A-mag – Amsterdam Magazine: Vol 3, No. 6

SIGHTS & SOUNDS COMPLETE LISTINGS DANCING & DINING ART & FASHION NOV & DEC 2015

2 dis 5% Lig count h t can t Fest o al c ival rui se

WINTER NIGHTS

THE AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL, ICE-SKATING, HOLIDAY CONCERTS AND IDEAS TO KEEP YOU WARM IN WINTERY AMSTERDAM PLUS SINTERKLAAS FOR BEGINNERS

Vol 3 NO 6 €3.50

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AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

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The only difference from home is waking up in a different continent KLM presents its new World Business Class. With Dutch Design at its heart, it offers the perfect mix of comfort, individuality and personal space. The full-flat seats with smart privacy screens provide 207 centimeters of horizontal space. Together with the personal attention of our crew, the new WBC has all the comforts of home. Except home doesn’t bring you to the other side of the world. klm.com/newwbc

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AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

VOL 3 N0 6 NOV & DEC 2015

LITTLE SLAVES

P.06 WHAT’S NEW? City confidential: exciting new Amsterdam initiatives, events and venues – including your Top 5 must-do things this issue.

P.10 UP CLOSE Sinterklaas for newbies, and the UN stance on the growing ‘Black Piet’ controversy.

Plus, the Birds of Paradise who flaunt their colours in a city that still welcomes eccentricity.

P.19 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Amsterdam dons its winter cloak with the bright artworks of the Light Festival, the acrobatics of the Christmas Circus, and our critics’ other picks of the best exhibitions, concerts and events.

P.31 EAT, DRINK & CHIC Neighbourhood watch: the Red Carpet project explained, plus the hottest new shops & food trends and our selection of the best restaurants and cafés.

P.62 CLOSING Get out of town with our excursion tips; once upon a time in Amsterdam; top tips from visitors on the way out; colophon.

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.

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

STAY IN TOUCH: iamsterdam.com facebook.com/iamsterdam twitter.com/iamsterdam youtube.com/videoiamsterdam

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

© MARIE-CHARLOTTE PEZÉ

CONTENTS

When I was in nursery school, Sinterklaas visited us each year. He sat in front of the classroom on a ‘throne’ and then, from his ‘big book’, he read our names one by one and mention first the good, and then the bad things we had done that year. We froze as soon as he came to the bad stuff, as the Zwarte Pieten (Black Petes) who accompanied him started rolling their eyes and looking in our direction with mean faces, while holding up their burlap sacks and wag their canes to intimidate us.

We were terrified. Really, we did not laugh at these figures. I’m talking 1967 and thereabouts, when Zwarte Piet had not yet become the jolly creature of today’s Sinterklaasfeest. This was a brute that threatened to beat you up, throw you in a sack and abduct you to Spain, undoubtedly to make you his little slave.

What eased our tension considerably was the sight of another Sinterklaas passing our school at the same time, on a real horse and with a much larger following of Zwarte Pieten. There it was, exposed in broad daylight: the Big Lie of this supposedly 900year old Saint and his helpers. But thinking that we’d collectively fall from our belief would discount the ingenuity of Dutch parents and teachers. They came up with the story that Sinterklaas needed many helpers to dole out so many presents.

I guess we just let ourselves be bribed by all the gifts. So much so that, when our parents finally told us that the story was a hoax, my sister threatened to rat them out to Sinterklaas himself.

If you’re visiting Amsterdam from November onwards, there will be no escaping Sinterklaas and his black helpers, whose ‘racist’ depiction has become, over the past ten years, the subject of a heated debate which has escalated all the way up to a UN committee. I politely decline to take part in it, but I secretly hope for revenge.

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OPENING

What’s new? (in town)

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

nov & dec 2015

‘IT’S A CALMER, MORE SANE ENVIRONMENT IN AMSTERDAM. THE PEOPLE, I FIND, CAN BE EXUBERANT WITHOUT BEING HYSTERICAL.’ ACTOR COLIN FIRTH CLEARLY WASN’T HERE FOR KING’S DAY.

text Mark Smith

EDGE OF REASON A new addition to the Amsterdam skyline is being heralded as the most innovative and sustainable office building in the whole world.

Obviously, we’re talking more than just solar panels here – although naturally, The Edge (as this smartypants office block in Zuidas is known) has enough of those to heat and cool the building, as well as charge all the laptops and smartphones inside it. Speaking of which, the building has its own app, allowing occupants to control their individual heating and lighting conditions. Even the temperamental Dutch weather is put to good use here – rainwater is collected and used to flush toilets and to irrigate the garden. ‘We think we can be the Uber of buildings,’ says developer Coen van Oostrom. Please note that The Edge is not to be confused with the lead guitarist of rock band U2. www.the-edge.nl

HIVE TALK The developers of a new Amsterdam hospitality brand are forecasting the end of the hotel room as we know it. Opening early 2016, Zoku (which is Japanese for family, tribe or clan) claims to be a new category altogether: a ‘hive’ of home/ office hybrid lofts that promotes ‘effortless interaction with other residents’. If the photos on its website are to be believed, that includes pillow fights. www.livezoku.com

IN THE MONEY The whole idea of drastic financial cuts is looking much more attractive now that the Cut Throat Barber – formerly of Warmoesstraat in the Red Light District – has set up its coffee-and-tattoo venerating premises inside Amsterdam’s stock exchange building. The arrival of owners Tom Sadd and James Reichwein on the Beursplein is actually a case of history repeating itself, as there used to be a barber’s salon here between 1934 and 1996. Back then the shop was the exclusive preserve of employees, ensuring that traders looked presentable before hitting the floor. These days Cut Throat is open to all, and the establishment has expanded its horizons beyond just men’s hair, boasting a menu of American-style man food and cocktails. The latter are not recommended if you’re going to spend the day playing the markets. www.cutthroatbarber.nl

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‘HERE PEOPLE CYCLE WITH A RECKLESS SWAGGER, TALKING ON THE PHONE AND EATING BREAKFAST.’ WRITER DAVID NICHOLLS SUMS UP DUTCH COURAGE WHEN IT COMES TO BIKING.

‘HAD FUN LAST NIGHT MAN!! LOVE YOU @ MARTINGARRIX’ A BESOTTED JUSTIN BIEBER AFTER AN EVENING WITH AMSTERDAM’S UNOFFICIAL CELEBRITY TOUR GUIDE.

© CARLY WOLLAERT

BEATLE JUICE Previously unseen footage of the Beatles that’s to be released alongside a new DVD version of the Fab Four’s 1 album will include some private film shot in Amsterdam.

Given that the Beatle bits will accompany a surround sound version of 1969’s ‘The Ballad of John and Yoko’, it’s thought that the footage will document the couple’s Bed-In at the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel.

WHAT THE HACK? By the time you read this, the world’s first ever Growth Hacking academy will be in session in – you guessed it – Amsterdam. The immersive course, as masterminded by the city’s Centre for Entrepreneurship, will school its charges in the art of using creativity, analytical thinking and social metrics to sell products and gain exposure for startups. Happy to have cleared that one up for you. www.growthtribe.nl

DISTURBING READING Amsterdam-born hotel brand CitizenM has collaborated with photographer Desiré van den Berg on a coffee table book featuring, not the sights, but rather the people lurking around its home cities of Paris, London, New York and, (naturally) Amsterdam. One of the fascinating Amsterdam sightings recorded in the book, entitled Do Disturb: Encounters with Modern Day Nomads, is Alan (pictured), a British record collector who never travels without a notebook.

www.citizenm.com/dodisturb

ALL HAIL It’s hitch-hiking, but not as we know it. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for bikes sporting canary yellow luggage racks as you make your way around the city: they’re part of a new scheme designed to encourage interaction between Amsterdammers and tourists. Described as being ‘a bit like couch-surfing on a bike, without the smelly socks in your living room’, the scheme invites visitors to hail a local cyclist with a shout of ‘backie’.

Martin Luyckx of YellowBackie told The Guardian: ‘As couchsurfing proves, there are a lot of people who like to make friends while showing their love or pride for their city [...] and the people you meet on your luggage rack can show you around when you visit their hometown. So it’s a winwin for both.’Until someone loses a limb, of course. www.yellowbackie.org

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nov & dec 2015

OPENING WHAT’S NEW?

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‘THE CITY’S SOAP FACTORIES AGREED TO COLOUR THEIR SOAP GREEN, SO AS TO INCREASE THE PRODUCT IDENTITY OF AMSTERDAM SOAP ACROSS EUROPE.’

‘AND THAT’S HOW WE GOT ARRESTED AT THE STINKERLAAS PARADE.’

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YOUNG ADULT AUTHOR KEREN DAVID OFFERS A FRAGRANT TAKE ON DUTCH FESTIVE TRADITION.

HISTORIAN RUSSELL SHORTO ON HOW THIS CITY CLEANED UP IN THE BRANDING STAKES.

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GRAND DESIGNS

www.sofitel-legend-thegrand.com

TOP 5 to do

© FLORIAN RICHER

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Located between swandotted canals in the heart of the city, the Sofitel Legend The Grand is one of Amsterdam’s most celebrated buildings, chosen as the wonderland setting for the wedding of Queen Beatrix back in 1966. It’s only right, then, that the hotel should receive the iconic blue-and-white treatment from the Royal Goedewaagen ceramics company, who’ve released this dinky hand-painted version of The Grand in a limited run. The first out of the kiln was presented to mayor Eberhard van der Laan at a special ceremony in September and, in October, the hotel’s Chef de Cuisine Bobby Rust dazzled diners at the hotel’s ultra-luxe charity gala Stars, Food & Art by serving up a Dutch amuse-bouche comprised of stroopwafel (a caramel waffle) and pickled onions inside the mini hotel.

The miniature is available to purchase from The Grand.

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 THE AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL

Enjoy the marvellous light installations, created by local and international artists to illuminate the city and its canals, with a walking or a boat tour – or both!

28 November-17 January 2016 Various locations www.amsterdamlightfestival.com

2 MUSEUMNACHT Like Night at the Museum, but without Ben Stiller, this all-night romp in most of

Amsterdam’s art, science and cultural institutions is chock-full of fun, interactive special events and afterparties.

7 November Various locations www.museumnacht.amsterdam

3 SINTERKLAAS The holidays officially begin when the Dutch version of Santa Claus arrives to fanfare on his steamboat, to the delighted screams of herds of children on a sugar high.

15 November National Maritime Museum www.sintinamsterdam.nl

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4 ICE-SKATING ON

MUSEUMPLEIN

Glide your way into the sea-

son at Ice*Amsterdam, the ice-skating rink that casually uses the monumental Rijksmuseum as a backdrop.

From 21 November Museumplein www.iceamsterdam.nl

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5 WORLD CHRISTMAS CIRCUS Spectacular, award-winning acrobatics, clowns and talking dogs. Need we say more?

The Carré only selects the best acts for this long-standing Amsterdam tradition, and every minute is dazzling.

17 December-3 January 2016 Royal Theater Carré www.carre.nl

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‘I WENT BACK TO CHECK ON MY BIKE BECAUSE I HADN’T BEEN THERE FOR A YEAR AND A HALF AND IT WAS STILL CHAINED UP… BUT JUST THE FRAME.’ BRAD PITT ON THE PITFALLS OF LIFE IN AMSTERDAM.

INVISIBLE BIKES

REVEL WITH A CAUSE Being a year-long pop-up, there’s an air of ‘catch me if you can’ to Amsterdam’s latest hospitality venture but, as its virtuous name implies, The Good Hotel isn’t interested in pulling a fast one. Moored 12 minutes’ walk from Central Station, the floating 35-room establishment – brainchild of local social sustainability enthusiast Marten Dresen – is staffed by formerly jobless Amsterdammers, each of whom has undergone rigorous hospitality training. What’s more, all profits generated here are to be ploughed back into education. Lauded by design bible Wallpaper* as ‘a real looker’, the chic Good Hotel nevertheless has a speckled past: its premises were formerly part of a Zaandam prison complex condemned by Amnesty International. In summer next year there’s another reinvention afoot, as the whole structure is shipped off to Rio in time for the Olympics. www.goodhotelamsterdam.com

PERIOD PIECE Amsterdammer Mariah Mansvelt Beck dreamed up her Yoni brand of tampons and panty liners after developing cervical cancer at 30.

The diagnosis led Mariah to investigate the pesticides and bleaches widely used to manufacture products which, as she puts it, are used ‘near or inside one of the most absorbent parts of the body’. Now Mariah says she won’t rest until her 100% organic cotton alternative is available at your local corner store. Her motto? ‘Chemicals are not for pussies.’ www.yoni.care

Want to rent an Amsterdam two-wheeler that doesn’t mark you out as a hapless tourist? Using one of the city’s major bike rental firms is all well and good, but it arguably screams ‘Here for the weekend. Permission to overtake granted!’ Enter Australian entrepreneur Matthew Hurst, whose company The Humble Vintage allows visitors to bike like a local, which is to say entirely unobtrusively, as opposed to ‘whilst writing an email on an iPhone’ or ‘sans hands’. From the 10-speed aqua-coloured racer to the classic black Omafiets, all of the lovingly restored cycles in the Humble fleet are free from the usual shouty rental insignia, and no two bikes are the same. Hurst founded the company in his native Melbourne five years ago, and Amsterdam is its second chapter. Appropriate, as he’s also the author of the book, The Casual Cyclist’s Guide.

www.thehumblevintage.nl

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PART I UP CLOSE

for piet’s sake

FOR PIET’S SAKE

This year, the United Nations took a stance on the Dutch tradition of Zwarte Piet - St Nick’s colourful holiday helper… Here’s why.

PARCEL FORCE Once Sint is in town, children lay out their shoes before bedtime, along with water (or wine) and a carrot for Sint’s horse, in the hopes that there will be a gift left there by morning. The good children are usually rewarded with chocolate letters and marzipan while the naughty anxiously wait to see if they will be given coal, again.

Although the feast of Saint Nicholas (Sinterklaas) falls on 6 December, the evening of the 5th is the main giftgiving occasion during the holiday season in the Netherlands. Called Sinterklaasavond (Sinterklaas evening) or Pakjesavond (presents evening), Sint drops off a sack full of gifts on the doorstep before heading back to Spain. The gifts are often accompanied by funny poems poking fun at the recipient’s character flaws.

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From November onward, there’s a good chance you’ll run into Sinterklaas on the streets of Amsterdam. The Dutch version of Santa Claus is accompanied by ‘black-faced’ helpers - the subject of a heated debate. text Mark Smith

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HOLIDAY MAKE-OVER

lsewhere, it’s a common complaint that the arrival of Christmas (or rather, the commercial hoopla that heralds it) gets earlier with each passing year. Here in the Netherlands though – where 25 December plays second fiddle to the child-centred Sinterklaas festivities three weeks beforehand – it’s the debate surrounding a friendly chap called Zwarte Piet that seems to get earlier, and fiercer, every time.

To cut a very long story short, Zwarte Piet (literally, ‘Black Pete’) is the companion to Sinterklaas (a.k.a Saint Nicholas), the saint who arrives each November from Spain to deliver gifts to Dutch children.

Piet’s jolly duties include entertaining the throngs of young fans and distributing edible treats, hence his ubiquity in shop windows and on the packaging for pepernoten and other seasonal goods (see page 13).

The reason Piet has become a hot-button topic of late is his polarising appearance.

In cartoon depictions, he has in the past shared some of his exaggerated features – black skin, red clown lips, frizzy hair – with the golliwog and the minstrel, caricatures of black people that have long since fallen out of favour.

Dutch children and adults have typically shown their enthusiasm for Piet by donning frizzy wigs, applying red lipstick and blackening their faces. Outsiders, and a growing portion of Dutch people, equate the custom with ‘blackface’ and racism.

Others, who have grown up with the practice, are fiercely defensive of every curl on Piet’s head, and they dismiss as politically correct killjoys those who beg to differ.

This year, the event that triggered the annual taking of sides occurred in August, when a UN committee called upon the Dutch government to take steps to amend the tradition of Zwarte Piet, which, it noted ‘is sometimes portrayed in a manner that reflects negative stereotypes of people of African descent and is experienced… as a vestige of slavery.’ The comments came in response to a compulsory report that the Netherlands had filed as part of its obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Summing up the view of the committee, the Colombian delegate Murillo Martinez insisted that ‘violations of human rights cannot be justified by invoking cultural traditions.’ In other words, Piet needed a makeover, and fast.

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PART I UP CLOSE

UN intervention of any kind is rarely an uncontroversial affair, and opinion was immediately split across all levels of Dutch society regarding the committee’s pronouncement (which, it has to be said, was just one aspect of a document that covered several aspects of Dutch life and law).

Prime Minister and VVD leader Mark Rutte, who has a record of defending Zwarte Piet in his ‘traditional’ form, immediately said that the appearance of a Dutch folk character should be of no concern to UN mandarins – a view shared by 83 per cent of the Dutch population, according to a survey by the current affairs programme Eén Vandaag. Deputy Lodewijk Asscher (who belongs to the Labour party) took a different tack, writing on Facebook that ‘our Dutch identity does not depend on the colour of the makeup on the face of Piet, rather our willingness to defend the deeper values of our society.’ Asscher referred approvingly to the school attended by his own children, where patriotic orange makeup had apparently replaced the divisive black pan stick of yesteryear.

Ivar Noordenbos, a spokesperson for the

Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment led by Mr Asscher, was keen to point out to A-mag. that, although the views expressed by the deputy PM on social media were personal, the department has for some time now been working behind the scenes to break the Zwarte Piet deadlock. ‘More than a year before the UN committee report was published, we were facilitating round table discussions at the Ministry,’ Noordenbos says. ‘These are attended by all sorts of interested parties, from those who sincerely believe that Zwarte Piet should remain unchanged, to the Dutch retailers who are unsure how to proceed and want guidance.

The simple idea for the meetings is that it’s always good to have an open dialogue.’

Ironically, those in attendance were asked not to disclose the specifics of what was discussed, but delegates do seem to have walked away from the most recent session, in late September, with renewed conviction on how to steer Zwarte Piet towards acceptability. Pam Evenhuis, spokesman for the organisation Sint in Amsterdam that co-ordinates Sinterklaas’s annual arrival in the capital (see page 14) told A-mag.

for piet’s sake

that this year’s parade of 1,200 volunteers will be equally split between ‘traditional’ Piets and so-called roetpieten: ‘sooty Piets’ whose skin is partly blackened – regardless of ethnicity – from having coming down the chimney. Last year, there were two traditional Piets for ever roetpiet, so it’s clear – in Amsterdam, at least – which way the wind is blowing.

Things are a little less clear on the Dutch high street at large. Last year, supermarket behemoth Albert Heijn removed depictions of Zwarte Piet from its advertising hoardings and store decorations. This year, the Jumbo chain has packaged its pepernoten with cartoon depictions of barefaced white and black children wearing Zwarte Piet’s Renaissance attire. The prize for PR ingenuity goes to the department store de Bijenkorf, however, whose spokesperson insisted to A-mag. that the decision to ‘upgrade’ its iconic climbing Piets to new, gold-skinned versions has nothing to do with the public debate and everything to do with its new ‘luxury premium experience strategy’.

© ANP-KOEN VAN WEEL

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De Bijenkorf has decided to ‘upgrade’ its iconic climbing Piets to new, gold-skinned versions in line with its new ‘luxury premium experience strategy’ SINTERKLAASJOURNAAL Like any star worth his salt, Sinterklaas has his own TV show. Broadcast daily at 18:00 on the public channel NPO, SinterklaasJournaal takes the form of a ten-minute bulletin chronicling the big guy’s struggles against the weather – much to the horror of Dutch children, who are tortured with the idea that he may have to turn back, unable to deliver their presents.

The respected broadcaster Dieuwertje Blok is the face of the programme, which whips children into a frenzy in the countdown to the Amsterdam Intocht (arrival) celebration and its provincial equivalent, which is to be held in the Drenthe city of Meppel this year – as well as Pakjesavond itself, of course. More than ever, all eyes will be on SinterklaasJournaal this year, as parents and organisations look for cues on how to ‘do’ Zwarte Piet.

THE SPICE IS RIGHT Zwarte Piet isn’t the only divisive issue bubbling just below the surface of the Sinterklaas festivities. Although in practice, the terms pepernoten and kruidnoten are used interchangeably to describe the ubiquitous small, round ginger-flavoured cookies that are consumed in vast quantities at this time of year, purists would have you know that pepernoten are something else entirely. They’re right, of course, but it’s actually quite rare these days to see the pepernoot, which is chewier, less uniform in shape and has more of an aniseed tang. To get to the bottom of this and other pressing issues, pay a visit to the Van Delft shop in De Pijp, where a dazzling array of traditional Dutch festive treats is available all year round.

