

THE UK’S GUARDIAN RECOMMENDS DESIGNING 007.

Get out of town for these don’t-miss attractions beyond the city limits.

CONCEPT SKETCH FOR YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, BY KEN ADAM

text Sharon Wezeman

DESIGNING 007 ‘The name’s Bond, James Bond.’ Ian Fleming’s legendary Secret Service agent has, for five decades, been behind the most successful franchise in the history of cinema – from 1962’s Dr. No to Skyfall (2012). Rotterdam’s Kunsthal presents a unique exhibition celebrating the film hero’s indelible influence on art, music, fashion, technology, design and lifestyle. Over 500 gadgets, costumes, iconic cars, storyboards, graphic designs and props create an unparalleled multimedia experience. On the 30th of January, visit the exhibition in the evening with Bond-style cocktails. Shaken, not stirred, of course.

Until 8 February Kunsthal, Westzeedijk 341 Rotterdam www.kunsthal.nl

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, trains to Rotterdam take 60min.

WINTER WONDERLAND Sleigh bells ring, are you listening… Grease your blades: the fairy-tale ice rink in Zaanstad is open for a few more weeks. Of course, you can show off your skating skills and pirouette to your heart’s content on your own, but you can also participate in various events. There will be ice hockey, skating and curling clinics and the evenings are filled with performances and surprise acts.

Glühwein and warming winter food complete the picture.

Until 23 January Hemkade 48, Zaanstad www.winterlandzaanstad.nl

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, buses to Zaanstad take around 30min.

INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM Every year around the last week of January the Netherlands’ movie buffs take the train to Rotterdam for film Nirvana: the International Film Festival Rotterdam. They’re rewarded with a sneak peak at artistic indie films that have been making news on the festival circuit. Highlight include Austrian director Jessica Hausner’s take on the last days of German Romantic writer Heinrich von Kleist, Amour Fou, and Tim Burton’s latest, Big Eyes, a study of the talent behind the kitsch ’60s images of waifs with enormous eyes.

21 January-1 February Various locations, Rotterdam www.iffr.com

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, trains to Rotterdam take 60min.

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‘THOUGH NOT AS OLD AS CANNES OR BERLIN, ROTTERDAM QUICKLY TOOK ITS PLACE AS ONE OF THE LARGER AND MOST SIGNIFICANT FILM FESTIVALS IN EUROPE.‘ INDIEWIRE SINGS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ROTTERDAM’S PRAISES.

‘EVERY BAD SITUATION IS A BLUES SONG WAITING TO HAPPEN.’ SEE IF AMY WINEHOUSE WAS RIGHT, AT THE BLUES FESTIVAL DELFT.

DELFT BLUE(S) Know your Chicago from your Texas blues? Love blues rock? And acoustic Delta? The Blues Festival Delft (see what they did there?) is the biggest indoor blues event in Holland.

More than 50 bands, from all over the world, perform at cafés and restaurants throughout the city. The line-up’s yet to be announced, but it’s sure to be impressive.

19-22 February Various locations, Delft www.delftblues.nl

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, trains to Delft take 60min.

© GERRIT SCHREURS

STILL FROM AMOUR FOU

SNEEUWBAL WINTER FESTIVAL

CADANCE FESTIVAL Calling all modern dance fans: for 17 enchanting days the CaDance Festival takes over The Hague’s finest theatres, with established and upand-coming choreographers exploring such themes as good and evil, and love and life, in a contemporary reflection of subjects that have always been addressed in the history of the arts.

The performances will test the boundaries of contemporary dance, with interpretations of such classic texts as The Odyssey, L’Étranger and Milton’s Paradise Lost. Workshops and talks round out the programme.

30 January-15 February Various locations, The Hague www.cadance.nl

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, trains to The Hague take around 50min.

Rise and shine from your deep hibernation, put on your funkiest winter outfit and go completely wild at the ‘Snowball Winter Festival’ in Transwijk Park, Utrecht. You get to chance to sing in the Skew Skate, show your dance moves in the Silly Igloo and when the partying tires you out, you can relax around the campfire.

31 January Transwijk Park, Utrecht www.sneeuwbalfestival.nl

GETTING THERE: From Central Station, trains to Utrecht take around 30min.

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THEN AND NOW

then & now

PRINSENGRACHT, 1966 Tracing the city’s history, one image at a time.

65

NEXT ISSUE

5 DAYS OFF Presenting an entrancing cross section of the latest in electronic music.

4-6 March Various locations https://5daysoff.nl

MAR & APR 2015

 COR JARING: PHOTOGRAPHS 1965-1975

DEMONSTRATION PRINSENGRACHT, 1966. PHOTO COR JARING

The ultimate spring awakening, 7 million bulbs stand to attention at this landscaped flower garden.