Van Delft – De Pepernotenfabriek Van Wouwstraat 101 www.webshop.pepernotenfabriek.nl

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PART I UP CLOSE

for piet’s sake

ARRIVAL OF SINTERKLAAS With more than a kilometre of floats and boats, Amsterdam hosts the largest Saint Nicholas parade in the world. The white-bearded legend traditionally makes his spectacular entrance into the city by sailing his steamboat down the Amstel before mooring amid great fanfare at the Maritime Museum, where he is welcomed by the mayor ahead of a day-long parade through the streets of Amsterdam, for which Sinterklaas swaps his boat for his white horse Amerigo. After passing through the Prins Hendrikkade and the Damrak, Sinterklaas arrives at Dam Square in the early afternoon to kick off a special musical programme for kids of all ages. As the musical portion of the day comes to a close, Sinterklaas carries on through the Rokin, Muntplein, Rembrandtplein, Utrechtsestraat and Weteringcircuit until he reaches the last stop on his tour – the Leidseplein, where he delivers a special message to his smallest fans from the balcony of the Stadsschouwburg National Theatre.

MERRY AND BRIGHT American humorist and folk hero David Sedaris gives his wryly hilarious take on Dutch holiday traditions in his 2003 essay ‘Six to eight Black Men’.

One of the stand-out tales from the bestselling anthology Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, the story ponders the baffling inexactitude surrounding the number of Zwarte Pieten who accompany Sinterklaas on his annual gift-giving missive through the Netherlands. ‘This,’ concludes Sedaris, ‘is the greatest difference between us and the Dutch. While a certain segment of our population might be perfectly happy with the arrangement, if you told the average white American that six to eight nameless black men would be sneaking into his house in the middle of the night, he would barricade his doors and arm himself with whatever he could get his hands on.’

15 NOVEMBER Various locations

INITIAL REACTION It wouldn’t be Sinterklaas without these generous capital letters made from solid chocolate, denoting the first letter of a recipient’s first name. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the letters were made from pastry rather than chocolate and were a practical means of distinguishing between gifts in the days when presents were draped in sheets rather than wrapped in paper.

Nowadays, chocolate letters are big business in the Netherlands and manufacturers must keep on top of trends in child-naming in order to satisfy demand. ‘M’ is the best-selling letter, partly because it’s the first letter of ‘Mama’ and partly because of a widespread but mistaken belief that it’s the largest letter and therefore contains more chocolate. In fact, manufacturers go to great lengths (including the addition of grooves in the chocolate) to ensure that all letters are equitable.

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Sinterklaas and Santa Claus: A spotter’s guide Sure, they happen to work in the same sector, but these guys are like chalk and cheese… right?

Gift distribution happens 5 December, although Sint arrives amid great fanfare mid November and spends a couple of weeks parading around superciliously and tantalising children with candy and gifts in their shoes. Close friends fear he’s senile.

Big day

Sint charters a boat from Spain, then rides an elegant white-grey horse called Amerigo when on Dutch soil. Très chic, non?

Ride

A man with serious credentials, Sint is thought to be the incarnation of Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children, who has been revered since the Middle Ages.

Religious iconography is a major influence in skinny Sint’s winter 2015 wardrobe. This season, he’s mostly pairing his red, papal gown with a white bishop’s alb and a red mitre emblazoned with a cross. His golden crosier with curl detail is inspired by the pastoral staff carried by high-ranking Church prelates.

Origin story

Appearance

Santa Claus goes from rooftop to rooftop on the night of 24 December, shoehorning himself down the chimney to deliver presents. Children wired on sugary treats, grandiose consumerist fantasies and sleep deprivation hope to catch a glimpse.

It takes a sleigh and nine flying reindeer (including red-nosed Rudolph) to get this dude off the ground.

Santa Claus made his debut in the New World shortly after Dutch colonisation of the Americas.

Coincidence?

Perpetually carrying a little holiday weight, Santa Claus dresses for comfort rather than style in a red two-piece with white trim and a thick black belt.

Footwear-wise, he’s a big fan of the sturdy boot, and his bulging sack is rarely out of sight.

A confirmed bachelor, this guy spends most of the year in Spain, where one thing’s for certain: he ain’t working on his tan.

Home life

Santa’s workshop is in the North Pole, although pretty much every Nordic country seems to want to claim him as its own true son. There’s a Mrs. Claus back home and she’s great with reindeer.

Sint works in an elegant atelier with a select band of the aforementioned Zwarte Pieten, each of whom display distinct personalities and attributes, à la Spice Girls. When they’re not causing racially aggravated dismay, they totally bring the lolz.

Personnel and premises

Santa and his team of trusty but frankly bland elves spend the year manufacturing this year’s toy fads under licence in a factory. Presumably there’s a mine nearby for coal extraction, too (bad kids get carbonised plant matter, see).

Keeps track of who’s well behaved via a large book of children’s names and deposits gifts in their shoes accordingly. Rumours persist of naughty children being snatched in their sleep, stuffed into sacks and ‘disappearing’ to Spain, although Sint’s publicist refuses to comment on specific cases.

Terms and conditions

A bit of a soft touch by comparison, Santa would rather give you the benefit of the doubt and leave you a little something under the tree. In any case, the use of fossil fuels is increasingly frowned upon and coal is in short supply.

An ascetic, Karl Lagerfeld type with endless reserves of self-control, Sinterklaas delivers a tonne of candy, but never seems to indulge.

Diet

Cookies, milk, whiskey and mince pies, and all laid on by the fan base! The diet can start tomorrow.

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PART I UP CLOSE

birds of paradise

THE PEACOCKS OF AMSTERDAM

Fashion icons, free spirits and creatives text Jowi Schmitz adaptation Julia Gorodecky photos Chris de Bode

A

msterdam is full of birds of paradise.

Not the feathered or floral kind, but the flamboyant kind. Beautiful creatures who are as unique in their flair as they are extravagant in their character. These resplendent Amsterdammers span the spectrum – from wild and eccentric to ultra sophisticated, and even though some can be a bit cuckoo, they are 100% themselves.

Martin Oudbier (30)

artist and custodian of the Teapot Museum

‘Of course my appearance reminds people of the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland.

I’ve got the hat; I’ve got the tea. But Alice in Wonderland is just a fairy tale. When it comes to fantasy figures, I much prefer Baron von Münchhausen, who believed that our only weapon against this cold world is our fantasy.’ Martin has been fascinated with the Victorian era his entire life.

When his former design school wanted its students to dress smart, Martin shunned the cheap suits his co-students chose and opted for Victoriana style instead. Since then, hats have been a staple of his look – ‘although I did have a brief stint in 17thcentury wigs, Mozart-style jackets and shirts.’ His appearance (and his Teapot Museum too) may have started from a whim, but it has grown into something a lot more serious. ‘It’s not about being special,’ says Martin. ‘It’s about being yourself.’

You can find The Teapot Museum at Raamsteeg 5.

BIRDS OF PARADISE Back in the 90s, there was a Dutch TV show called Paradijsvogels (birds of paradise), which featured colourful individuals who danced to their own tune; they didn’t adhere to fashion standards, and their stories made people think twice. The show’s name even became part of the Dutch vocabulary, and is still used today to describe people who ‘border the norm’.

Amsterdam is a magnet for all that is different.

In the 80s, you could find witches strolling across the Nieuwmarkt, while aliens had close encounters of the spangly kind as they wandered the city’s canals in their silver platforms and latex suits.

People said that, as we entered the new century, these exquisite birds would begin to disappear; that the extraordinary would become extinct.

But, look around you, and you can still spot these birds of paradise, in every colour, shape and size imaginable. There are the ‘eccentrics’, who hold loud, animated discussions on their imaginary phones or who engage in in-depth conversations with lampposts. There’s the timid vagrant with feathers in her hair who rummages through bins and bathes in fountains with a blissful smile on her face. Or the experimental teenagers, rainbow-haired, and flaunting enough piercings to set off airport metal detectors. And last, but certainly by no means least, the more outspoken birds; people who consciously choose to stand out. Who want to tell a story through the way they look. Who are being true to themselves. And it is this last group that we are portraying in this series: people who make life brighter in their very own way.

‘I PREFER BARON VON MÜNCHHAUSEN, WHO BELIEVED THAT OUR ONLY WEAPON AGAINST THIS COLD WORLD IS OUR FANTASY’

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‘WE ARE THE GATEKEEPERS TO ANOTHER WORLD’ The Brothers Grimm, Thom Rijpstra (66) and Robert Anthony (ever-35) presenters and shining guides

Thom: ‘Can I brag a little? There are 75,000 beads on these golden suits, all sown on by Robert’s fair hand.’

Robert: ‘One of the things we present is Ladies Night at the Tuschinski. The women attending have to first wait outside, with the doors closed. When the doors are opened, we run out and they all scream.’

Thom: ‘Sometimes we go to retirement homes. As soon as they see us, the elderly – who are normally bent double over their walkers – stand upright in amazement. That’s what gives us pride in our work.’

Robert: ‘We also attend funerals, wearing our black suits. We guide the dead on their last journey. That’s probably what we are most of all: guides. We guide people to a party, to a show, to their final goodbye.’

Thom: ‘We are the gatekeepers to another world.’

Bas Kosters (38) fashion designer

‘The way I look is defined by the way I live rather than the other way round. I use my appearance as a way to communicate – it’s a part of me after all – but I also want to pursue individual beauty. People can be so boring and grey; they walk around, dressed in beige from head to toe. But it means people like me stand out even more and become an attraction.

The way I dress is an essential part of my identity. I don’t do it to be different, I just do it to be myself.’

‘IT MEANS PEOPLE LIKE ME STAND OUT EVEN MORE’

October - January — Language no problem — operaballet.nl

Dutch National Opera presents

Dutch National Opera presents

GISELLE

HÄNSEL UND GRETEL

World’s favorite romantic ballet — 13 October – 15 November

Engelbert Humperdinck — 3 – 29 December

Dutch National Opera presents

Dutch National Opera presents

DIALOGUES DES CARMÉLITES

THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSEKING

Francis Poulenc — 7 – 29 November

The iconic ballet of the holiday season — 11 – 31 December 2015 & 1 January 2016

nov & dec 2015

PART II 20 22 24 27 28 29

ENTERTAINMENT

19

BRIGHT WINTER NIGHTS ASIA>AMSTERDAM HOLIDAY CONCERTS 13 QUESTIONS FILM NIGHTLIFE ESSENTIALS

TICKET GIVEAWAY Tell M

argaret should win A why you tickets to he -mag’s two r show by send 21 December ing an emai l to shai.tayeb@ cidc with the subj om.at ect line: A-mag love s ps Funniest en yCHO! try wins.

’I CAN'T WAIT TO VISIT AMSTERDAM AND EAT THIS ONE PARTICULAR CROISSANT WITH CUSTARD IN IT.’ Margaret Cho really enjoys Dutch cuisine.

MARGARET CHO: THE PSYCHO TOUR

The New York Times calls Margaret Cho’s psyCHO tour ‘wildly kinetic’, which isn’t all surprising since there’s no photo of Cho illustrating the ‘tongue-tied’ entry of any dictionary. ‘This show is about insanity, and about the anger I feel about everything happening in the world right now, from police brutality to racism to the rising tide of violence against women.’ In brief, Cho continues to send issues dear to our heart to the gallows.

Her authenticity doesn’t stop at saying what’s on everyone’s mind, though: big parts of the show are also tributes to her friends and mentors Robin Williams and Joan Rivers.

©DAN SANTONI

21 DECEMBER Delamar Theater, Marnixstraat 402 www.delamar.nl

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

bright winter nights

Bright Winter Nights

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Winter is coming… but fear not! The early Dutch nights are just the perfect excuse to shine a new light on the city with the illuminated artworks of the Amsterdam Light Festival.

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text Marie-Charlotte Pezé

W L SPECIA T N U DISCO ise now at

htour cru Book y sterdam-lig .nl m .a ers v o .l www s t e l-ticke festiva e promo cod e a and us G to receiv he AMA 15ALF iscount off t % 25 d r price of regula .50 €20

ith a sun that sets at 15:00 and the legendary rains, it’s easy to imagine that the city spends its winter evenings hibernating with cups of hot cocoa and Netflix reruns. But Amsterdam would not let a bit of weather and darkness cramp its style; on the contrary, its joyous spirit goes undeterred and turns it all to its advantage. It’s cold?

Let’s drink mulled wine and go ice-skating. It’s dark? Let’s illuminate the city. For this fourth edition of the Amsterdam Light Festival, local and

international artists were again invited to create light artworks especially for the event. The jury, composed of a variety of art directors, artists and editors, were excited to receive submissions from many countries, some as far as Japan and Australia. ‘We welcome this 36 per cent increase in international participation, because we strive to be a community where international creatives, innovators and engineers are able to meet and learn from each other,’ says Rogier van der Heide, the artistic direc-

tor of the festival. The result is a selection of 35 spectacular pieces of art: giant projections on historical buildings, light sculptures, and innovative and interactive lighting systems that will pepper the city to the delight of everyone, young and old.

The festival puts Friendship in the limelight this year, an especially important theme in the current climate of worldwide solidarity. One of the selected artworks, Paths Crossing, by Ralf Westerhof, is a striking, 250 metre-wide artistic visualisation of the

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© ERIK VAN HET HOF

*ICE AMSTERDAM

holiday highlights

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© FLORIAN RICHTER



CARRÉ

WINTERPARADE

 ICE-SKATING

Skating the canals of Amsterdam is an enchanting but rare treat, as it takes four days at sub-zero temperatures for the ice to reach safe thickness levels. In the meantime, Amsterdam has you covered with three outdoor rinks. The Jaap Eden has an indoor rink and a 400m outdoor rink open from October to March. Their Saturday disco night is the perfect excuse to finally don that sequinned costume. Opening on 21 November, ICE* Amsterdam on Museumplein is lots of fun for the whole family. From 23 November to early January 2016, Leidseplein mutates into a kitsch winter wonderland with a small rink as well as a Christmas market with mulled wine and oliebollen. www.jaapeden.nl, www.iceamsterdam.nl, www.ijsbaanamterdam.nl

MY LIGHT IS YOUR LIGHT BY ALAA MINAWI © JANUS VAN DEN EIJNDEN

 WORLD CHRISTMAS CIRCUS

paths that people take, which bring them together or pull them apart. Another work with poignant symbolism, Strangers in the Light by Victor Engbers, represents giant traffic-light figures waiting to cross the street and shake hands.

To take advantage of the beauty of the canals as well as the historical centre, the festival offers both a boat and a walking route, each featuring different ignited artworks.

From 28 November to 17 January 2016, the Water Colours boat route takes visitors along

the Herengracht to Oosterdok to the Amstel. The 75-minute tours, which leave daily between 17:00 and 22:00, are offered by many participating canal cruise companies.

The Illuminade walking route (which is free) is a lovely, meandering stroll through the historical neighbourhoods of Weesper and Plantage. From 10 December to 3 January 2016, the leafy streets, parks, canals and bridges of these areas are adorned with 20 bright and colourful works of art. Of course some of the water route works are easy

to admire from the walking route as well. There are plenty of opportunities to warm up in a café or stop for dinner on the way and, after admiring the illuminations, why not head to a bar, a club, a theatre, the circus or an ice-skating rink, to make sure that, while the sun is long gone to bed, Amsterdam is anything but asleep.

WATER COLOURS 28 NOVEMBER-17 JANUARY 2016 ILLUMINADE 10 DECEMBER-3 JANUARY 2016 www.amsterdamlightfestival.com

A long-standing tradition in Amsterdam’s holiday season, Carré’s World Christmas Circus is a jawdropping spectacle for the entire family. With two, sometimes three daily shows between December and January 2016, Carré delivers a wide selection of international, award-winning acts. The beautiful stage will be graced by, among others, the Golden Clown winner Black and White Fantasy act from China, a funny dog, a breathtaking feat of acrobatics with 21 daredevils, and the dazzling horse show by Florian and Edith Richter.

17 DECEMBER-3 JANUARY 2016 Royal Theater Carré, Amstel 115-125 www.carre.nl

 WINTERPARADE Much like the medieval feasts of centuries gone by, the Winterparade takes over the Zuiderkerk with its 120-metre long banquet-style table, upon which stroll a parade of performers.

Dance, music, theatre, acrobatics, poetry – the minstrels are plenty and the mood is festive.

For many acts, the language barrier should not impair the fun.

Of course it wouldn’t be a feast without a lavish abundance of food, and vats of mulled wine and beer.

17-19 & 25-30 DECEMBER Zuiderkerk, Zuiderkerkhof 72 www.tafelvandeidee.nl

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asia > amsterdam

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Trading culture: Asia > Amsterdam

Exquisite fineries brought back from the Dutch Indies were a monumental inspiration to Dutch artists of the Golden Age.

   

text Catalina Iorga

F

or nearly two centuries, the Dutch East India Company (in Dutch, the VOC), the world’s first multinational, ruled over colonies and the trade of Asian commodities of all kinds – from spices through silk to porcelain – via its main route, Amsterdam-Jakarta.

Porcelain objects from China and silk fabrics from Japan were an immediate hit with the Amsterdam’s wealthy. Not only did the bold and colourful designs revolutionise previously modest Dutch interiors, they also had a massive influence on products that are now perceived to be typically Dutch.

Case in point: ‘Delft Blue’. White and blue porcelain from China was bright, airy and delicate, and inspired local potters to sharpen their attention to detail. In 1620, the supply of Chinese porcelain to Europe ended with the death of the Wanli Emperor of the Ming dynasty.

Not long after, Delftware began resembling its Asian counterpart, with Dutch craftsmen continuing to imitate Chinese designs until the mid 18th century.

Porcelain that inspired Delft Blue wares is a small part of the 170 items on display at Asia > Amsterdam (until 17 Jan 2016), the Rijksmuseum’s survey of Asian-inspired luxury in the Golden Age. Presented in cooperation with the Peabody Essex Museum in the US, this exhibition brings together Dutch and Asian ceramics, lacquered furniture, paintings, textiles, silver, diamonds and jewellery.

ERIK SMITS/MONIQUE BRÖRING

Sounds overwhelming? Here are four artifacts you shouldn’t miss: DRAWING Shah Jahan and his son (1656-1658). The ultimate Dutch master, Rembrandt, was inspired by a series of miniatures to draw portraits of Shah Jahan, who erected the stunning Taj Mahal and cemented his reputation as one of the great Mughal emperors of India. In Rembrandt’s dignified portrait, a jewellery-adorned, aura-bearing Jahan holds his young son close to his chest.

FURNITURE Rocking cradle (1650-1700). This ivory-inlaid rocking cradle, made from ebony and embellished with sculptures, would have surely been the pride and joy of any well-off family. However, the cradle was specially created for VOC person-

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don’t miss these o cky t Fair is This Ar f tickets to lu ate, o ip s ic t ir r a a p p five s. To to reader A-Mag end an email ir.com s fa t r a is h ne: ting@t marke the subject li t e k ic with t This A-Mag away. e giv

nel, using a Dutch design complemented by quintessentially Hindu figures.

PAINTING The Castle of Batavia (1661). Previously housed in the VOC assembly hall, this oil painting was made by Andries Beeckman, who was famous for his Southeast Asia-focused works. With an unsurprisingly oversized VOC fortress in the background – Beeckman was also a VOC soldier – the multicultural market of Batavia, or modern-day Jakarta, is shown in full swing under tall palm trees.

Since Art in Redlight no longer takes place in the red light district, it was time for a brand new name. The expo is now called This Art Fair and is held at the old stock exchange building, also known as Beurs van Berlage. During the 11th edition of this event, 80 undiscovered talents, established artists and leading galleries present their work to the public. This Art Fair offers artists a way to sell their work directly to buyers without having to share their profit with galleries. From psychological, realistic portraits to romantic minimalistic designs of casted concrete canvases, they have made sure there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

30 DECEMBER-3 JANUARY 2016 Beurs van Berlage, Damrak 243 www.thisartfair.com



Francesca Woodman’s story is as tragic as her photographs are gripping. Her fame came posthumously, after a broken heart and a lack of artistic recognition led her to jump out a window in 1981, at the age of 22. Her black and white, ethereal photos of women’s bodies (mostly her own) use blurriness, light and obscurity, and intricate backgrounds to poetically – sometimes surrealistically – marry movement and stillness, modesty and nudity. During her short life, she nonetheless produced more than 10,000 negatives, and FOAM is ending 2015 with a retrospective of her haunting work, On Being an Angel, a most fitting title.

18 DECEMBER-9 MARCH 2016 FOAM Photography Museum, Keizersgracht 609 www.foam.org

DANCING ON THE EDGE FESTIVAL When you think about the Middle East and North Africa, contemporary art is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. Dancing on the Edge Festival is here to change that. This non-profit organisation stimulates artistic exchanges and collaborations with those regions by hosting a festival every two years that focuses on performing arts, film and multimedia-installations. Make sure you attend the extensive Arts & Minds programme and join in the inspiring debates.

© DANCING ON THE EDGE

JOAN NIEUHOFF, PLAAT, BESCHILDERD MET CHINOISERIEDECORATIE, CA. 1670-1690

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© GEORGE AND BETTY WOODMAN

FRANCESCA WOODMAN @ FOAM

CERAMICS Kendi jug (1580-1620). Last but not least, feast your eyes on a playful Kendi – a pouring jug with a spout on the side but no handle – from the period of the Wanli emperor. Decorated with a blue that was applied to the jug’s surface before it was glazed, this elephant-shaped Kendi is a worthy representative of an age when Chinese porcelain exports to Europe flourished.

UNTIL 17 JANUARY 2016 Rijksmuseum, Mumseumstraat 1 www.rijksmuseum.nl

THIS ART FAIR

© V&B CORPORATE DECEPTIONS

TICKET WAY GIVEA ffering

4-8 NOVEMBER

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De Brakke Grond, Nes 45 www.dancingontheedge.nl

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highlights

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Holy Nights



Feeling festive already? Amsterdam is. Each winter season, the city gets into the Christmas spirit and puts on a host of classical concerts – some with a modern twist. Here’s our selection.

   

text Catalina Iorga

a diverse range of musicians, including a choir and a vocal group, as well as flute, piano and trumpet players. One more thing: it’s completely free!

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Thur 24 December, free entrance

REJOICE! Accompanied by a host of solo vocalists, baroque ensemble Combattimento and a cappella ensemble Wishful Singing will be taking the audience on a journey through the Baroque’s musical highlights, including Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, Händel’s Messiah and Monteverdi’s Laudate Dominum.

Paradiso, www.paradiso.nl Thur 24 December, €30



CHRISTMAS MATINEE: BACH'S WEIHNACHT In this ultimate Christmas classical concert, the Royal Concertgebouw’s very own orchestra will be performing the first three cantatas of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, under the masterful direction of Jan Willem de Vriend, Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra.

THE FROMMERMEN GROUP © JULIA DE BOER

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Fri 25 December, €30-€90

S

ilent night? Not in Amsterdam. The city has a holiday concert for everyone: the traditionalists, the a capella fans, and the families that enjoy belting Christmas tunes together around the tree. Here’s a list of the most heartwarming holiday concerts, including the traditional Christmas matinee in the Concertgebouw and Paradiso's out-ofcharacter stint into Baroque vocals which will feature a very different Handel’s Messiah than the performance by the heavenly Bach Choir at the Concertgebouw. Don’t wait to buy your tickets, these concerts sell out fast.

SILENT NIGHT FAMILY SINGALONG The six lovely ladies of the Kobra Ensemble first met in the Dutch National Children’s choir. Now they’ll be making the little ones and parents alike smile and maybe even sing along a carol or two (mostly in Dutch, except for a few English favs such as Jingle Bells).

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Sat 19 & Sun 20 December, €16



CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE Take in the beauty of the Concertgebouw’s Main Hall while enjoying the holiday tunes of

HANDEL’S MESSIAH Conductor Pieter Jan Leusink and his celebrated Bach Choir and Orchestra of the Netherlands perform one of the world’s most popular pieces of choral music.

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Sat 26 and Sun 27 December, €50-€85

CHRISTMAS PIANO RECITAL One of the most sought-after Dutch pianists, Regina Albrink, will be delighting the audience with her staple Christmas recital. This year it features a selection of Händel, Mozart, Chopin, Beethoven and Ginasterra pieces.

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Sat 26 and Sun 27 December, €35

FROMMERMANN’S CHRISTMAS FAVOURITES The Frommermann vocal group already toured the Netherlands in 2014 with their Christmas show. Spoiler alert: their repertoire stretches from the sounds of medieval monasteries to contemporary Hawaii.

Royal Concertgebouw, www.concertgebouw.nl Sun 27 December, €20-€26

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‘ There must have been 100 different Vandellas in all those years, but there’s only one Martha Reeves.’

don’t miss these HÄNSEL UND GRETEL AND THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING Two family must-sees at the Dutch National Opera & Ballet this winter, starting with Engelbert Humperdinck’s fairy tale opera Hänsel und Gretel. The century-old story has been made accessible and enjoyable for all ages, with unchanged melodies that will take you right back to your childhood.

Not a big opera fan? Go and see the magical ballet performance The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The story includes a snowy forest, Saint Nicholas – our local variety of Santa – and some very evil mice.

© PETROVSKY & RAMONE

featured artist

HÄNSEL UND GRETEL 3-29 DEC / NUTCRACKER & MOUSE KING 11-31 DEC Nationale Opera & Ballet, Amstel 3 www.operaballet.nl



Martha Reeves (b. 1941) grew up in Detroit as the eldest daughter of a family of 14. In 1961 she started her own group, Martha and the Vandellas, and got signed by Motown. The band had several big hits, including 'Dancing in the Street', 'Jimmy Mack' and 'Nowhere to Run'.

‘I started at Motown in 1959.

Mickey Stevenson, one of the directors, had seen me perform and asked me to audition. I came in the next day, but it was the wrong time and the place was very busy. So I lent them a hand, and that’s how I became their secretary!

One day they were recording a song for Marvin Gaye, and the backing vocalists couldn’t be there in time. I called my friends and we filled in for them: that’s how we got started. In 1961 we started touring with eight Motown artists – including little Stevie Wonder.

We played 94 ‘one nighters’ in just three months. The pay was really bad: racial divide was still big back then. As a coloured person, for example, you would not be allowed in any hotel, except the Holiday Inn. Motown knew this and taught us how to be shiny examples of our generation – always be proud and smile.'

Martha Reeves & the Vandellas Saturday 21 November North Sea Jazz Club  northseajazzclub.com

No need to wait until the lastminute panic of the forgotten gift for Grandma: on 29 November and 13 December, the Westergasfabriek is delightfully invaded by the Sinterklaas and Christmas markets (joined by their sister on Museumplein on 20 December). The cheerful stalls are laden with opportunities to fulfill everybody’s Christmas list, with handmade articles, gourmet food products, rare vintage finds and many other unique items in a wide price range – such as the wee crockery from Loeff or the lovely, gold-crafted jewellery

by Midlina. The abundance of food stands with hot cocoa, crepes, meat pies, mulled wine and other delicacies will ensure nobody dies of hypothermia – or hypoglycemia.

SUN 29 NOVEMBER, 13 & 20 DECEMBER Westergasfabriek, Haarlemmerweg 8 www.sundaymarket.nl



MODEL Contemporary and classically trained dancers of the famous Bayerisches Staatsballett meet half way in Richard Siegal’s new ballet performance Model – an ode to Dante’s Divine Comedy. The show is an elaboration of Siegal’s last work Metric Dozen, which is all about extreme movements and electronic beats. It’s a phenomenal choreography of modern dance, with enthralling music and lightwork. Dante may have said, ‘We are travelling through hell; luckily the only way is up’, but the performance promises to be heavenly.

© URSULA KAUFMANN

MARTHA REEVES

© PETER VALCKX

FUNKY CHRISTMAS MARKETS

3-4 NOVEMBER Stadsschouwburg, Leidseplein 26 www.stadsschouwburgamsterdam.nl

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highlights

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Museum night

For one night every year, Amsterdam’s weird and wonderful museums become interactive playgrounds with a slew of fascinating and quirky special events. text Christiaan De Wit

© DENNIS BOUMAN

text Leda Georgiades

Lovedance

In honour of World AIDS Day, Paradiso is throwing a bash with a heart – with a new gourmet twist this year. text Christiaan de Wit

W

hatever the reason may be – Amsterdam’s history as an epicentre for the celebration of gay life – Paradiso is one of the few places in the world where World AIDS Day is celebrated. Celebrated? That’s correct, because the Lovedance organisation believes that this serious day of togetherness and reminiscence should end on a high note with a hilarious, chaotic party brimming with food, theatre and dancing.

Organised for the first time in 2004 by various local clubs and promoters, with all participants generously putting in their efforts for free, the event was so well received that everybody agreed this couldn’t be just a one off.

‘While Lovedance started as an event for young gay and gay-friendly people with a weak spot for going out until the early hours, young people inevitably grow older and stop going out as much, especially going out late,’ says Lovedance programmer Miel Hollander. To cater to the needs of these aging youngsters, Lovedance has

decided to alter the concept a little this year by bringing top chef Sander Overeinder on board. As Overeinder (owner of Restaurant As) prepares the food on the main stage, tranny crew Jennifer Hopelezz and her Begging Babes introduce the acts. Various courses will be served in a different part of Paradiso as the evening unfurls, presented in theatrical fashion by organisations from the city’s gay-friendly nightlife scene, including Wasteland, Rauw, and Milkshake who each has clearly defined tasks: Girlesque is on champagne bar duty at the start of the evening, while Joost van Bellen and his RAUW entourage play tunes while presenting the main course; and Milkshake… serves dessert, of course.

Naturally, the plan is to dance away the after-dinner dip in the main hall. We’re still talking Lovedance after all.

1 DECEMBER Paradiso 19.30-22.00 (dinner) 20:30-05:00 (after-party)

W

ho said that museums are stuffy places where you can hear a pin drop? Not the organisers of MuseumNacht, who offer free transport with your ticket to let you enjoy as many of the 53 participating institutions as you want.

Many feature live music, DJs, bars and food but that’s just the tip of the iceberg as institutions vie to engage the public with spectacular and often interactive special events, such as yoga classes at the Appel Museum. EYE Film Institute, the winner of MuseumNacht’s 2014 Golden N8 Plinth Award, spent their hard-won cash on a year-long programme that kicks off tonight: Silent Films, Loud Music – silent movies with revisited modern disco soundtracks.

NEMO, always hands-on, is celebrating the International Year of the Light with glowin-the-dark paint. Show off your artwork during the after-party that kicks off at 02:00. The Van Gogh Museum is having all sorts of fun

with its current Munch: Van Gogh exhibition by asking visitors to scream as loud as they can to activate a photo booth or, if that’s too loud for you, having a technician quietly paint Munch’s masterpiece on your nails in the museum’s artist’s studio. Google is also of the party, as a really enthralling exhibition allows visitors to walk through Van Gogh’s paintings with Oculus Rift glasses. New to the event is the Vrolik Museum – pure joy if human and animal anatomical specimens are your thing. Last but not least, the geeks will rule MuseumNacht this year.

Iamsterdam gave volunteers the task of developing new ideas and tools to manage congestion in Amsterdam, and 7 November is demo night of this Hackathon challenge. The winning team will see its ideas promoted across the city.

7 NOVEMBER Various locations www.museumnachtamsterdam.nl

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13 questions De Westergasfabriek has flourished since Mark de Kruijk took the helm in 2010, with more than 250 yearly events at the cultural powerhouse.

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text Marie-Charlotte Pezé

  



        



Each neighbourhood has its own quality 1.BEST THING ABOUT LIVING IN AMSTERDAM? It’s an international city without being super-conscious about it!

Where else can you visit the best museums, concert hall, theatres, and hotspots all within 20 minutes of each other by bike?

2. AND THE WORST? We take it for granted that we have this safe, relatively clean, easy-going city.

3. YOUR MOST MEMORABLE 'AMSTERDAM MOMENT'?

As a kid, in 1981, at the height of the Cold War, there was a huge demonstration on Museumplein against nuclear weapons. It was amazing to feel the power of Amsterdam’s spirit of freedom.

4. FAVOURITE WESTERGASFABRIEK EVENT? I like it when it combines in- and outdoor elements, and if we have a real mix of visitors: young and old, families, neighbours, locals and international.



5. WHAT EVENT WOULD YOU LOVE TO HOST? I am jealous of Rotterdam’s North Sea Jazz Festival. How great would it be to have those legends play in the Gashouder, or the new generation of musicians? Luckily, we have the little brother of the festival, the North Sea Jazz Club .

8. WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE AMSTERDAM HANG-OUT? I would be crazy if I didn’t say the Westergasfabriek . How wonderful that the Meijer family saved these buildings from demolition. There are so many great spots here, for coffee, dining, entertainment – I can’t pick!

6. IN WHAT BUILDING WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPEND THE NIGHT? Let me take the stage of the Stadsschouwburg ! A dark stage, more than 100 years of theatre history around me, the buzz coming from the outside world...

9. FAVOURITE DISH? Best pizza: YamYam , best Japanese: Yamazato at Okura , best French: Bistro Zuidlande , best broodje Kroket: Van Dobbe.

7. IF YOU ONLY HAD ONE DAY TO VISIT AMSTERDAM, WHAT WOULD YOU DO? I’d take a bike and cycle to all the new and exciting hotspots that are popping up around the city: Marineterrain, Roest , ACTA , Beehive, de Volkshotel .

10. FAVOURITE NEIGHBOURHOOD? It's hard to pick, I love all of Amsterdam, and all its neighourhoods. But I enjoy Nieuwmarkt  and its secret hideaways, Vondelpark where people relax and enjoy being outdoors. In less developed parts of the city, new spots and companies give a whole new vibe to the city.



11. WHAT MUSEUM HAVE YOU VISITED SEVERAL TIMES? I regularly visit all of them, but on my agenda right now are FOAM , Onze Lieve Heer op Solder , EYE , and the Oude Kerk  and Nieuwe Kerk .

12. PREFERRED METHOD OF TRANSPORT AROUND THE CITY? My little boat. Although it’s a hassle to keep it from filling with rain water, I am always so happy and relaxed on the water, looking at Amsterdam from this unique point of view.

13. WHAT’S A PERFECT WINTER EVENING IN AMSTERDAM FOR YOU? As a student, I remember many winters ice-skating on the canals.

People stayed up all night, even bringing couches and selling hot chocolate: all improvised within a day, unforgettable! I am longing for a winter like that again.

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

film

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



International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam

Where truth always trumps fiction.

    

text Bregtje Schudel

I

1-11 OCTOBER Various locations www.idfa.nl

f Utrecht has the Dutch Film Festival (NFF), and Rotterdam has the International Film Festival (IFFR), Amsterdam is still the proud host of the largest documentary festival in the world, the International Documentary Festival.

Last year over 300 documentaries from 62 different countries were screened, with more than 250,000 visitors attending.

For 12 days this November, Amsterdam will again breathe documentary. This year's special guest will be Errol Morris (The Thin Blue Line, The Fog of War). IDFA will show a retrospective along with Morris’ own ten personal favourites (including, among others, Land without Bread by Luis Buñuel, Man with a Movie Camera by Dziga Vertov, and Welfare by Frederick Wiseman).

Opening the festival is A Family Affair by Dutch director Tom

Fassaert, who travelled to South Africa to visit his grandmother, a former supermodel and femme fatale who dropped off her two sons at an orphanage and set sail for South Africa.

As always, there’s a strong music documentary section, from Janis: Little Girl Blue about the iconic and tragic rock & roll singer Janis Joplin to Boudewijn de Groot – Come Closer, about the Netherlands' own Bob Dylan.

Director Sean McAllister, whose The Reluctant Revolutionary screened at IDFA a few years back, now comes with A Syrian Love Story, part political pamphlet, and part family drama. Amer and Raghda met as political prisoners in a Syrian prison cell 15 years ago. After their release, they got married. But since 2009, Raghda is back in prison, and Amer has to take care of their children on

his own.

Sometimes, documentaries take us places where we’ve never been before: from the Boris Eifman dance academy in St. Petersburg (Varicella, part of the new Kids & Docs programme) to the American/ Mexican border, where vigilantes on both sides fight against the vicious Mexican drug cartels (Cartel Land).

Did you know that the Black Panthers had a special breakfast programme, where they served 20,000 meals a week to destitute children? Or that the children of Ingrid Bergman had a whole villa by the sea all to themselves, where their parents would only visit a few times a year? Thanks to documentaries like Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution and Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words, and with a little help from IDFA – we do now!

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highlight Our must-see film pick this issue…

Food Film Festival

A

s it turns out, you actually can have too much of a good thing. Since its conception in 2011, the Food Film Festival – a celebration of good food, good film and good talks - has grown bigger and bigger. For its fifth edition, however, it was time for the festival to reinvent itself.

The original concept had lost its freshness somewhat, according to Janno Lanjouw, programmer and co-director of Food Film Festival.

‘When we started we were quite unique, but now you see food and film festivals everywhere.

The formula just isn’t that innovative anymore.’

That’s why, this year, the Food Film Festival decided to travel around the country on a smaller scale, arriving in Amsterdam, its final destination, on Saturday 28 November – where it all started five years ago.

With only one day, instead of three, and this time co-hosted by IDFA, it’s definitely a slimmer version than the previous editions, but that doesn’t mean it’s lighter on content. ‘That’s one very important way in which we still differ from the other food and film festivals,’ contends Lanjouw. ‘We have an activist streak. We "lure" people with high-quality film and high-quality food, but at the same time we try to make them think about what and how we eat.’ During the tour, every city has a different theme. In Amsterdam it’s all about meat. Lanjouw: ‘To put it bluntly: meat is killing us. The meat industry has grown so big that our planet cannot sustain it. Secondly: too much meat is just bad for you.

And we really love our meat.’ During a Meat the Makers debate (admittance is free), filmmakers, ‘meat’ makers, scientists and activists will meet to discuss the consequences of intensive meat production as well as viable alternatives. Don’t worry, there will also be plenty to see, and to eat, Lanjouw assures us. ‘It will be a multi sensory experience, as always.’

© BART VAN

BA ARDWIJK

28 NOVEMBER De Brakke Grond, Nes 45 www.foodfilmfestival.nl

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nightlife essentials VALHALLA

A celebration of the bizarre, Valhalla is a fantastical spectacle with fabulous costumes, magicians and fire-eaters, breathtaking performances and circus acts – for a unique surreal atmosphere. This year’s theme is Cirque Oriëntale. Expect an extensive variety of musical styles, from disco to deep house and from techno to club house.

SAT 19 DEC Amsterdam RAI  www.valhallafestival.nl

MUSEUMNACHT

For one night every year, Amsterdam’s weird and wonderful museums become interactive playgrounds with a slew of special events. From run-of-the-mill live music shows all the way to glow-inthe-dark paint workshops or 3-D strolls through Van Gogh’s paintings with Oculus Rift glasses, it’s definitely a night to remember. Get your tickets (which include free transportation all night) early as they tend to run out.

SAT 7 NOV Various locations www.museumnachtamsterdam.nl

WATER COLOURS CRUISE

PORTUGUESE SYNAGOGUE CANDLELIGHT CONCERT

The acoustics are as spectacular as the atmosphere during the monthly concerts held in the beautiful 17th-century Esnoga, lit by hundreds of candles. In November, piano duo Friederike Haufe and Volker Ahmels, play pieces by composers who were refugees, persecuted or murdered during World War II. The holiday concert will feature the New European Ensemble with a programme of Jewish American composers.

THURS 26 NOV & 17 DEC Portuguese Synagogue, Mr. Visserplein 3  www.portuguesesynagogue.nl

EX-PAT CINEMA

Missing your French, Swedish, Argentinian cinemas? The third season of Ex-Pats Cinema has begun. Every other Tuesday evening, LAB111 hosts the screening of a recent foreign language film – with English subtitles.

EVERY OTHER TUESDAY LAB111, Arie Biemondstraat 111 www.lab111.nl/film/ex-pats-cinema

PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT

The drag bus is back! The movie was fabulous, and the Tonyaward-winning musical it in35 artists created incredible spired, a giant hit worldwide. light installations especially for the Amsterdam Light Fes- With hits such as ‘I Will Survitival. The Water Colours boat ve’, ‘It’s Raining Men’, and, of route features many of these course, ‘Girls Just Wanna Have beautiful artworks, which will Fun’, the show is a dazzling, illuminate the city during the over-the-top riot. long winter nights. Most boat TUE 11-SUN 22 NOV Royal Theatre Carré, Amstel 115  tour companies offer the 75 www.carre.nl minute cruise, but A-mag. readers get a special discount with Lovers Cruises (see page NEW YEAR FIREWORKS 20).

The Dutch love to set off their SAT 28 NOV-SUN 17 JAN 2016 own fireworks all over the Various locations www.amsterdamlightfestival.nl place, which can be an exhilarating (read 'terrifying') experience for the non-initiated. If LOVEDANCE Helping to raise both money you prefer your sparklers granand awareness with a loud, diose and, especially, launched colourful and fun approach to by professionals, the Maritime a serious issue, Lovedance Museum puts on a stunning features a huge line-up of artNew Year's Eve show on the IJ ists, musicians, DJs, dancers waterfront - accompanied by and other performers who give their time and talent for the obligatory countdown to free. This year’s party will also 2016. Crowds abound, but at have great food and theatrics. least there's less risks to be set TUE 1 DEC on fire by a stray bottle rocket.