20 March-17 May Lisse www.keukenhof.nl

LA PERRUCHE ET LA SIRÈNE, 1952



THE OASIS OF MATISSE

KING’S DAY

The first Dutch survey of Henri Matisse in over 60 years.



28 March-16 August Stedelijk Museum www.stedelijk.nl

The city turns orange for a day of national celebration, with markets, street parties and more.

27 April Across town

ROZE FILMDAGEN



13 March-12 July Amsterdam City Archives Vijzelstraat 32 www.stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl

KEUKENHOF



In the turbulent and colourful Swinging Sixties, Amsterdam awoke from political and social indifference, and Cor Jaring (1936-2013) was there to capture it all. Destined for a life in Amsterdam’s harbour, Jaring escaped his fate by the simple fact that he got seasick just catching the ferry to Amsterdam-Noord. Instead, he picked up a camera and, thoroughly at home with the motley crew that made up Amsterdam’s counterculture, recorded the city’s emerging youth movements – everything from hippies in the Vondelpark to John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Bed-In for Peace (1969) and the ‘happenings’ of social provocateurs, the Provos. This last movement (celebrating its 50th anniversary this year) organised a series of demonstrations demanding such socially progressive programmes as free public bicycles, state-supported squatting and a network of women’s sexual health and family planning centres. Police (over)reaction and media attention came to play central roles in the Provo aesthetic, until the general public began to side with the protestors, resulting in the dismissal of the police commissioner and eventually the Amsterdam mayor. As they became accepted by the mainstream – with a Provo representative even winning a seat in the municipal elections – Provo’s founders disbanded, staging a mock funeral for the movement in May 1967. But their legacy lives on in Jaring’s iconic images. See them in the Amsterdam City Archives.

Amsterdam’s LGBT film festival returns for its 18th edition.

11-22 March Het Ketelhuis www.rozefilmdagen.nl

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CLOSING

ON THE WAY

OUT

We asked people leaving Schiphol Airport for their Amsterdam advice.

photos & text Zlatka Siljdedic

on the way out

NADINE BIGGS (23) & JESSE PHINLAYSON (23), STUDENT & CARPENTER FROM VICTORIA,CANADA ‘Even though it wasn‘t the best day, weatherwise, to spend a stopover in Amsterdam, we made the most of it and had a lovely time walking around town, having a coffee and taking our photo in front of the I amsterdam letters here at Schiphol Airport. Now we‘re on our way to Malta for two weeks, but we definitely want to come back for tulip season.’

SUMIT GUPTA (28) & NITIKA KANODIA GUPTA (28), FROM NEW DELHI, INDIA ‘We‘re going to spend two days in Amsterdam before our next destination, New York. We‘ve noticed it‘s quite cold here – much colder than in Delhi – so we plan on spending a lot of time in cafés enjoying Amsterdam's nightlife and drinking cognac to warm us up!’

EVA DIPIERO (43), ENTREPRENEUR FROM TORINO, ITALY Eva had just arrived and while taking her picture, two of her friends spotted us and started hugging her. The girlfriends were meeting in Amsterdam to spend three days of quality time together, shopping and partying.

JENNIFER WANG (40), DISTRICT SALES MANAGER FOR KLM, FROM XIAMEN, CHINA ‘I came to Amsterdam on a business trip with a group of delegates from the governement of Xiamen to present it as a holiday destination. I didn‘t get to see much of the city, but we gave a presentation at the Crowne Plaza Hotel – which was very nice.’

SHINESS GUITARD (20) & ESTEBAN LUCIANO (20), LAW STUDENT & MODEL FROM NICE, FRANCE ‘We just arrived and are looking for the train to get to our hotel in the city centre. We‘re staying for five days and plan on visiting some museums and also want to go to a concert and clubbing.‘

editor-in-chief Bart van Oosterhout art director & basic design Loes Koomen designer Zlatka Siljdedic copy editor Megan Roberts contributors Anne-Rose Bantzinger, Dara Colwell, Lauren Comiteau, Karin Engelbrecht, Elisah Jacobs, Willemijn Kruijssen, Bregtje Schudel, Nina Siegal, Mark Smith, Sharon Wezeman, Inger van der Ree, Monique Wijbrands/Saltystock listings EdenFrost (Tamar Bosschaart, Steven McCarron & Dave Nice), Christiaan de Wit cover illustration TYPEX

Het Grachtenhuis Herengracht 386

Tram 1, 2, 5 – stop Koningsplein

Book your tickets at museumo hecanals.com

Come listen to the story of our canals nr. 40 on City Card map

Museum of the Canals

Shop the world’s most exclusive brands, such as Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Burberry, Gucci, Rado and Longines. Visit our flagship store in Amsterdam on Dam Square and receive your Tax Refund on the 4th floor.

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