Paradiso, Weteringschans 6-8  THUR 21 DEC www.lovedance.nl National Maritime Museum, Kattenburgerplein 1  www.hetscheepvaartmuseum.nl

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MUSEUM TIPS

Munch : Van Gogh

Our Lord in the Attic A 17th-century house where people lived, worked and practised their faith.

Our Lord in the Attic, open all year

Brilliant Beauties © Successió Miró, c/o Pictoright Amsterdam 2015

Edvard Munch, De schreeuw, 1893-1910, Munchmuseum.

Ernesto Che Guevara Havana Cuba 1963 © Rene Burri Magnum Photos

amsterdammusea.org

Discover the striking parallels between the work and the lives of Vincent van Gogh and Edvard Munch.

The Joy of Experiment

Van Gogh Museum, until 17 January 2016

Cobra Museum, until 31 January 2016

The first retrospective exhibition of Joan Miró in the Netherlands in almost 60 years!

A journey that began 3 billion years ago, 200 km below the earth’s surface, and which ends in the ring on your finger or in the pendant on your necklace.

Diamond Museum, till December 2015

Visit these and many other museums for free with the I amsterdam City Card iamsterdam.com/citycard

nov & dec 2015

PART III

EAT DRINK CHIC

32 38 40 42 44 45

NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH: THE RED CARPET EATING OUT ON THE MENU PRETTY THINGS WHAT’S IN STORE COLUMN

HAPPY 145TH! Local landmark Die Port van Cleve celebrated its 145th anniversary this September with the unveiling of a mural by artist Katarina Stupavska, detailing the hotel’s storied history. What began as the first site of the now-famous Heineken brewery in 1864, later developed into a beer house called Die Port van Cleve, which in turn became a restaurant known for its numbered steaks, and later, a hotel. Despite recent renovations, the monument has managed to preserve plenty of its authentic features, such as the historic façade and a Delft Blue tile fresco dating back to 1887 in Bar-Bodega De Blauwe Parade.

Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 176-180 www.dieportvancleve.com

‘WHERE ELSE BUT AMSTERDAM CAN YOU SHOW UP IN YOUR RAIN GEAR AND BE PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL ALLURE?’ Westergasfabriek director Mark de Kruijk is proud of the dashing Dutch sense of style.

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

Neighbourhood watch

neighbourhood watch

THE RED CARPET

ANKE DIJKHUIS, 30 Journalist from Groningen, and her friend Christa

‘I was here two years ago, and it already looks much nicer. It feels less congested, and, to be honest, much safer, because the crowds aren’t as dense.’

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Amsterdam is busy revamping the entrance into the city to create a friendlier, airier, more stylish experience for visitors and residents alike. text & photo Marie-Charlotte Pezé map Monique Wijbrands/SaltyStock

Paved with good intentions

I

n order to accommodate the new North-South metro line stations, but also to honour the giant hub that Central Station has become and its symbol as gateway into the city, the municipality of Amsterdam is giving the entire area a facelift, from the station through Damrak, Rokin and Vijzelstraat, all the way into De Pijp. One long beautiful pathway through the city, with more walking and biking lanes, more living and breathing space. A little bit like Dorothy’s yellow brick road – but red. In a spirit of welcoming visitors in style, the project was aptly named De Rode Loper: the Red Carpet.

The entrance to Amsterdam has been at the mouth of the IJ River for as long as the city has existed.

Back in the 13th century, after local fishermen dammed the Amstel River to protect their homes from flooding, it was just a small harbour that led into town through the Damrak canal. During the following centuries, especially the Golden Age, which saw Amsterdam become one of the greatest sea-trading cities in the world, the port grew exponentially. When the time came to build Central Station, designed by Pierre

Cuypers (of Rijksmuseum fame) and opened in 1889, it was only natural that the main proposal from the Ministry of Interior would situate it where the gateway into the city had always been.

A COMPLEX WORK OF CITY PLANNING If you feel like that part of Amsterdam’s been in construction forever, you’re not the only one.

But knowing the complexity of the edifice that is Stationseiland – which is composed of three artificial islands built on sand and supported by 8,000 wooden beams – makes it easier to understand why the works were delayed so many times. Originally planned in 1997, development of the new subway line, which will join the neighbourhood of Noord to the Station Zuid, started in 2002.

Construction has continually faced structural challenges, mostly when drilling under the IJ River and Central Station.

There was even an incident on Vijzelgracht, when two historic buildings shook a little bit too much for comfort, and plans had to be redrawn. Stephan van der Hoek, communications officer with the Red Carpet office, adds

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neighbourhood watch

PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

One long beautiful pathway through the city, with more walking and biking lanes, more living and breathing space that ‘the optimal way to go about a project of this magnitude is to close off the street and do it all at once. But in one of the Netherlands’s busiest public spaces, that would be impossible! So we pre-build it in small parts, then fit them together like a puzzle.’ They have now reached Muntplein, and the work will stop over the holidays before jumping to De Pijp in spring, then backtrack to finish Vijzelgracht in 2017. It is now projected (and hoped!) that all construction, above and below ground, will be finished by the end of 2017. Surprisingly, most locals have been patient. ‘Of course it’s inconvenient,’ says Bartek Korkuc, a rickshaw driver. ‘The blocked-off streets force us to take very long detours, and we can’t hike up our prices. But in the end, it’s going to look great, be more practical for everyone, and, more importantly, we understand because we are all a part of the city.’

HOLLAND INTERNATIONAL CANAL CRUISES Don’t be fooled by the tacky-tourist effect; Amsterdam was built on water, and seeing it from the canals gives a whole new perspective on the city which is as culturally enlightening as it’s lovely. Holland International offers many different types of tours: the candlelight cruise for a romantic evening, the pizza cruise for the whole family, or, our favourite, from April to October, the eco-tour, on a small open-air electric boat (better for the environment), with a more intimate feel and a private captain who loves his city and shows it. We dare you to try and not immediately ache for a second ride.

Prins Hendrikkade 33A www.canal.nl

MORE CLASS, MORE LIFE So what is it going to look like when it’s all done? ‘It’s a Red Carpet, so of course we want to give it allure. The same design will be followed along the entire route, and we’re using high-quality materials, such as the grey stones on the sidewalk, which come from the mountains in Spain. A classy look was very important to us,’ beams Van der Hoek. The bike lanes will be terracotta red all along the way, making the name of the route more than symbolic. Sidewalks will be wider and easier to navigate, and more living spaces will be added. Rokin, which, let’s be honest, hasn’t looked like much for years, will soon be a lovely, large square with trees and sitting areas – instead of the parking lot it was before construction began. And while

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MANNEKEN PIS Yes, there’s a Vlaamse Friet stand on every street corner, but for the award-winning fry (crunchy-outside, silky-smoothinside), there is no place like Manneken Pis. Don’t let the long line scare you off; you won’t have to wait long for your giant paper cone of potato goodness. For those who cry that traditional Dutch mayonnaise on top of French fries is a travesty, Manneken Pis offers 20 different kinds of sauces.

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Damrak 41 www.mannekenpis.nl

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BODY WORLDS The plastinated specimens at Body Worlds Amsterdam are anything but morbid – they’re even in many ways incredibly beautiful. Even if the museum’s ‘Happiness’ theme can get a bit preachy, the six floors of pure science and fascinating visuals of human anatomy make it an experience of a lifetime.

Also, where else will you get to don plastic gloves and hold a human heart? Yeah, thought so.

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Damrak 66 www.bodyworlds.nl

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GRAND CAFÉ AT BEURS VAN BERLAGE Located in the monumental entrance of the city's former trading centre, with magnificent brick arches and picture tile-work on the walls, the Grand Café also boasts one of the largest terraces in Amsterdam. Its menu has fancy sandwiches and salads, and a great selection of finger foods, making it the perfect spot for a pleasant lunch or a friendly get-together at the end of the day.

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Beursplein 1-3 www.beursvanberlage.com

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neighbourhood watch

PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

DE BIJENKORF

© EMILE JEUKEN

The sister to Macy’s in New York and Les Galleries Lafayette in Paris bears its name well: the Beehive.

Amsterdam’s famous department store, founded in 1870, carries under its dome everything from fashion to jewellery, beauty products and housewares – with more than a touch of luxury. When your credit card begs for reprieve – and it will – you can stop to refuel at one of the four cafés and two restaurants or visit one of the store’s ongoing special events (Sinterklaas, anyone?)

P.G.C. HAJENIUS

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Dam 1 www.debijenkorf.nl

URBAN OUTFITTERS So what if it’s a bit hipstery?

Indulging in a trip back to your 1990s adolescence is simply delicious. Urban Outfitters hasn’t changed much; it still carries highly wearable, everyday, trendy fashion, next to clothes you can’t comprehend how to even put on. It still has the thousand gizmos and accessories you don’t need, but absolutely need as soon as you’ve laid eyes on them, including vinyl records, because contrary to what we all believed, vinyl isn’t dead.

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Kalverstraat 33 www.urbanoutfitters.com

BIERFABRIEK Small artisanal breweries are all the trend in Amsterdam right now, and BierFabriek has the right formula by keeping it simple: they only carry three beers, two of which are brewed on the premises. Rosso, the red ale, is fruity and refreshing; Nero, their dark beer, is a five-malt Porter with a punch softened by hints of chocolate; and Puur is a rich, unfiltered Pilsner made at Alfa Brewery especially for them. All can be enjoyed inside at the wooden tap tables, or outside on the small, pleasant terrace.

They also carry a menu with mostly organic foods, with a special mention for the delicious free-range chicken, bathed in beer before being slowly roasted on a bed of charcoal. Sinful.

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Rokin 75 www.bierfabriek.com

It can’t be said that the Red Carpet doesn’t also possess some old world flair. Established in 1826 when it catered to aristocracy’s and royalty’s nicotine addictions, the cigar magnate moved to its current magnificent Art Deco shop on the Rokin in 1914 (the building itself is worth a detour even if you don’t puff). A hundred years later, Hajenius is still purveying phenomenal quality tobacco and related products, such as popular Cuban Coronas Gigantes or exclusive Dominicana Toros. They also organise workshops and tastings in a classy yet warm and friendly atmosphere.

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Rokin 96 www.hajenius.com

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BARTEK KORKUC, 32 Rickshaw driver from Poland

‘The blocked-off streets force us to take very long detours, and we can’t hike up our prices.

But in the end, it’s going to look great, be more practical for everyone, and, more importantly, we understand because we are all a part of the city.’

Damrak is still a horrendous quagmire of fast-food chains and mind-numbing tourist shops, the city is trying to give the area’s retail options a new direction.

Coffee shops and sex shops are closing in the proximity, and Rokin is promoting a new spirit by welcoming cool international brands such as Urban Outfitters or Forever 21, as well as luxury stores like an upcoming giant Haussman and, to the delight of all expats, a warehousesized Marks & Spencer. The route is, after all, brimming with great cultural and entertainment institutions, from the

Palace and Madame Tussauds on Dam Square to the Allard Pierson archaeology museum by Muntplein, FOAM Photography Museum right off Vijzelgracht, and the Heineken Experience at the entrance to De Pijp – to name just a few. The Red Carpet area is already incredibly rich in history, culture and shopping, offering more recreation than most visitors can chew in one visit, but all that cheer can get lost in the crowds and commotion. By the end of 2017, it will finally look as stylish as it deserves.

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DAVIDE FOSCHI, 22, & GIULIA BERNASSOLA, 23 Cook and student from Italy

‘I live in London, so I know busy connection hubs, and what I love about Central Station is how well organised and clear it is, even for a first-time visitor.’

WEEKDAY JEANS A spin-off of the popular Scandinavian fashion brand Weekday, Weekday Jeans has an inconspicuous shop on Rokin with a piece of denim for every day of your week.

With a wide range of designs, colours and fabrics, they stick to basics with beautiful, clean cuts. You’ll find everything from second-skin skinnies to high waists, and the line was expanded so it’s not all pants pants pants. The emphasis is on simplicity and wearability, but with quality finishes and unique touches, and all at a surprisingly very affordable price.

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Rokin 84 www.weekday.com

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

EATING OUT

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

text Karin Engelbrecht

DE KERSENTUIN

T

Dijsselhofplantsoen 7 www.dekersentuin.nl

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TRENDY

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his previously stuffy Oud-Zuid institution is heading in a drastic new direction after a recent renovation. Its casual-chic interior is rich in wood, watercolours and creamy leathers, and there’s a new kitchen team under the expert guidance of Signature Chef Stefan van Sprang and Chef Wessel Ruijmgaart of two-Michelin star Aan de Poel. Their small, internationally-inspired plates bring both elegance and a welcome wit, with clever concoctions such as deep-fried king prawns with curried shallots and lemongrass – which Van Sprang told us, was inspired by frikandel speciaal, a Dutch snackbar favourite of his son’s.

Don’t miss the decadent foie gras tosti with Madeira, hazelnuts and pickled heirloom beets. And, if you want to sample something truly unforgettable, try the Jasmine tea marinated roast veal with mushroom and wakame stuffed brique rolls, baby leek bundles and a gorgeous gravy of cacao, soy and sambai, a rare artisan Japanese rice vinegar aged over oxtail (€15).

Amid a perfectly choreographed dance of dining delight we could only find one misstep: the Douwe Egberts coffee was average at best, but it was served with flair and some fabulous chocolates. In short, you can safely venture south to the Bilderberg Garden Hotel expecting edible excellence and service that is friendly and refreshingly informal, yet always correct, but you might want to stick to the dessert wine.

eating out

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39 trendy TERPENTIJN With its stylish take on Asian streetfood, this sleek new lunch and dinner destination brings much-needed resuscitation to tourist trap-ridden Rokin. Terpentijn’s crab and salmon fishcakes with papaya slaw, lime, coriander and sriracha (€10) transports one to the tropics on even the dreariest day, while roast pork belly with a sticky teriyaki sauce offers cold weather comfort alongside homely celeriac puree, carrots and peppery watercress (€19.50) and passionfruit custard combines creamy textured bliss with the intensity and zest of a fruit curd. (€9.50).

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© JOCHEM VAN GRUNSVEREN

Rokin 103 www.terpen-tijn.nl

critic’s choice BAK

O

verlooking the scenic Houthavens harbour, situated in an atmospheric warehouse where commodities such as cocaine and coffee were once stored, chef Benny Blisto and his team now cook up stimulating wares of a much purer kind. It’s a confident kitchen that lets the ingredients do the talking – although it has to be said that the waiting staff are particularly well-informed and exceedingly professional here. Indeed, Bak uses only ‘the best vegetables from passionate farmers, fish from sustainable fisheries, meat from local producers’ and interesting vin naturels from small producers, all listed on the restaurant’s website. A surprising producestacked, seasonally-themed set menu (five courses for €45; three for €27) recently included an umami-explosion of soy-mirin glazed aubergine and earthy venison with Swiss chard, carrot puree, crumbed puffball mushrooms and a pool of blood-red beet gravy.

Van Diemenstraat 410 www.bakrestaurant.nl

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classic LE HOLLANDAIS

quick & simple CLUBKOFFIE This new east-side coffee and club sandwich specialist brews up beans from Stooker Roasting Co. and offers about a dozen clubs, including the Amsterdam Club (€8) with pulled pork, spicy pumpkin and Hellman’s mayo, and the vegan Berlin Club (€7.50) with avocado puree, tomato, carrot, pear and spinach.

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Krugerplein 2 www.clubkoffie.com

Le Hollandais is one of those marvellous places to which only local gourmets find their way. When in Rome do as the Romans do: go to Le Hollandais and fasten your seatbelt for a remarkable meal. Situated on the Amstel River, on the outskirts of De Pijp, it is a very discreet restaurant where food speaks for itself.

The vibe in this pleasant place is informal and spontaneous. The signature style is classic provincial French cooking with a preference for transforming offal into sexy dishes. The chef made a trademark out of his homemade sausages, which are often served as a first course. They tend to have classic but surprising combinations like squid and pork, or boudin blanc with rabbit, stemming from the same rich tradition as cassoulet, chou farci and crépinettes (packages of raw oysters and minced pork).

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Amsteldijk 41 From: Must Eat Amsterdam by Luc Hoornaert (Lannoo Publishers)

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

ON THE MENU

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

live music

coffee bars

best burgers

CAFÉ HESP

KOKO COFFEE & DESIGN

SMOKIN’ BARRELS

Having recently celebrated its 125th anniversary, Hesp remains one of the city’s most characteristic brown cafés, with a prime location along the lovely Amstel River. There are 20 beers on tap, over 40 bottled brews and two dozen wines by the glass. On Sunday afternoons (from 16:30) there’s also live music.

Weesperzijde 130-131 www.cafehesp.nl

CAFÉ NEL Situated on what’s arguably Amsterdam’s prettiest square, behind a 17th century wooden church, Nel is where the bakfiets brigade come for rosé and croquettes in the afternoon, while their little ones live it up in the adjacent playground. But after dark on Mondays, babysitters are booked and live jazz fills the night sky (from 20:30).

Amstelveld 12 www.nelamstelveld.nl

GRACELAND BAR-B-Q Graceland’s Country Sundays (from 16:00-19:00) are sure to get your feet tapping with a line-up that regularly includes bluegrass, old time country or blues.

It’s the perfect match for the ‘long, slow and low’ cooked Texas-style barbecue prepared on the heavy duty 1,400 kg steel Black Betty smoker. There are also craft beers and bourbon-spiked cocktails.

Jan van Galenstraat 8 www.gracelandbbq.com

This coffee bar/boutique/gallery in the Red Light District is a breath of fresh air. Sniff the freshly-brewed aromas of organic, lightly roasted Caffènation coffee while thumbing through vintage fashion magazines or fingering exclusive designer clothing labels. Also on offer are vintage furniture, and work by young artists and photographers.

Oudezijds Achterburgwal 145 www.ilovekoko.com

SCREAMING BEANS Get your caffeine kick as you shop in the Negen Straatjes or Jordaan at one of this mini-chain’s cosy coffee bars. Whether you go for the purest pour-overs or perfectly pulled flat-whites with silky foam, the premium organic Tanzanian coffee beans will have you percolating with pleasure. They also carry fresh juices, patisseries, and lunch options.

Various locations www.screamingbeans.nl

DE KOFFIE SALON The secret to the success of this much-lauded mainstay in the city’s coffee scene is undoubtedly its gleaming beast of a machine – a Mirage Triplette Classic Idrocompresso

by Kees van der Westen – coupled with Buscaglione coffee. Thanks to outposts in Centrum, De Pijp and OudWest and shop-in-shops in Oost and Spui, their dependably delicious coffee is only ever a short stroll away.

Various locations www.dekoffiesalon.nl

If you need a reason to go and explore Oost, here’s a good one. This laid-back surf ‘n’ turf spot serves up its comfort food, craft beers and cocktails with a smile.

There are eight burgers to choose from, including the decadent Ari Gold (€17.50): a 150 g beef patty topped with 60 g of duck liver, Madeira sauce and truffle on organic sourdough.

Beukenplein 22 www.smokinbarrels.nl

THE BUTCHER With over a dozen burgers on offer, from the Veggie Delight (€6.50) to the aptly titled The Daddy (€11.50) with its 250 g prime Aberdeen Angus beef patty topped with melted Edam cheese, streaky bacon, BBQ sauce and grilled onions, there’s plenty of choices at this inspired burger bar.

Albert Cuypstraat 129 www.the-butcher.com

BURGERMEESTER Haters bemoan the lack of fries and Diet Coke, but fans flock here for the everchanging line-up of ‘gastronomic burgers’, including the Spanish lamb burger with Texel lamb, chorizo and jalapeños, or the Manchego burger with mango chutney (both €8.50). Order baked potatoes, corn on the cob or salad on the side, and housemade milkshakes or niche-brand soft drinks.

Various locations www.burgermeester.eu

on the menu

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MEZCAL COCKTAILS Smoking hot

Bénédictine and barrel-aged orange bitters (€15.50). Mezcal-spiked pink lemonade (€10) is one way to wash down your Eggs Benedict at Gs. Or you could head to Salmuera, ‘Amsterdam’s official home of the agave spirit’, where you’ll find more than ten mezcal-based cocktails (from €9) as well as some two dozen premium small batch mezcals to sip (from €5).

DOOR 74 Reservations: +31 (0)6 34045122 www.door-74.com Gs Various locations www.reallyniceplace.com SALMUERA Rozengracht 106H www.sal-amsterdam.nl

© MARIE-CHARLOTTE PEZE

O

nce the poor relation of everpopular party drink tequila, mezcal – that artisanal Mexican spirit made from the heart of the maguey plant – has been bringing smoky intensity to cocktail menus throughout Amsterdam. One explanation for this ongoing trend is that ‘bartenders love an underdog: small batches are produced from diverse varietals of wild agave by small-scale producers run by everyday people in tiny Mexican villages,’ says Timo Janse of local speakeasy Door 74, where a recent cocktail menu included various mezcal-based drinks including ‘The Imperial Shag’, with herbal, citrusy notes courtesy of Agave de Cortes Blanco Mezcal, Kina L’Avion D’Or, Amaro Averna, DOM

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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

DOORDEWEEKS

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NEW IN TOWN

This concept store with a twist, owned by creative ladies Wiske and Jildou, is branching out with a new location.

Much to the delight of fans of vintage fashion, interior goodies, secondhand furniture, young designer labels, art and accessories. The fun part of Doordeweeks (translated: on weekdays)? After shopping till

you drop, you can indeed ‘drop’, and treat yourself to a cup of coffee and one of their homemade cakes in their tiny café. A treat for your olfactory senses as well as your visual ones, Doordeweeks smells like freshly-brewed coffee, delicious granola and freshlysqueezed juices. You can also get a haircut in the Cut-To-Go chair, or book a makeover in the Make-Up Bar. If you

bump into one of the owners, they would love to tell you more about their precious store. We like the sound of this new spot already.

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Bilderdijkstraat 165F www.doordeweeks.com

43 sustainable INK INKLUSIVE Ever wondered what happens to all that unwanted fabric lying around in warehouses – those cancelled orders, leftover pieces or forgotten rolls? Well, one place it goes to is Ink Inklusive, who takes this abandoned material and uses it to create its own limited-edition designs for men and women. In addition to clothing, they also offer accessories such as glasses, necklaces, earrings, and even placemats made of denim.

eye candy

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Laurierstraat 248 www.ink-inklusive.com

ACE & TATE

©MARK HELDERS

Following on from the success of its pop-up stores, Ace & Tate have also opened up a permanent shop in the famous Negen Straatjes shopping area. What’s more, this flagship store offers the popular home-try-on service (select fancy models to try at home). The man behind the brand, Mark de Lange, set up Ace & Tate with the idea that everyone can and must buy affordable spectacles and sunglasses, and switch them as often as they like. Every pair of glasses costs 89, no strings attached. Good to know: with every pair you buy, you help provide someone in need with access to eyecare. And if you buy a pair from the Black Is The New Green Collection, you help the environment too, as it’s made of 100 per cent biodegradable acetate. Clearly a wise choice.



Huidenstraat 20 www.aceandtate.com

exclusive P.C. HOOFTSTRAAT 2.0 It took some years to complete its huge makeover, but the most exclusive shopping street of Amsterdam finally has its allure back: with new and refurbished stores and a look that has renewed the owners’s pride in their storefronts. No more drilling and hammering...The neighbours and shop owners got a first glimpse of ‘their’ street before the official opening, and celebrated it with a pop-up barbecue. The only thing that hasn’t changed? Uhm, yeah, the prices...

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P.C. Hooftstraat www.pchooftstraat.com

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what’s in store

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

   

text Elisah Jacobs

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VICTORIA’S SECRET (F) In addition to the stores at Schiphol airport (before and after customs), lovers of Victoria’s Secret can also get their fill of frills in the city, as a third shop has opened up in Amsterdam Central Station’s new IJ passage. The shop is brimming with beauty products, bracelets, travel and make-up bags, and perfumes. What has this location in common with the other two?: it doesn’t carry any lingerie either. Such a shame!

LEVI’S (M/F)

OU (M/F)

Kalverstraat 166 www.levis.com

IJ-Passage, Amsterdam Central Station www.victoriassecret.com

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This new shop in the Negen Straatjes is the initiative of Val and Rose, the brains behind the popular website 9straatjesonline.nl. They thought the area needed one more boutique: their own. OU is packed full of fine brands for women, men and kids, as well as goodies for the home. Think of brightly-printed shoes from Anniel, woollen sweaters from Coat People and fancy dresses from Sita Murt.

Oh, and there’s a nail salon too and, if you fancy, the girls also offer a personal shopping service.

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Reestraat 16 www.ou-amsterdam.com

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LIKE STATIONERY (M/F))) Graphic designer Sanne Dirkzwager has been designing books, magazines, websites and textiles for almost 15 years. After starting an online store, she now has a bricks-and-mortar shop in the centre of Amsterdam. It carries plenty of lovely finds: colourful stationery, sweet cards, retro diaries and even writing feathers (just like Harry’s!).



Prinsenstraat 24 www.likestationery.com

GSUS (M/F)

PROJECT AMS (M) Stylish men who don’t like fast fashion do like Project AMS. The boutique carries beautiful basics from high-end brands and labels from young designers such as Piola, Franzel, Thu, Won Hundred, Drome and its own PRJCT AMS label. In addition to basics, you can also find an in-store custom-suit service where you can design your own tailored suit.

Gasthuismolensteeg 18 www.prjctams.nl

Why have a ‘normal’ pair of jeans when you can customise it immediately in the store? Like transforming the popular Levi’s 501 into shorts, or turning a denim jacket into a gilet? Or how about adding retro patches and studs? Hell, why not go all the way and throw in some rips while you’re at it, too? There’s so many options to choose from. So book yourself an appointment at the Levi’s Tailor Shop and get creating your unique Levi’s item.

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This Dutch brand collaborated with one of the biggest festivals in the country (Lowlands) and designed its very own festival collection. For this season, gsus comes back with fashion inspired by the British highlands versus the Far East. Oriental influences with a British twist, an interesting marriage for your wardrobe! We like the men’s jacket with an embroidered crane bird on the back. Gsus designs for men, women and kids, too.



Koningsplein 8 www.g-sus.com

NIEUW JURK (M/F)

A-DAM UNDERWEAR (M)

Esther Meijer graduated from ArtEZ academy in Arnhem and started her own label in Amsterdam. Nieuw Jurk is based on a fictional city where the models belong to the so-called Nieuw Jurk gang. What happens next is fashion inspired by hip-hop, rave, gothic and grunge. Striking, colourful, lots of humour and with just the right touch of eccentricity. Good to know: the collection can be worn in several different ways, and is often unisex.

The tagline, ‘If you got balls’ makes us chuckle already. This brand from Amsterdam is for those men who don’t quite like basic underwear, but prefer comfy and stylish boxer shorts made from organic cotton and printed in an array of colours and patterns. There are no big campaigns for A-dam Underwear, but there are hilarious videos that regularly go viral on the Internet. You can shop the brand at The English Hatter. For more stores check out the website.

2PR, Oude Hoogstraat 10 www.nieuwjurk.com

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Heiligeweg 40 www.adamunderwear.com

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’.

EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN

B 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.

eing an expat is always the most bittersweet when the holidays roll around, and I’m not even talking Christmas.

For me it’s Thanksgiving, when the rest of my American family is gathered around the same table on the East Coast carving turkey.

But as I make my annual turkey dinner here with my extended ‘family’, I’m reminded of the deep connections between my new homeland and my old, specifically my birthplace of New York, née New Amsterdam, and I feel I have somehow come home to Old Amsterdam.There are the better-known links, such as the Dutch East India Company’s Golden Age explorations that brought Manhattan and its riches into Dutch hands.

Young Americans are schooled in the voyage of the Pilgrims, who, fleeing religious persecution, set sail from England aboard the Mayflower in 1620 and began their colonization of the ‘New World’ in Massachusetts. But what most people don’t know –Americans included – is that when the first Pilgrims left England, they made a decade-long stopover in Leiden in the Netherlands. Although they had planned on setting up shop in the ever-tolerant Lowlands, they left 11 years later when the tide turned and they once again feared persecution and war.

What they packed in their bags from their brief Dutch sojourn, though, has helped shape

America’s identity. There were the physical influences such as the ladder-back chair, an early version of the hockey stick and a method of house building known as Palisade that became popular in New England.

They even brought Leiden’s institution of civil marriage with them across the Atlantic. But it was the political and social ideas they absorbed from the Dutch that have had the most profound effect. The federal system of government in the US, where quasi-independent states join together to form a nation, was based on the Dutch model. Historian Jeremy Bangs told me that when people used the words ‘United States’ in the 17th century, they were referring to the United States of the Netherlands, and not the USA. Parts of the Mayflower Compact, a blueprint for society drawn up aboard said ship, was influenced not only by the congregational church, but by Leiden’s neighbourhood organisations, right down to their elected officials.

You can visit the nearby Leiden American Pilgrim Museum (where Bangs is director) to learn all about the Dutch’s lasting influence on Americans – including the Thanksgiving feast itself, which in part is taken from the Pilgrims’s shared experiences with Leiden’s residents, who annually celebrated their 1574 victory over the Spanish. Old Amsterdam feels close to home indeed.

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BATAVIASTAD.COM

PART IV

THE

nov &dec 2015

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

>

For complete listings, see www.iamsterdam.com

THE MASTER OF MODERN CINEMA Thirteen giant screens with projected excerpts of his masterpieces, along with rare letters and documents, photographs, and personal mementos: it’s a monumental exhibition devoted to Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni that EYE Film Museum has lovingly concocted for us this season. One of the first directors to understand the importance of mise-en-scène and powerful visuals to support narrative and character development, Antonioni was not only a decisive film innovator but also a true cinematography artist. The exhibition is accompanied by screenings of Antonioni’s films and special programmes.

UNTIL 17 JANUARY 2016 EYE Film Institute, IJPromenade 1 www.eyefilm.nl

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PART IV THE A-LIST

FESTIVALS & EVENTS MÜBII JAPAN Delve into 90 years of Japanese cinematic history during this fantastic film series. Experience old and new films that have left a cinematic mark. until Thur 31 Dec, EYE Film Museum, www.eyefilm.nl INTERNATIONAL STORY-TELLING FESTIVAL AMSTERDAM Tall tales, beautiful stories, old legends and touching recitals will all make an appearance at this year’s festival. The ISFA has built up a solid name providing a stage for the best of the Dutch and international storytellers. until Sun 8 Nov, various locations, www.storytellingfestival.nl

Choice festivals

events including workshops, concerts, special tours and performances as well as tasty food and drinks to help keep your energy levels up.

Sat 7 Nov, various locations, www.museumnachtamsterdam.nl YOUNG PIANISTS FESTIVAL AMSTERDAM Celebrate the sound of the piano, young talents and new and old compositional talent.

There are concerts, masterclasses and workshops throughout the festival.

Thur 12-Sun 22 Nov, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ & Bimhuis, www.ypf.nl

IDFA: INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL AMSTERDAM Every November, IDFA treats documentary lovers to the latest and greatest domestic and international arrivals from the documentary film world. No DANCING ON THE EDGE other festival brings together so many great films, devoted fans This celebration of Middle and talented film-makers in Eastern and North African arts and culture takes over multiple one place, making IDFA one of the world’s leading documenvenues in Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht tary film festivals. Grab a programme and check out the wide every two years, offering variety of themes and special lectures, meetings and workevents lined up this year. shops in addition to a host of Wed 18-Sun 29 Nov, various live performances. locations, www.idfa.nl Wed 4-Sun 8 Nov, De Brakke Grond, www.dancingonTURN ON THE LIGHTS theedge.nl With Turn on the Lights, SIERAAD ART FAIR Amsterdam’s luxury department store de Bijenkorf The latest edition of this renowned jewellery fair is set to opens the festive season in brilbe the most international yet, liant spectacle and festive cheer. featuring more than a hundred Head along for a magical theatjewellery designers from dozens rical show at Dam Square and of countries. It is the only plat- the illumination of hundreds of thousands of energy-efficient form in the Netherlands where LED lights on the façade of the professional contemporary jewellery designers from home majestic de Bijenkorf building!

Thur 19 Nov, Dam Square, and abroad can sell their work 19:00, free directly to the public. In addition to shopping for and ERIK SATIE FESTIVAL admiring the designs, visitors A weekend of beautiful music can join a number of presentaby composer Erik Satie, pertions and special events.

Thur 5- Sun 8 Nov, Westergas- formed by renowned piano talents and led by Erik Le Cornu fabriek, www.sieraadartfair.

Huele. com Sat 21-Sun 22 Nov, MUSEUM NIGHT Amstelkerk, AMSTERDAM www.erikplayssatie.com Each November, about 50 FOOD FILM FESTIVAL museums in Amsterdam open Into its fifth year, the Food their doors from 19:00 to Film Festival has been on tour 02:00 to allow visitors to see throughout the Netherlands, Amsterdam’s museums in a with each event focused on a completely new light – after different foodstuff. In Amsterdark! Look out for special dam it’s all about meat. As well advert as film screenings, look out for special festival talks and performances.

Sun 22 Nov, De Brakke Grond, www.foodfilmfestival.nl

ing from bike shops to snack bars and local pubs to residential living rooms.

Fri 18-Sun 20 Dec, various locations, www.wintersbinnen.nl CHRISTMAS VILLAGE ON ICE From mid December, Museumplein is transformed into a magical winter wonderland as the Christmas Village market sets up stall.

Fri 18-Sun 27 Dec, Museumplein, www.iceamsterdam.nl

© TODD HIDO

FESTIVALS & EVENTS

AMSTERDAM ART WEEKEND Amsterdam Art Weekend returns to the city, offering art enthusiasts the chance to delve into Amsterdam’s vibrant contemporary art scene to discover (and get their hands on) work by talented young artists. The event typically sees more than 30 galleries in the city organise special exhibitions, performances and lectures.

26-29 Nov, various locations, www.amsterdamart.com

VALHALLA The best and brightest electronic dance initiatives in Amsterdam team up to host a night (and a long one at that) filled with the biggest names in dance music. Expect an extensive variety of musical styles, from disco to deep house and from techno to club house.

Sat 19 Dec, Amsterdam RAI, www.valhallafestival.nl TANGOTRAIN Warm up the wintry days between Christmas and New Year with a week of dance at the TangoTrain.

Sat 26 Dec-Sun 3 Jan 2016, various locations, www.tangotrain.com

AMSTERDAM LIGHT LOVEDANCE FESTIVAL Helping to raise both money The Amsterdam Light Festival and awareness with a loud, returns this festive season, colourful and fun approach to a (literally) putting the beautiful serious issue, Lovedance always city centre and its canals in features a huge and varied lineBROKKENFESTIVAL the limelight. As well as the up of artists, musicians, bands, Annual jazz and experimental illuminated artworks around DJs, dancers and music festival which sees the city’s canals, look out for an other performers.

Dutch guitarist Corrie van extensive side-programme that Tue 1 Dec, Paradiso, www.

Binsbergen present highlights will see a host of activities and lovedance.nl from her regular sessions at events take place at museums, CHRISTMAS AT CASTLE Zaal 100 – evenings that theatres, restaurants, shops and KEUKENHOF unite new talent with other locations in Amsterdam. established names in the Thur 26 Nov-Sun 17 Jan 2016, Taking over the beautiful jazz and pop scenes. various locations, www.amKeukenhof estate in Lisse Sun 27 Dec, Bimhuis, sterdamlightfestival.com (more famous for the www.bimhuis.nl spring tulip season), this atFOOD FESTIVAL mospheric Christmas fair will CALEFAX: PAN 12 AMSTERDAM be held over two weekends – As the year draws to a Serving to remind that the first weekend has a close, it’s something of an food festivals aren’t simply for Diwali theme, the second is a annual tradition for the players summer, this huge event moves Dickensian Christmas. of the Calefax Reed into Amsterdam RAI's mamSat 5, Sun 6 & Fri 11-Sun 13 moth Europahal, promising a Dec, Castle Keukenhof, www. Quintet to team up with special guests – both musicians from wealth of food and drink with kerstoplandgoedkeukenhof.nl outside of the classical sphere more than 70 food trucks, popPURE WINTER MARKET and local artists. The results up kitchens and bars. are always surprising and Thur 28-Sun 29 Nov, For organic produce and susrespectably Brakke Grond, tainable gifts, head to the Pure adventurous. www.foodfestivalamsterdam.nl Winter Market this December.

Mon 28 Dec, Muziekgebouw Sun 13 Dec (Beatrixpark) & MEESTERLIJK aan ’t IJ, www.calefax.nl Sun 20 Dec (Park FrankenAnnual event allowing dael), www.puremarkt.nl CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL product, fashion & food designWINTERPARADE Devoted to the enchanting ers, craftspeople and diverse world of chamber artists to share their passion for The winter version of the music, this festival is the design and craftsmanship with summer theatrical festival full brainchild the public. Throughout the of live acts and performances. of Dutch cellist Ella van three days of the event, estabThe WinterParade invites Poucke and her brother, lished masters will stand along500 guests to take their seats pianist Nicolas van Poucke. side talented novices. Visitors at a 120-metre long table for It once again unites internacan buy objects directly from a festive menu and stacks of tional musicians to celebrate the participating artists, or entertainment. Please note that the centuries-old genre. simply pick their brains about the performances are predomiWed 30 Dec-Fri 1 Jan 2016, their trade. nantly in Dutch.

PAN AMSTERDAM Amstelkerk, www.kamermuzFri 27-Sun 29 Nov, Westergas- Thur 17-Sat 19 Dec & Fri 25Modern-day art fair that guariekfestivalamsterdam.com fabriek, www.meesterlijk.nu Wed 30 Dec, Zuiderkerk, antees surprise, variety and www.tafelvandeidee.nl THIS ART FAIR MICROFEST AMSTERDAM quality, presenting work rangWINTERS BINNEN ing from classical antiquities Between shopping the sales A one-day music festival delvand Old Masters to contempoand spreading holiday cheer, ing into microtonal music – a Spread over a host of surprising rary photography and art. Be- favourite of contemporary com- locations in Amsterdam Noord, don’t miss This Art Fair. It’s fore this annual fair even opens, posers who’re rarely satisfied by an eclectic art event featuring this adventurous festival each work of art is extensively visual art, design, dance, video, the humble semi-tone. Explore returns for another vetted for quality, authenticity light installations, workshops the potential of microtonal edition of multiand condition by more than 70 music via three concerts spread and music. disciplinary fun! Cultural experts.

Wed 30 Dec-Wed 3 Jan 2016, throughout the day. organisations north of Sun 22-Sun 29 Nov, Beurs van Berlage, Sun 29 Nov, the river unite to organise Amsterdam RAI, www.pan.nl www.thisartfair.com Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, three days of theatre, music, www.muziekgebouw.nl film and art at locations rang-

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nov & dec 2015

CLUBBING & NIGHTLIFE CLUBBING JUXTAPOSE He’s back from a few tropical years in Bali: Mike Kivits aka Aardvarck aka Vareke. Be prepared for an unpredictable mix of King Tubby, Nirvana and Aphex Twin although none of these artists may actually find their way to his record bag tonight.

Fri 6 Nov, Canvas, 23:00, €12

gie to the sophisticated sounds of several Rush Hour-associated acts including Boye, Elias Mazian and Interstellar Funk Sat 14 Nov, Warehouse Elementenstraat, 12:00-02:00, €32.50, €62.50 for both days 50 WEAPONS A night of experimental dancefloor music with Sebastian Szary and Gernot Bronsert aka Modeselektor (BPitch Control) headlining. With their musical roots lying in the period just after the Berlin Wall fell, the duo’s taste has evolved from 4/4 industrial electronic to the eclectic and mildly disturbing glitch/techno/ breakbeat they produce today.

Sat 14 Nov, Closure, 23:0005:00, €12.50

CHEETA: 5 YEARS LUMBERJACKS IN HELL It’s hard to believe that the Lumberjacks have been serving Amsterdam with heavenly disco beats for five years already. Tonight’s one for the connaisseurs with two DJs working the decks: WELCOME TO THE FUTURE, Maurice Fulton (NYC) and DAY 2 Rahaan (Chicago) plus The second day features a similar mr. Lumberjack himself aka line-up to day 1, dominated by Marcel Vogel.

Sat 7 Nov, Studio 80, 23:00, €15 German or German-style techno artists including Adam Port, 10 YEARS OF DEF:NITION Extrawelt (live), De Sluwe Vos, Vril (live) and Baikal. High qualThe days that drum & bass seemed dead and buried are far ity, housey tunes to boogie to are behind us. More than ten years spun by Alex Salvador, Awanto 3, Daan Groeneveld and others. at least, because that’s when Sun 15 Nov, Tolhuistuin, 12:00London based promoters 02:00, €32.50, €62.50 for both Def:inition started throwing days parties centred around the fast paced breakbeat genre. This THE PRODIGY LIVE renaissance continues with a line-up, that includes Dawa, Edit The exceptional thing about the early years of The Prodigy is that and Inter DJ-ing plus MCs they managed to reign over the Deefa and H.I.C. on the mic. clubs as well as the charts. The Sat 7 Nov, Tolhuistuin, 23:00band’s 25 year history makes 05:00, €12,50 them one of the Black Sabbath’s VOLTT ITW #1 of electronic music, hence the ITW, named after the ITW ware- stadium sized décor for this gig.

This already massive night out house at NDSM, is a new small may be even bigger due to the scale, underground rave series guest appearance of fellow organised by Voltt. The idea is to veterans Public Enemy. start with chilled out vibes and to Wed 18 Nov, Ziggo Dome, end the night (or start the morn20:00, €45 ing) with banging techno. Strobe lights and smoke machines will METRONOME help you feel lost. The first edition features prolific London DJ A night of high quality electronic music from the underground Mosca (NTS Radio), Dubspeeka with excellent local DJs Mark (Drumcode) and Bart Skils.

Du Mosch (Moustache Records, Sat 7 Nov, NDSM, Dekmantel, Tape), Hoek and 23:00-08:00, €15 Bas B playing acid, IDM, electro, HORIZON techno and italo disco.

Fri 20 Nov, OT301, 22:00Italian, Italo disco influenced 03:00, €10 DJ/producer Massimilliano Pagliara headlines tonight with JULIO BASHMORE local DJ Reza Athar taking over Bristol-based house producer when he needs to pee.

Julio Bashmore makes for an Sat 7 Nov, Canvas, 23:00, €12 exciting headliner. Coming from STRANGE BEHAVIOUR one of the hotbeds of triphop and drum & bass, Bashmore’s Acclaimed German minimal and cuts are always bassy and very, deep house producer Efdemin very British. Decent support shares the decks with decent locomes from Clone Records's cal jocks Jean Pierre Enfant and head honcho Sinfol. Checking out Efdemin’s Fri 20 Nov, Closure, 23:00dark 2007 classic ‘Acid Bells’ will 05:00, €12.50 get you into the vibe for tonight.

Fri 13 Nov, Closure, 23:00ZEDD 05:00, €12.50 German producer Zedd has been WELCOME TO THE FUTURE, a big player behind the scenes DAY 1 with a feature on ‘Break Free’ by Ariana Grande (although it'd be The unique part of this first more fair to say the track feaindoor edition of Welcome to the tures Ms. Grande) and a recent Future is the fact that it’s a dayproduction with Selena Gomez time festival during the winter season when everything normal- (‘I Want You To Know’). Another ly tends to happen when the sun big one to look out for is the title track of Zedd’s second studio don’t shine. Line-up wise, the album True Colours. Catch this Saturday is for lovers of druggy, guy in an intimate session before German techno with Dominik he blows up for good.

Eulberg, Gabriel Ananda, Kölsch Sat 21 Nov, Melkweg, and Chymera (live) headlining, 19:30, €17 although there’s also time to boo-

LEFTFIELD During the early 1990s Leftfield were one of the five British crossover dance acts (alongside Underworld, The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy and Basement Jaxx) to do great with album-sales (Leftism sold a now unthinkable amount of 220k copies). Leftfield is back with a new album Alternative Light

the adjacent road every time. No and warmed up for American wonder, because RS’s excellent legends including Chez Damier, resident DJs Bradley Zero and Ron Trent and Derrick May. Reginald Omas play a delicious No wonder DJ Deep’s sets don’t mix of everything funky and sound typically French; expect a soulful from the 1970s to now. mix of house, techno and hiphop, Fri 4 Dec, Canvas, 23:00, €12 mostly from the other side of the Atlantic.

THESE GUYS PRESENT Sat 12 Dec, Canvas, 23:00, €12 EVERYTHING IS TRUE FAITHLESS 2.0 An exciting back to back session It’s a trend: middle-aged dance music stars making some extra cash with comeback shows.

Tonight provides an opportunity for ravers and festival goers from the 1990s to see the band who mixed trance music with triphop.

Imagine the magnitude of the flashback when Rollo screams that he still ‘can’t get no sleep’ after all these years…

Sun 13 Dec, Ziggo Dome, 20:00, €39

Choice clubbing

CHEMISTRY: THEN, NOW OR NEVER Moving to the Marktkantine seems a good move for this one-off reunion event, although whether the original excitement around 1990s soulful house music can be recreated remains to be seen. Expect a good amount of mums and dads plus tunes by Chemistry resident DJs like Dimitri, Marcello, Isis, Brian S, Victor Coral and the not-so-timeless words by good ol’ MC Marxman.

Sat 14 Nov, Marktkantine, 21:00-05:00, €35

VERKNIPT 3 YEAR ANNIVERSARY A location that hasn’t been over-used, plus a very sophisticated techno line-up and a decent end-time should result in an excellent party. Headlining are producer of punishing techno Surgeon and Pariah. Also playing are Lady Starlight, Shifted, Juan Sanchez, and others, divided over three warehouse spaces.

Sat 28 Nov, Amsterdam Studios, 22:00-08:00, €32.50

HUDSON MOHAWKE LIVE One of the first producers to blend underground and mainstream R&B melodies and beats, dubbed ‘the Aphex Twin of hiphop’, Glaswegian artist HudMo is now both part of Kanye West’s production team and one of the biggest names of the Warp Records roster.

Tonight sees the man born as Ross Birchard perform his kitchy glitch sounds live.

Thu 3 Dec, Melkweg, 22:0008:00, €17

VALHALLA FESTIVAL Woohoo! A massive rave to get you in shape for the upcoming silly season. Party hard tonight and thinking about work won’t be an option until say, 3 January. Headlining this musically diverse event are Detroit house and techno genius Carl Craig, Avicii basher Seth Troxler, UK techno/bass producer Maya Jane Coles plus a whole bunch of German tech jocks including Oliver Koletzki, Adana Twins and Andhim.

Sat 19 Dec, RAI, 22:30-07:00, €47.50 LIGHTHOUSE We don’t use the word eclectic lightly, but for American DJ/ producer Karizma, we can’t help but make an exception as there’s no other word available to summarise his mix of house, hiphop, broken beats, techno and jazz.

Local support comes from Mr Mendel.

Sat 19 Dec, Canvas, 23:00, €12 HORIZON A night with Italian DJ Daniele Baldelli, who’s been rocking the floors since the 1980s with a peculiar mix of styles including italo disco, afrobeat, dub, krautrock and psych, occasionally at the wrong speed, mind you!

Amsterdam’s Reza Athar warms up for the legend.

Sat 26 Dec, Canvas, 23:00, €12 AWAKENINGS NYE SPECIAL The most classic among the Dam’s techno events always throws a little rave (3,000 capacity) for NYE. Adam Beyer, Ben Klock, Bart Skils, Ida Engberg and Rødhåd play banging stuff.

Expect fireworks to bang inside the building too. A decent event – organiser Monumental knows what it’s doing Thu 31 Dec, Gashouder, 19:0023:00, €32.50

Source. Tonight’s live set will in- with two bass heads: Objekt and VOLKSHOTEL NYE clude both classic and new tunes. Call Super, who will be revisiting a similar session they did at ADE The bunch behind the amazing Fri 4 Dec, Paradiso, 19:002013 with two additional years creative complex Volkshotel 23:00, €32.50 of exciting future bass records in comprised of the clubs/bars LUMBERJACKS IN HELL X their bags. A perfect way to celeCanvas, Petit Canvas, Doka, RHYTHM SECTION brate the birthday of Sinterklaas Werkplaats and Houten Zaal, throw their second ever New The Amsterdam-based Lumber- (he will turn 1734 at midnight).

Fri 4 Dec, Radion, 23:00Year’s Eve event with a wide varijacks in Hell crew, led by Ger07:00, €12 ety of music and acts performed man born disco DJ Marcel Vogel by a fine group of well-known joins hands with Rhythm SecNOOFILTER local artists. tion, whose parties at Canavan’s Parisian DJ Deep once started Thu 31 Dec, Volkshotel, 21:00Pool club in Peckham, South 04:00, €30 East London, cause blockages on as a protégé of Laurent Garnier

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PART IV THE A-LIST

MUSIC/POP & JAZZ THE ARCS be unleashing full-length sets, taking the crowd on a dizzying The musically promiscuous trip through three decades of Dan Auerbach is best known as KURT ELLING guitar magic. singer-guitarist for The Black Chicago-born Kurt Elling is Keys but his craft has heard him Mon 16 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, €16 considered one of the finest jazz record and produce with many voices today. Also a lyricist and others. His latest partners are FATHER JOHN MISTY AMERICAN AQUARIUM composer, he mixes jazz standThe Arcs, a psychedelic soul outLUKA BLOOM Former Fleet Fox Father John With a pure stream of alt-counards, poetry recitals and vocalfit, whose debut album Yours, He’s been described as an Misty made quite the imprestry influences ranging from ising bebop solos. Expect also Dreamily serves up heady doses old-fashioned Irish bard that sion earlier this year with a soldBruce Springsteen to Ryan covers of Stevie Wonder and Joe of Santana-esque slink. sings about modern life. Bloom’s out performance at Paradiso Adams’s Whiskeytown, this Jackson among more obscure Thur 12 Nov, Melkweg, distinctive voice and lyrics are North. Now he graduates to the North Carolina five-piece bring and traditional pieces.

19:30, €26 enchanting and authentic.

Great Hall for what’s set to be a the genre into sharp focus Sun 1 Nov, Muziekgebouw aan OSCAR AND THE WOLF Thur 5 Nov, People’s Place, mesmeric evening of light and with haunting tales of broken ’t IJ, 20:15, €29.50 20:30, €19.50 shade; preaching to the convert- These Belgian electro-poppers American dreams. Now at alBEACH HOUSE ed with his narrative indie-folk bum number seven, American were founded in 2010 and THE THURSTON MOORE tinged with dark blues influAquarium have earned themDream pop duo Beach House gained fame with the release BAND ences and sweeping orchestral selves a steady following over have been together for over of their debut album Entity Singer-songwriter Thurston arrangements. the last decade. a decade now, releasing five last year. A Dutch club tour Moore, formerly of seminal Mon 9 Nov, Paradiso, Tues 17 Nov, Paradiso, 19:30, albums in that time. The latest, and several festival dates later, alt-rock band Sonic Youth, has 19:30, €18 €15 Depression Cherry is ethereal they’re well and truly ready for a always been busy with side-proand sleepy but intriguing. It super-sized arena show.

ANE BRUN JOHN GRANT jects and collaborations. Last sticks to their aural aesthetic, Fri 13 Nov, Heineken Music Having released her sixth stuDrug addiction, self-destruction meaning it’s instantly recognisa- year he released his fourth solo Hall, 20:00, from €29 album The Best Day. dio album When I’m Free in and sexual promiscuity form ble as Beach House.

CHVRCHES Thur 5 Nov, Tolhuistuin, September, folk pop singer Ane the tangled narrative of John Mon 2 Nov, Paradiso, 20:30, 20:30, €18 Brun returns to Amsterdam. A Rare proof that hype does occa- Grants’s irresistible oeuvre. But €25 huge star in her home country sionally pay, this female-fronted it’s not all doom and gloom; BOB DYLAN DUTCH UNCLES there’s plenty of wit amongst Hailed as one of the greatest the woe, and an increasingly Flexing their lean indie pop songwriters alive, not only is funky sound which continues to muscles with fourth album O this folk and rock pioneer still flourish between the shadows Shudder, which was released on album number three. earlier in 2015, the prolific UK touring, but he’s prolific, with 36 studio albums, including 2015’s Wed 18 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, band show no signs of slowing Shadows in the Night, featuring €17 down any time soon. Catch covers of pop and jazz standards them in their indefatigable LEGENDS OF SOUL – released to rave reviews. Exelement, with DJ support from Expect a big night of 1980s James Cook of fellow Manches- pect everything from his 50-plus year career, from folk, blues, funk and soul claps with The ter band Delphic. rock ‘n’ roll and his more recent Whispers, The S.O.S Band and Tue 3 Nov, Paradiso, 21:30, ventures into Texan Swing.

Jocelyn Brown. €12 Thur 5-Sat 7 Nov, Royal TheaWed 18 Nov, Heineken Music JAGA JAZZIST tre Carré, 20:00, €78-€158 Hall, 20:00, €47.50 Experimental modern jazz from THE PRODIGY Olso, Jaga Jazzist is a revolving EMILY’S D+EVOLUTION Adapting, manipulating and collective of musicians around creating all types of dance gencore members Lars and Martin Soul and funk bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding is stepping res, The Prodigy are a fierce live Horntveth. They consider Torout with a new project she’s presence. They’re returning to toise, John Coltrane and Aphex Amsterdam with new album Twin influences to their sound. calling Emily’s D+Evolution. In MADONNA RICKY ROSS The Day is My Enemy, so expect They released the EP Starfire on Spalding’s words ‘This project is The Queen of Pop’s immac- He led Deacon Blue, one about going back and reclaimthe classics and new cuts. And the highly regarded Ninja Tune ulate music career stretch- of the biggest pop bands ing uncultivated curiosity. My don’t miss opening act hip-hop label earlier this year. es back more than 30 in Britain in the late 1980s legends Public Enemy.

Tue 3 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, €17 hope for this group is to create a years and has relied upon and early 1990s, producing world around each song.’

Wed 18 Nov, Ziggo Dome, EROS RAMAZZOTTI continual reinvention – the hits like ‘Dignity’ and ‘Real Fri 6 Nov, Paradiso, 20:00, from €39 20:30, €25 This Italian superstar is celesole guarantee throughout Gone Kid’. Ross – not to ALT-J brating more than 30 years of every style shift has been be confused with rap star These Mercury Prize winners music, including 2012’s record THE PHOENIX FOUNDATION her ability to dazzle mass Rick – has rarely been New Zealand pop rock outfit have previously played major Noi and his newest release audiences with grand stage hip but has remained an Dutch festivals like Pinkpop and Perfetto. Outside Italy, he’s best The Phoenix Foundation return productions. Her two-night outstanding songwriting to Amsterdam off the back of Lowlands and this past June known for collaborations with return to Amsterdam is talent through solo protheir new record Give Up Your headlined the closing night of Cher, Tina Turner and Ricky sure to be nothing short of jects and back into the Dreams, a reverb-laden, techthe Best Kept Secret Festival. If Martin. nicolour record that at times you love indie pop with someTue 3 Nov, Ziggo Dome, 20:00, a glittering spectacle that reformation of that group. plays straight indie, while others thing a little artful, don’t miss €39-€54 revisits both old and new This intimate tour sees him merge into disco and shoegaze. their return. hits, with the spotlight also delving into his back cataBEST COAST Fri 6 Nov, Sugarfactory, Thur 19 Nov, Ziggo Dome, on newest album Rebel logue – pop, folk, country, 19:30, €10 20:00, €35 Duo Bethany Cosentino and Heart. blues and beyond.

Bobb Bruno are California’s Best Sat 5 & Sun 6 Dec, Ziggo Thur 26 Nov, Paradiso, JAMES FARM BRAD MEHLDAU TRIO Coast. Making melodic indie Dome, 20:00, €45-€175 20:00, €15 Contemporary quartet James Brad Mehldau is a jazz pianist with an element of shoegaze, Farm, featuring renowned saxand composer and alumni of they’re a simple pleasure. With of Norway, When I’m Free has the release of this year’s Califor- ophonist Joshua Redman, and Scottish electro pop trio spent New York’s prestigious The New reached No. 12 on the Dutch School. The Brad Mehldau Trio nia Nights, they’re three albums pals Aaron Parks on piano, Matt their first six months drip Penman on bass and Gregory charts. Brun will be supported is rounded out by double bassist deep and seem to have the feeding ultra-catchy mp3s to Hutchinson start at jazz and

by Mariam the Believer.

Larry Grenadier and drummer formula nailed. the internet. Big on ’80s-synth move about freely through their Tue 10 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, Jeff Ballard.

Wed 4 Nov, Bitterzoet, 21:00, stylings and melody-heavy pop, interpretations of pop, alt-rock €23 €14 they’ve now unleashed a second Thur 19 Nov, Bimhuis, 20:30, and blues. They tour off the back from €29 album that’s garnered even THE JOHN SCOFIELD & JOE MELODY GARDOT of last year’s album City Folk. more positive critical acclaim, OVANO QUARTET ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO American singer Melody Gardot Fri 6 Nov, Muziekgebouw aan while growing audiences are ’t IJ, 20:15, from €26.50 Guitarist and saxophonist Afrobeat, funk and Soukous are blends jazz, soul and blues for a falling for their energy-heavy respectively, John Scofield and poured into Orchestre heady, husky brew. She released live shows.

MIDNIGHT CONCERT: Joe Lovano will challenge, Poly-Rythmo’s punch cup. her latest, Currency of Man, Fri 13 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, CHRISTIAN SCOTT AND bounce off and riff with each Fri 20 Nov, Tolhuistuin, earlier this year and reached €17.50 THE JAZZ ORCHESTRA other, accompanied by drum22:00, €17 No.12 on the Dutch charts.

WE ARE SCIENTISTS / ASH New Orleans trumpeter Chrismer Bill Stewart and bassist Wed 4 Nov, Royal ConcertgeMARTHA REEVES & THE tian Scott’s debut album Rewind Ben Street for a mix of bop, bouw, 20:15, from €37 Proving that two floppy heads VANDELLAS That received a Grammy nomijazz and funk. are better than one, these indie NICOLE ATKINS nation and he’s performed with Wed 11 Nov, Bimhuis, She may be 74 years young, but giants from both sides of the 20:30, €32-€38 Now three albums deep into her Thom Yorke’s Atoms For Peace, Atlantic join forces for a double age is just a number to Motown bassist Esperanza Spalding and songwriting career, US singer headline show. Both bands will legend Martha Reeves. Join her

POP & JAZZ

Nicole Atkins has been compared to everyone from Lana del Rey to Roy Orbison thanks to her darkly enigmatic pop sounds.

Thur 5 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, €15

spoken word artist and rapper Scroobius Pip. A very prolific artist, his latest album is called Stretch Music.

Sat 7 Nov, Royal Concertgebouw, 23:15, from €20

Choice pop & jazz

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nov & dec 2015

MUSIC/POP & JAZZ / CLASSICAL

THOMAS DYBDAHL The Norwegian singer-songwriter Thomas Dybdahl has been compared to Nick Drake, Ray LaMontagne and Damien Rice for his contemporary, melancholy folk-pop. In the lead up to releasing a new EP in 2016, Dybdahl plays European venues as intimate as his music.

Sat 21 Nov, Jeruzalemkerk, 20:30, €20 RICHARD HAWLEY An intimate evening with the Pulp guitarist turned solo songsmith. With latest release Hollow Meadows signalling a return to the starry ballads and retro romance of Hawley-goneby, fans can expect a grown-up evening of wistful narratives and sweeping arrangements wrapped up in wry Sheffield charm.

Sun 22 Nov, People’s Place, 19:30, €19 JOSÉ GONZÁLEZ Swedish singer-songwriter José González remains most famous for his acoustic solo work – notably his laidback cover of The Knife’s ‘Heartbeats’ – although he occasionally likes to bring the noise with his band Junip. In February he released Vestiges & Claws, his first solo record since 2007, moving away from the minimalist covers.

Sun 22 Nov, Paradiso, 21:00, €22.50 SIMPLE MINDS Scottish rock outfit Simple Minds released their 16th studio album Big Music last year with respect from the critics. Of course the band are still known for ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’ from classic ’80s film The Breakfast Club.

Mon 23 & Tue 24 Nov, Heineken Music Hall, 20:00, €45 SONGHOY BLUES From Mali via London, Songhoy Blues make African desert blues akin to Tinariwen with a healthy dose of Jimi Hendrix thrown in.

Tue 24 Nov, Paradiso, 20:00, €18 GINGER BAKER’S JAZZ CONFUSION He may have found fame as the driving beat behind blues band Cream but Ginger Baker is a statesman of adventurous jazz and Afrobeat. You can hear

first studio album, Alternative flamenco world aflame with a Light Source in 16 years. The sound that’s strikingly contemoutfit, now a solo project for porary and deeply traditional.

Neil Barnes, was a seminal Fri 25 & Sat 26 Dec, Bimhuis, British dance act in the 1990s.

20:30, €21-€25 On the new record, Barnes colFRANK MCCOMB TRIO laborates with TV on the Radio’s BLOC PARTY Tunde Adebimpe, the chaotic Following on from his successful With a revamped line-up and Sleaford Mods and Channy Yuletide visit last year, Frank an entire new album’s worth of Leaneagh of Poland’s Poliça.

McComb and his players return tunes in the bag, Kele Okereke Thur 3 & Fri 4 Dec, Paradiso, for a two-night, Christmas and co have a lot to shout about 20:30, €29 dinner concert. right now. So expect a fresh and Fri 25 Dec, North Sea Jazz MERRY JAZZMAS frisky performance sprinkled Club, 21:00, from €25 with that inimitable Bloc Party The annual Christmas concert YURI HONING: WINTERREISE energy. of the Jazz Orchestra of the Fri 27 Nov, Paradiso, 19:00, Concertgebouw sees the swing- Every December, Dutch jazz star €29 ing ensemble hand over the mic Honing hosts his Winterreise to American jazz singer José concert. Initially taking inspiraEVERYTHING EVERYTHING James. Tonight they’ll be puttion from Schubert’s renowned Latest release Get to Heaven sees ting swing back into Santa’s sack cycle, the concert features a host the Manchester-based art-popwith classic seasonal tracks. of special guests and mixes jazz, pers continue on their quest to Mon 7 Dec, Royal Concertgepop and electronics, resulting in transcend genres, context and bouw, 20:15, from €39 an event that reflects ‘now’. wardrobe conventions as they Tue 29 Dec, Paradiso, 20:30, IBEYI explore space, time and ideol€17.50 ogies through intense lyrical Twin sisters Lisa-Kainde and ARCHIE SHEPP QUARTET narratives and shape-shifting Naomi Diaz were born in Paris soundscapes. but with father Anga Diaz, Avant-gardiste tenor sax exFri 27 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, percussionist with the Buena traordinaire Archie Shepp has €14 Vista Social Club, spent a lot of smoothed out over the years but time in Havana. Musically you’ll still jumps from gospel to rap, JOEY BADA$$ hear the influence of their father bop to the blues.

Brooklyn rapper Joey Bada$$ through Afro polyrhythm as well Wed 30 Dec, Bimhuis, 20:30, made a big splash on the hipas straight forward R&B beats. €27-€32 hop scene with his mixtapes Tue 8 Dec, Melkweg, 19:00, in 2012-13 before releasing his €19.50 official debut album B4.DA.$$ FLORENCE + THE MACHINE earlier this year.

Sat 28 Nov, Paradiso, 20:30, Over the past seven years, Flor€24 ence Welch, accompanied by her ‘machine’ Isabella Summers, has WIRE become renowned for her soarPost-punk from the 1970s, ing vocals and artful English band Wire are contemarrangements. poraries of Gang of Four and Thur 10 Dec, Ziggo Dome, Public Images Ltd. 20:00, from €39 Mon 30 Nov, Tolhuistuin, NOA - LOVE MEDICINE 20:30, €20 An Israeli singer, pianist and ALBERT HAMMOND JR. guitarist, Noa combines jazz and Having recently overcome a rock and her love of contemvery public battle with drug porary artists such as Leonard addiction, Momentary Masters Cohen and Paul Simon.

NORTH NETHERLANDS is Hammond’s first full-length Fri 11 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA + release since 2008. Its five spar’t IJ, 20:15, from €29 RALPH VAN RAAT – 80 kling-new tracks demonstrate a MAXÏMO PARK hooky immediacy and rhythmic YEARS OF ARVO PÄRT drove reminiscent of the Strokes Marking a decade since the reOn occasion of the Estonian early, carefree sounds – proof lease of debut album A Certain composer's 80th birthday, the that clean living and rock ‘n’ roll Trigger, expect angular guitar North Netherlands Symphony can make the most harmonious riffs, soaring melodies and scisOrchestra and pianist Ralph bedfellows. sor-kicks aplenty as Paul Smith van Raat perform a selection Wed 2 Dec, Paradiso, 20:00, and co revisit their earliest €15 material. of both earlier and later works.

Fri 11 Dec, Melkweg, 20:00, On the programme are La EL VY €20 Sindone, Swansong and the The result of a ten-year friendThird Symphony, thus taking DJANGO DJANGO ship and mutual musical in works from shortly before appreciation, the side project Having answered back to 2012’s Pärt's invention of his famous sees Matt Berninger’s lyrical debut album hype with solid foltintinnabulation style as well storytelling and unique mellow-up Born Under Saturn, the odies offset by Brent Knopf ’s British art rockers have taken as others written long after; all architectural arrangements and their psychedelic indie back on characterised by sacral tones. inventive production. the road.

Fri 13 Nov, Muziekgebouw Thur 3 Dec, Melkweg, 19:30, Sat 12 Dec, Melkweg, 19:30, aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €10-€33 €20 €18

Mon 2 Nov, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €20-€49 MUSIFORUM – 30 YEARS The Musiforum choir celebrates three decades with a programme featuring arias from operas, operettas and musicals plus popular music.

Sun 1 Nov, Westerkerk, 15:00, €10-€25 AMSTERDAMS GEMENGD KOOR – BRAHMS AND DVORÁK This programme delves into the similarities between works by Brahms and Dvorák, who were great friends and inspired and influenced each other. The choir performs Dvorák’s Te Deum and Largo and Brahms’s Geistliches Lied and Ein deutsches Requiem.

Sun 1 Nov, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €32-€38 RIAS KAMMERCHOR + UFUK EN BAHAR DÖRDÜNCÜ The Turkish pianists and sisters Ufuk and Bahar Dördüncü join the chamber choir from Berlin for a performance of works by Elliot Carter and John Cage, plus a new work that was writ-

Choice classical

DEUS The members of dEUS have never feared to break out of pop and rock templates, although some of their most extreme works have been reserved for side projects. Tonight, however, you can enjoy a wide variety of the group’s material, toned down to an electro acoustic.

Thur 3 Dec, Royal Theatre Carré, 20:00, from €35 LEFTFIELD In June, Leftfield released its

LETZ ZEP The UK-based Letz Zep have wowed fans on no less than four continents. After seeing them in action, Robert Plant himself gave this Led Zeppelin cover band his stamp of approval.

Fri 18 Dec, Melkweg, 19:00, €21 ANTONIO REYES & DIEGO DEL MORAO The young duo of singer Antonio Reyes and guitarist Diego del Morao are setting the

CLASSICAL MOZART’S JUPITER SYMPHONY AND NIELSEN’S CLARINET CONCERTO WITH MARTIN FRÖST Tonight’s programme begins with an orchestral adaptation of three pieces for harpsichord by François Couperin. Clarinetist Martin Fröst performs Danish composer Carl Nielsen’s clarinet concerto, followed by a performance of Mozart’s Jupiter symphony.

©MARCO BORGGREVE

THE BAD PLUS A jazz band for jazz lovers as well as those afraid of jazz.

From Nirvana to Stravinsky, this trio will try their hand at just about anything. They have an outstanding live reputation too, showing all the coolness and confidence of any hyped rock star (but with more musical chops). In just the past two years, the group has released three very different records.

Sat 21 Nov, Bimhuis, 20:30, €23-€28

all those sounds tonight when his new band showcases tracks from Why?, his first studio album in 16 years.

Thur 26 Nov, North Sea Jazz Club, 21:00, €26-€30

©KAUPO KIKKAS

for a very special dinner concert as she performs her classic repertoire, joined by soul sisters Lois and Delphine.

Sat 21 Nov, North Sea Jazz Club, 19:00, from €28

AMSTERDAM SINFONIETTA This Amsterdam Sinfonietta programme combines the Romanian dances by Bartók, Argentine tango by Piazzolla, klezmer songs and rock.

The mix of musical elements and cultures finds its climax in a new version of 2014’s Schattenspiel by the German-Dutch composer Florian Magnus Maier, a ‘double concert’ for classical and electric guitar and orchestra, which mixes classical, flamenco, heavy metal, trip-hop and sounds from the Middle East.

Thur 26 Nov & Tue 1 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €36 ten for them especially by the Swiss composer Nik Bärtsch and is inspired by minimal music and Arvo Pärt.

Thur 5 Nov, Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, 20:15, €10-€33 LUNCHTIME CONCERT 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 re-

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PART IV THE A-LIST

MUSIC/CLASSICAL ASKO|SCHÖNBERG – hearsals by the Royal Concertgeof Schumann. Tonight on the which is inspired by his native NATURAL FORCES bouw Orchestra. It’s advisable to programme: a journey from his Bohemia, its river and its myths show up at least half an hour in first, joyful symphony that the and legends.

The Swedish composer Anders advance to guarantee entry. This composer named Spring Sym- Hillborg has described his music Wed 25, Sat 28, Sun 29 Nov, special Friday edition features phony to his fourth, a portrait Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, as an ‘overwhelming natural pianist Sophiko Simsive. of wife Clara, which is more Sun at 14:15, €25-€89 phenomenon’. A new work of Fri 6 Nov, Royal Concertgemelancholic. In addition, the rehis, plus plenty of personal BRAM VAN SAMBEEK – bouw, 12:30, free nowned cellist Gautier Capuçon favourites, is conducted by HillVIVALDI ROCKS drops by to perform Schumann’s borg’s fellow countryman ChrisCARMINA BURANA energetic cello concerto.

Bassoonist Bram van Sambeek tian Karlsen. The programme The New Romanian Symphony Fri 13 Nov, Royal Concertgecombines works by Vivaldi with also includes Thallein, an enOrchestra & Choir performs bouw, 20:15, €43-€95 heavy metal and stadium rock semble work by Iannis Xenakis, Orff ’s masterpiece. With 135 and Kate Moore’s Cello Concerto, by bands such as Muse, MetalOPERA PER TUTTI! musicians and singers, the proan adaptation of her work Days lica, Van Halen, Pink Floyd and duction offers a suitably grand Held as part of the regular opera Dream Theater. & Nature. setting for Orff ’s sweeping sessions in the beautiful VonWed 25 Nov, Muziekgebouw Thur 19 Nov, Muziekgebouw harmonies, which set the epondelkerk, tonight’s programme aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €29.50 aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €29.50 ymous collection of medieval includes four operatic fragments LUNCHTIME CONCERT LUCAS JUSSEN AND THE poems to music. The soloists are or arias.

NETHERLANDS CHAMBER Mariana Bulicanu (soprano), Sat 14 Nov, Vondelkerk, 20:00, Today’s free Lunchtime Concert ORCHESTRA Valentin Racoveanu (tenor) and €20 features mezzo-soprano Florieke Iordache Basalic (baritone).

Beelen and pianist Abigail Pianist Lucas Jussen teams up SUBTLE SCHUMANN Raymond Janssen conducts.

Richards. with the Netherlands Chamber Sun 8 and Tue 10 Nov, Royal Bernard Haitink and the Cham- Orchestra for the piano showFri 27 Nov, Royal ConcertgeConcertgebouw, 20:15, €45 ber Orchestra of Europe continbouw, 12:30, free piece that is Chopin’s Second ue their celebrations of SchuPiano Concerto, written about TAMERLANO LUNCHTIME CONCERT mann. Tonight they’re joined the composer’s first love. And The ensemble Il Pomo d’Oro by pianist Murray Perahia for a Today’s free Lunchtime Concert there’s even more romance on performs Händel’s Tamerlano. performance of the passionate Written during his time in Manfred Ouverture, the Second London, it is set in the Ottoman Symphony and the more muted, Empire in the early 15th cenyet touching, piano concerto. tury. The ensemble is joined by Sun 15 Nov, Royal Concertgetop-notch soloists including the bouw, 20:15, €43-€95 world-famous counter-tenors TOKYO METROPOLITAN Max Emanuel Cencic and XaSYMPHONY ORCHESTRA & vier Sabata, tenor John Mark VADIM REPIN Ainsley and soprano Julia Lezhneva.

The Tokyo Metropolitan SymSun 8 Nov, Royal Concertgephony Orchestra is joined by bouw, 14:15, €35-€89.50 Russian star violinist Vadim Repin for performances of THE LORD OF THE RINGS Prokofiev’s Second Violin ConSYMPHONY certo and Tchaikovsky’s Fourth The New Romanian Symphonic Symphony. In addition, the Orchestra and Choir comes to orchestra, conducted by Kazushi Amsterdam’s Royal ConcertgeOno, plays Ravel’s Rapsodie bouw for a performance of the Espagnole.

Lord of the Rings Symphony: a Mon 16 Nov, Royal Concertgework bringing together Howard bouw, 20:15, €10-€54 Shore’s soundtracks for all three THE TALLIS SCHOLARS SETTE VOCI – SCHÜTZ IN films from Peter Jackson’s semThe British ensemble, specialising in Renaissance and early VENICE inal film adaptation of Tolkien’s baroque music and renowned for their clear sound and masterpiece.

The German vocal ensemble Mon 9 Nov, Royal Concertge- Sette Voci performs a number of pure intonation, perform Thomas Tallis’s Christmas mass bouw, 20:15, €45 works, inspired by trips to Italy, Puer natus and music by John Sheppard, plus works by by the 17th-century composer Arvo Pärt that, despite having been written five centuries LUNCHTIME CONCERT Heinrich Schütz. Primo Libro later, fit seamlessly into the festive spirit of the evening.

Today’s free Lunchtime Concert de Madrigalia, the first book of Fri 18 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €36 features master students from Italian madrigals, is a result of the music academies in Maashis first journey, when he studtricht and Tilburg, conducted by ied under Giovanni Gabrieli; features the woodwind ensemthe programme, with three Peter-Lukas Graf.

Kleine geistliche Konzerte was ble from The Hague’s Royal parts from Mendelssohn’s Wed 11 Nov, Royal Concertge- written after a second trip, durConservatoire.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream. bouw, 12:30, free ing which he met Monteverdi.

Wed 2 Dec, Royal ConcertgeFri 20 and Mon 23 Nov, The ensemble is joined by the bouw, 12:30, free Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, CHAMBER ORCHESTRA OF Dutch basso Peter Kooij. €32/€40 EUROPE – SCHUMANN ORLANDO CONSORT – LA Tue 17 Nov, Waalse Kerk, PASSION DE JEANNE D'ARC KCOV AMSTERDAM SINGS Conductor Bernard Haitink 20:00, €23 BACH’S HOHE MESSE and the Chamber Orchestra A screening of Carl Theodor IAN BOSTRIDGE – of Europe put on a formidable Dreyer’s silent film classic is acThe choir, which celebrates its SCHUMANN Schumann festival, performing companied by Gregorian songs 110th anniversary this year, several orchestral works includ- Tonight the British tenor sings and medieval music performed performs Bach’s Mass in B miing the Rheinische Symphony. songs by Schumann with by the British vocal ensemble nor, or Hohe Messe. The work And violinist Isabelle Faust themes of love, desire and death, remains somewhat of a mystery Orlando Consort. shines in the composer's violin accompanied by his regular Wed 2 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan to Bach scholars to this day, concerto. pianist Julius Drake. ’t IJ, 20:15, €25 as for it, he rewrote an earlier, Wed 11 Nov, Royal ConcertgeTue 17 Nov, Royal Concertgeshorter mass – which was not CONCERTGEBOUW ORbouw, 20:15, €43-€114 bouw, 20:15, €27-€47 typical of the composer’s usual CHESTRA – SACRAL AND work process.

LUNCH CONCERT LUNCHTIME CONCERT SECULAR MUSIC Sat 21 Nov, Mon 23 Nov, Free monthly performance in Today’s Lunchtime Concert Tonight’s programme is centred Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, collaboration with the Nationaal features Radio Antiqua. around the Third Piano Concer€29.75/€32 Muziekinstrumenten Fonds.

Wed 18 Nov, Royal Concertgeto by James MacMillan, a comESSENTIALS: THE CONCERTThur 12 Nov, Muziekgebouw bouw, 12:30, free poser known for his sweeping GEBOUW ORCHESTRA – aan ’t IJ, 12:30, free works with a strong Catholic ALEXANDRE THARAUD – SMETANA element and medieval sacral TRIPLE SCHUMANN GOLDBERG VARIATIONS music influences. This evening’s Czech conductor Jakub Hruša WITH HAITINK, COE AND The renowned French pianist conductor, the young Frenchmakes his debut with the Royal CAPUÇON plays Bach’s much-loved and man Alexandre Bloch, combines Concertgebouw Orchestra Bernard Haitink and the magical Goldberg Variations. the work with Messiaen’s simiwith his compatriot Bedrich Chamber Orchestra of Europe Wed 18 Nov, Muziekgebouw larly spiritual symphonic medSmetana's famous symphonic continue their celebrations aan 't IJ, 20:15, €29-€36 itation Les offrandes oubliées. cycle Má vlast (My Homeland),

Choice classical

It is followed by a more secular outlook in works by Paul Dukas and Ravel.

Thur 3 & Fri 4 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €25€79 BACH CHOIR AND ORCHESTRA OF THE NETHERLANDS – MESSIAH Baroque specialist Pieter Jan Leusink and his acclaimed Bach Choir and Orchestra of the Netherlands revisit Händel’s Messiah.

Sat 6, Wed 9, Sat 26 & Sun 27 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, Wed 19:30, €50-€85 JANINE JANSEN – BEETHOVEN'S VIOLIN CONCERTO The Dutch star violinist joins the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen as they revisit their successful recording of Beethoven’s famous romantic concerto. Brahms’s First Symphony is also on the programme. Paavo Järvi conducts.

Tue 8 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €41-€107 LUNCHTIME CONCERT Today’s free Lunchtime Concert features the Fancy Fiddlers.

Wed 9 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 12:30, free CONCERTGEBOUW CHRISTMAS CLASSICS Conducted by Bas Wiegers, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra performs feel-good operetta hits by Johann Strauss, Lehár and others to get the audience in a festive mood.

Thur 10 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €35/€49 CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA – BRITTEN’S VIOLIN CONCERTO Britten’s rarely performed only violin concerto is tonight played by Baiba Skride; Andris Nelsons conducts. Also on the programme: Ravel.

Fri 11 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €30-€126 HANUKKAH CONCERT 2015 Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw celebrates the eighth and last day of the ancient Jewish Festival of Lights with a musical programme and the ceremony of lighting the menorah taking place on the stage. For the event, they have invited Cantor Leiser Brook from Ramat Gan in Israel, who will be accompanied by a pianist, a string quartet, a clarinetist and a vocal ensemble performing highlights of Jewish and Israeli musical tradition, including classical, sacral, klezmer and contemporary compositions. All faiths are welcome; the event is held in English.

Sun 13 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:00, €25 MASTER PIANISTS – KATIA & MARIELLE LABÈQUE The renowned piano duo perform two famous pieces, arranged for two pianos and percussion: Stravinsky’s Le sacre du printemps and Bernstein’s West Side Story.

Sun 13 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €44/€55

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nov & dec 2015

STAGE CHOIR OF KING’S COLLEGE The Choir of King’s College in Cambridge, one of the world’s most renowned boys’ choirs, was established by Henry VIII and annually performs the BBC’s Christmas service on Christmas Eve. They warm up in the Royal Concertgebouw with a programme of heart-warming British Choral Classics and Christmas Carols.

Tue 15 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €22-€5st8 CHRISTMAS WITH THE ERARD ENSEMBLE The Erard Ensemble is comprised of musicians from the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra and other ensembles and specialises in romantic classical music performed on authentic instruments. Their annual Christmas concert sees them offer up some festive works by Bach and Brahms.

Tue 15 Dec, Amstelkerk, 20:15, €19.50 ENSEMBLE CORRESPONDANCES – NOËL À PARIS! It’s a Parisian Christmas in Amsterdam’s Waalse Kerk as the Ensemble Correspondances performs motets by Marc Antoine Charpentier.

Thur 17 Dec, Waalse Kerk, 20:00, €23 HOLLAND BAROQUE SOCIETY + VOX LUMINIS The Holland Baroque Society teams up with the vocal ensemble Vox Luminis for a festive evening of German baroque music, featuring works

by Buxtehude, Praetorius and contemporaries.

Thur 17 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €33 WEIHNACHTSORATORIUM The Nederlands Kamerkoor is joined by the renowned baroque orchestra Concerto Copenhagen for a complete performance of Bach’s masterful Christmas Oratorio, featuring all six cantatas. British tenor Nicholas Mulroy sings the role of the Evangelist; Peter Dijkstra conducts.

Sat 19 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 19:30, €47 NETHERLANDS PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA – CHRISTMAS CONCERT The Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra gets into the festive spirit with a light-footed programme featuring arias from operettas by Léhar and Johann Strauss jr.

Sat 19 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20.15, €20-€49 WINDSBACHER KNABENCHOR The Bavarian boys' choir hosts a German Christmas with a diverse programme that takes in Christmas music from the 16th century until today, with polyphonic pieces by Johannes Eccard, folk songs and 'Silent Night', but also a work by Britten and Lux Aurumque, Eric Whitacre’s famous YouTube choir project. The choir is accompanied by the Modern

Slide Quartet, a trombone ensemble.

Sun 20 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 11:00, €20-€26 WHALE CITY SOUND One of Amsterdam’s cosiest churches will host this all male, 60-member show choir, which mixes barbershop harmonies with the hits of the 1950s and 1960s, for the choir’s annual Christmas concert. And just how do they always fit all of those blokes in there? You’ll have to find out for yourself.

Sat 20 Dec, De Duif, 14:30 & 20:00, €22 NETHERLANDS BACH SOCIETY – CHRISTMAS CONCERT 2015 The Netherlands Bach Society celebrates Christmas with jubilant Bach cantatas, including Unser Mund sei voll Lachens, Süsser Trost, mein Jesus kömmt and Gloria in excelsis Deo. Instrumental Christmas music

by Giuseppe Torelli and Pietro Antonio Locatelli will also be performed.

Sun 20 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 15:00, €47 NEDERLANDSE HÄNDELVERENIGING – MESSIAH The seasonal performances of Händel’s Messiah by the Nederlandse Händelvereniging are renowned as one of the choral highlights of the year.

Mon 23 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 19.30, €40/€42 NIEUW AMSTERDAMS KINDERKOOR + AMSTERDAM BAROQUE ORCHESTRA The Christmas concerts of the Amsterdam children’s choir and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra are about as heart-warming as it gets. The programme includes carols in the northwestern European tradition, some of which hark back to medieval times.

Tue 22 & Wed 23 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 15:00 & 19:30 (Tue), 11:00 (Wed), €27.50 LUNCHTIME CONCERT Today’s free Lunchtime Concert features the Netherlands Youth Choir and harpist Petra van der Heide.

Wed 23 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 12:30, free AMSTERDAMS GEMENGD KOOR – WEIHNACHTSORATORIUM The versatile and experienced amateur choir from Amsterdam and Het Promenade Orkest perform Bach’s jubilant Christmas Oratorio.

Wed 23 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €33.50/€39.50 CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE An annual Christmas Eve service will once again be held in the splendid setting of the world-famous concert hall. Be sure to arrive early to guarantee entry.

Wed 24 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:00, free REJOICE! This Christmas Eve, the baroque ensemble Combattimen-

to Amsterdam, the a-capella ensemble Wishful Singing, the Laurens Collegium choir and soloists perform a joyful Christmas concert featuring cantatas from Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, arias from Händel’s Messiah, Monteverdi and more. The concert is seated.

Thur 24 Dec, Paradiso, 20:15, €30 CHRISTMAS MATINEE – WEIHNACHTSORATORIUM This Christmas Day matinee performance of the first three cantatas of Bach’s magnificent Christmas Oratorio is performed by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Capella Amsterdam. Jan Willem de Vriend conducts.

Fri 25 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €30-€126 REGINA ALBRINK – CHRISTMAS PIANO RECITAL Händel’s famous suite in D minor begins with a dazzling improvisation followed by a joyful fugue. Starting proceedings at this afternoon’s recital, the variety of the suite is setting the tone for the rest of the programme, which features Mozart’s Fantasy in C minor, Beethoven’s Sonata No. 30 and several Chopin works.

Sat 26 & Sun 27 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €35 ADDRESSES Amstelkerk Amstelveld 10 www.amstelkerk.net Bimhuis Piet Heinkade 3 www.bimhuis.nl Bitterzoet Spuistraat 2 www.bitterzoet.com De Duif Prinsengracht 756 www.deduif.net Heineken Music Hall ArenA Boulevard 590 www.heineken-music-hall.nl Melkweg Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.melkweg.nl Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ Piet Heinkade 1 www.muziekgebouw.nl North Sea Jazz Club Pazzanistraat 1 www.northseajazzclub.com Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl People's Place Stadhouderskade 5 www.peoplesplaceamsterdam.nl Royal Concertgebouw Concertgebouw 10 www.concertgebouw.nl Royal Theatre Carré Amstel 115 /125 https://carre.nl Sugarfactory Lijnbaansgracht 238 www.sugarfactory.nl Tolhuistuin IJpromenade 2 www.tolhuistuin.nl Vondelkerk Vondelstraat 120 www.stadsherstel.nl Ziggo Dome De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

THE AMAZING JOURNEY OF DR FAUST Amsterdam’s Marionette Theatre presents a musical puppet rendition of the age-old tale of JIM BREUER the scholar who ‘knew too much The American stand-up comediand yet never enough’. The tale an, specialising – amongst many of Doctor Faust was often perother things – in impersonations formed in puppet theatres way of Joe Pesci and various metal back in the Middle Ages, and the bands, comes to the Melkweg for Amsterdam Marionette Theatre a show. delights in continuing the pupSun 1 Nov, Melkweg, 19:30, €25 pet theatre tradition with this magical and humorous, yet philDANIEL SLOSS osophical adaptation. Suitable for Fresh off a sold-out run at the children aged 10 and over.

Edinburgh fringe, the ‘half man, 8 & 22 Nov; 12, 26, 27 & 30 half Xbox’ joke machine embarks Dec, Amsterdam Marionette on a European tour with his new Theatre, www.marionettentshow Really…?!, stopping off heater.nl in Amsterdam’s Toomler on the PRISCILLA, QUEEN way. At age 24, Sloss has already OF THE DESERT been active for eight years, performing to tens of thousands of The Tony Award-winning feelpeople at the Fringe and on sevgood musical is an adaptation eral extensive tours through the of 1994’s Australian surprise USA, the UK and Australia. smash hit film, in which two Sun 1 Nov, Toomler, 20:00, €15 drag queens and one transgender woman travel through the AusJON RICHARDSON – NIDIOT tralian outback in their fabulous The English comedian, known bus named Priscilla. The musical for stand-up, TV shows such as has been performed on BroadJon Richardson Grows Up and way, in the West End and in nuthe documentary A Little Bit merous other cities and has won OCD as well as appearances on 8 awards and plaudits en masse. out of 10 Cats and various other It features a plethora of glorious panel shows, takes his comedy costumes and all-time classic pop seriously – in the best possible songs such as ‘It’s Raining Men’, way. And the fact that he deals ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, ‘Go with themes such as OCD or the West’ and ‘I Will Survive’. complications of life in one’s 30s Tue 10-Sun 15 & Tue 17-Sun 22 doesn’t mean his shows are any Nov, Royal Theatre Carré, variless funny. ous times, €20.50-€90.50 Tue 3 Nov, Boom Chicago, RACHE 20:15, €21-€33.50 Rache, written by Boudewijn MODEL Tarenskeen, combines the stories In Model, performed by the Bay- of four women wreaking revenge erisches Staatsballett, American by committing murder: Electra, choreographer Richard Siegal who killed her mother Klytemninvestigates the human body estra to avenge the death of her from a range of perspectives. father Agamemnon; biblical JuThe choreography features both dith, who murdered Holofernes; contemporary dancers and the Marianne Bachmeier, who killed classically trained dancers of the her daughter’s murderer in a Staatsballett; the music comes German court in 1981 and the from the electro-acoustic combride from Kill Bill. Themes of poser Lorenzo Bianchi Hoesch. violence, emancipation, sexuality Tue 3 & Wed 4 Nov, and motherhood intertwine and Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, stress the similarities of the four €10-€40 protagonists’s stories, which span ages and genres.

THE FOUNTAINHEAD Wed 11 Nov, Muziekgebouw aan Toneelgroep Amsterdam tackle ’t IJ , 20:15, €29.50 Ayn Rand’s bestseller, a dramatic START AGAIN story of the breath-taking feud between the young and brilThis production by the Nederliant architect Howard Roark, lands Dans Theater unites two who pursues his ideals without choreographic duos: Gabriela compromise, and his rival Peter Carrizo and Franck Chartier Keating, a man who opts for from the Belgian company commercial success and social Peeping Tom and Sol León and status. Performances are in Paul Lightfoot. The duos share a Dutch, but with English surtitles desire to take artistic risks while on this date. leaning on theatrical elements.

Thur 4 Sep, Stadsschouwburg, Fri 13-Sun 15 Nov, Stadsschou19:30, €20-€32.50 wburg, 20:00, €22.50-€40 Thur 5 Nov, Stadsschouwburg, MUSICALS IN CONCERT 19:30, sold out Some of the biggest names in OPERA GALA Dutch musical theatre unite for The Dutch National Opera cel- an evening of show tunes. The allebrates it 50th anniversary with star cast includes Willemijn Vera festive gala. The programme, kaik, who received rave reviews directed by Robert Carsen, draws for her starring role in several inon the rich history of the comternational productions of Wickpany, while also looking forward ed, plus Dutch boyband B-Brave with a number of world preas special guest. The audience is mieres. After the performance, invited to sing along as the stars there is a reception in the foyer. roll through some of Broadway’s Fri 6 Nov, Dutch National greatest hits. Expect a cocktail of Opera and Ballet, 20:00, €125English and Dutch lyricism. €225 Fri 13 & Sat 14 Nov, Ziggo Dome, 20:00, €20-€75

THEATRE, DANCE & COMEDY

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PART IV THE A-LIST.

STAGE

AMSTERDAM ENGLISH COMEDY NIGHT This monthly feature presented by the Boom Chicago crew brings the best international stand-up comics to the city.

Each show includes four or five sets and is entirely in English. Line-ups and the December date are yet to be confirmed.

Fri 20 Nov, Boom Chicago, 22:30, €12 PETE JOHANSSON Fresh from the Edinburgh Festival, UK-based Canadian stand-up Pete Johansson presents his brand-new show, in which he runs through various social and universal quandaries, combining new material with some of his all-time highlights. The Amsterdam performance is being recorded for a new DVD. Sun 22 Nov, Toomler, 20:30, €10 LES MAMELLES DE TIRÉSIAS Poulenc’s opera is performed here in the adaptation for two pianos that Poulenc wrote with Benjamin Britten for the smaller stage of Britten’s Aldeburgh Festival.

Wed 25, Fri 27, Sat 28 & Sun 29 Nov, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, 20:00, €20 DYLAN MORAN The Irish comedian, known from Black Books, Shaun of the Dead and Run Fatboy Run, presents his new show Off The Hook.

Wed 25 Nov, Meervaart, 20:15, sold out JIMMY WALES – WIKIPEDIA AND GOVERNANCE Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia co-founder and promoter, advert

speaks in Paradiso on occasion of the not-for-profit online encyclopedia being awarded this year’s Erasmus Prize. The prize is a Dutch accolade recognising individuals or institutions that have made exceptional contributions to culture, society or social sciences.

Wed 25 Nov, Paradiso, 11:00, €10 I’M HERE & ÁLBUM FAMILIAR Dance company Conny Janssen Danst performs two successful choreographies that deal with memories, family histories and protagonists looking for love, warmth and recognition. In I’m Here, the viewer is introduced to ten characters whose driving force is the search for human contact in a dynamic metropolis; Álbum Familiar is a choreography for three women and four men meeting for having a group portrait taken.

Sun 29 & Mon 30 Nov, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €10-€37.50 LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT Eugene O’Neill has been described by acclaimed Dutch director Ivo van Hove as ‘America’s Shakespeare’, so as Toneelgroep Amsterdam turns its attention to O’Neill’s masterwork, audiences can rely on a top-notch interpretation. It takes place over a single day in the life of the Tyrone family, who fling accusations at each other like rice at a wedding.

Performances are in Dutch but on these dates the play will be performed with English surtitles.

Thur 3 & Thur 10 Dec, Stadsschouwburg, 19:30, €10-€36 HÄNSEL UND GRETEL The Dutch National Opera presents a new production of Engelbert Humperdinck’s fairy-tale opera Hänsel und Gretel. Suitable for children from ten years of age, Hänsel und Gretel is fun and accessible, with melodies that are reminiscent of folk songs. The opera delves into the world of children, with all its capriciousness, while never becoming childish.

Thur 3, Sun 6, Wed 9, Sun 13, Tue 15, Fri 18, Mon 21, Wed 24, Sat 26 & Tue 29 Dec, National Opera and Ballet, various times, €18-€176 (10-16s receive a 50% discount) JAMES ACASTER & MARK WATSON New Zealand (Acaster) meets Britain (Watson) in this comedy double bill.

Sun 6 Dec, Toomler, 20:30, €15

LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT 3, 10 DEC | SURTITLED IN ENGLISH

SCHOOL OF THOUGHT This Nederlands Dans Theater production brings a new version of the full-length ballet by the company’s house choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot to the stage.

Tue 8-Thur 10 Dec, Stadsschouwburg, 19:00 & 21:00, €40

EICHMANN The Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ hosts the world premiere of the opera Eichmann by writer and director Bo Tarenskeen and composer Maria Alejandra Castro Espejo, which is inspired by Hannah Arendt’s Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of

have adapted the age-old story for today, resulting in a ballet that's more dynamic and less sugary than earlier versions. Impressive group scenes are interspersed with technically brilliant solos.

Fri 11, Sat 12, Mon 14, Wed 16, Thur 17, Sat 19, Sun 20, Tue 22, Thur 24, Fri 25, Sun

Choice theatre

MARGARET CHO This outspoken Californian comedian has been blazing a trail through the US comedy circuit since the mid-1990s. Although she’s also had a pretty hardcore following in Europe, increased touring over here has seen that fanbase blossom and appearances in TV shows including 30 Rocks (as Kim Il Jong) added to her popularity. On this visit she’s unleashing her psyCHO Tour, with which she impresses her anger about issues such as police brutality, racism and the increase of violence against women.

Mon 21 Dec, DeLaMar, 21:00, €31/€33

DIALOGUES DES CARMÉLITES Robert Carsen’s opera production of Francis Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites has toured 13 countries and is among the company’s most successful. The Wall Street Journal has called it ‘luminous and inventive’.

Sat 7, Wed 11, Fri 13, Tue 17, Thur 19, Sun 22, Tue 24, Thur 26 & Sun 29 Nov, 19:30, Sun 13:30, Dutch National Opera & Ballet €20-€176 Evil.

Wed 9 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €29.50 THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING In this acclaimed family performance, an updated version of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, skaters glide over the canals of Amsterdam and a living room is magically transformed into a snowy forest. Choreographers Wayne Eagling and Toer van Schayk

as a choreographer after a successful dance career at NDT and became associate choreographer there in 2009; Walerski, who was a dancer at NDT from 2001 to 2015 created his first ballet for the company in 2008; and León and Lightfoot are both former NDT dancers and now the company’s resident choreographers.

Sun 13 & Mon 14 Dec, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €10-€40 TOMMY TIERNAN The successful Irish comedian returns to Amsterdam to present his new show Out of the Whirlwind.

Tue 15 Dec, Meervaart, 20:15, €24.75-€30.25

©TODD WOLFSON

PUSHING THE WHEEL 2015 is a year of celebration for the dance company WArd/ waRD: it was established 15 years ago by the Belgian choreographer Ann Van den Broek and has grown to be a renowned company with plenty of international performances in this time. The anniversary is celebrated with a photo exhibition, installations, pop-ups and film, and, as a highlight, the new production Pushing the Wheel.

Tue 17 Nov, Stadsschouwburg, 20:00, €12.50-€30

ANNE This ongoing production at a custom-built theatre in Amsterdam’s docklands is directly based on the Diary of Anne Frank and the Frank family archives. Although this grand production is in Dutch, a dedicated translation system is available.

Various dates & times until 31 Dec, Theater Amsterdam, €20-€75 27, Mon 28, Wed 30, Thur 31 Dec & Fri 1 Jan, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, various times, €19-€92 SHEARING THE WOLVES This production brings together four choreographers on whose career and artistic development the Nederlands Dans Theater has had a significant impact: Johan Inger, Medhi Walerski and the duo Sol León and Paul Lightfoot.

Inger had his breakthrough

LOHENGRIN After 2013’s successful production of The Flying Dutchman, Andris Nelsons returns to Wagner to conduct the composer’s Romantic opera from 1850. The performance is by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Groot Omroepkoor, with soloists Falk Struckmann (bass), Klaus Florian Vogt (tenor), Camilla Nylund (soprano), Evgeny Nikitin (basso), Katarina Dalayman (soprano), and Samuel Youn (bass-baritone).

Fri 18 & Sat 20 Dec, Royal Concertgebouw ,various times, €30-€126 ADDRESSES Boom Chicago Rozentheater Rozengracht 117 020 423 0101 www.boomchicago.nl Delamar Theater Marnixstraat 402 0900 33 52 627 www.delamar.nl Dutch National Opera & Ballet Amstel 3 020 625 5455 www.operaballet.nl Meervaart Meer en Vaart 300 020 410 7777 www.meervaart.nl Melkweg Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.melkweg.nl Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ Piet Heinkade 1 www.muziekgebouw.nl Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl Royal Concertgebouw Concertgebouwplein 10 www.concertgebouw.nl Royal Theater Carré Amstel 115/125 0900 2525255 www.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 Ziggo Dome De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

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nov & dec 2015

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS NEXT LEVEL: ANNE DE VRIES The first major solo exhibition of Dutch visual artist Anne de Vries. Consciously embracing digital developments, his work is influenced by stock photography, corporate branding and new technologies, and ranges from digital photography and 3D photo sculptures to new media installations.

FOAM, until 1 Nov GERLACH EN KOOP – CHOSES TUÉES Artist collective gerlach en koop present sculptural and graphic work. The duo ‘render things visible by repetition, copying or reuse, by displacement and misplacement, by omissions, erring and making mistakes’.

De Appel arts centre, until 8 Nov

Männikkö explores the themes of time and transience, capturing moments of decay and deterioration as well as fragments of daily life that express the passing of time. Männikkö’s magical use of light and colour have led to him being compared to the master painters of art history.

Huis Marseille, until 6 Dec HANNE VAN DER WOUDE – EMMY’S WORLD Dutch photographer Hanne van der Woude spent five years living alongside octogenarians Emmy, her husband Ben, and Ben’s brother Egbert. Filming and photographing their non-conformist lives – even through the sorrow and hardship of Ben and Egbert’s sickness and deaths – this rare and privileged glimpse into the trio’s intimate private world forms the basis of a bewitching and moving exhibition.

Huis Marseille. until 6 Dec

MAGNUM. CONTACT SHEETS ALEXANDER, NAPOLEON & JOSÉPHINE Offering fascinating insights into the working methods of Subtitled ‘A Story of Friendship, some of the world’s most famous War and Art’, this exhibition photojournalists, this exhibition focuses on Napoleon Bonaparte explores the decisive moments and two of his exceptional and behind iconic images and provery different contemporaries: vides a chronological overview Tsar Alexander I (his friend of important historical moments and enemy) and Joséphine, his from the last eight decades, with wife. More than 200 paintings, subjects including Che Guevara, sculptures, personal possessions, Malcolm X and Martin Luther gowns, uniforms and weapons tell King. Not only the moments the story of the two rulers and the before and after taking that one fascinating Joséphine. iconic photo are on show, but also Hermitage Amsterdam, until the photographer’s notes, mark8 Nov ing that decisive moment on the ZERO: LET US EXPLORE sheet, often long after the photo THE STARS was shot.

FOAM, until 9 Dec Exactly 50 years after the Stedelijk Museum hosted a compreVINCENT’S PASSION FOR PIPE hensive exhibition of work by SMOKING avant-garde group ZERO, this The Amsterdam Pipe Museum retrospective looks back on the turns its attention to local hero inspiring work of the artists who Vincent van Gogh. Unsurprisin the 1950s and 1960s experimented with innovative materials ingly, it’s all about appearances of pipes in Vincent’s paintings. Here and media. you can see the real pipes which Stedelijk Museum, until 8 Nov he painted on canvas.

HIJAB UNRAVELLED Amsterdam Pipe Museum, until 12 Dec A photographic documentary about 31 Muslim women and TINO SEHGAL their hijab. It documents what the The first major survey of the hijab means to them, besides reGerman/British artist Tino ligion. The exhibition is inspired Sehgal sees the Stedelijk present by the online community of ‘hijabista’s’ (hijab+fashionistas) on the live work of this radical artist non-stop for 365 days in a row.

Instagram and YouTube.

Conceived as a consecutive series Melkweg Galerie, until 15 Nov of 12 presentations, the exhibition DICK BRUNA. ARTIST features different work from Sehgal’s oeuvre each month.

What connects Matisse with Stedelijk Museum, until 31 Dec Miffy the rabbit? Find out as the Rijksmuseum delves into the ADDITION: PIETER AND artistic influences that led Dick MARIEKE SANDERS Bruna to create the iconic bunny.

In 2013, art collectors Pieter More than 60 of Bruna’s prints and Marieke Sanders gifted the and drawings are on display, including Miffy herself – seen in a Stedelijk more than 100 artworks by contemporary artists. Now, for new, avant-garde light. the first time, a selection of work Rijksmuseum, until 15 Nov from their donation will be shown THE BUILDING SPEAKS in dialogue with the Stedelijk’s existing collection.

This exhibition explores the releStedelijk Museum, until 3 Jan vance of monumental buildings 2016 in the 21st century. Explore the architectural development of BLACK AND WHITE: THE the Oude Kerk, one of the oldest DRESSCODE OF A LIFETIME structures in Amsterdam It’s the most classic colour pairing ARCAM, until 22 Nov in fashion, but how did these two ESKO MÄNNIKKÖ opposite tones come to be such a – TIME FLIES chic combination? From the 18th In this major retrospective, lead- century to the present day, discover how black and white took over ing Finnish photographer Esko

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Highlight Artis ARTIS, ©RONALD VAN WEEREN

TEMPORARY EXHIBITIONS

GUIDED TOUR AT ARTIS ROYAL ZOO Are you curious about the catacombs of the Aquarium or have you always wondered why the floor of the elephants’s stable is round? Take a look behind the scenes with a guide at Artis Royal Zoo. The tour is offered in Dutch and English.

Saturday and Sunday, 15:00, starting at Monkey Island FAMILY GUIDED TOUR: WINTER Some animals hibernate, some prefer to travel to the warm south, but for other animals, winter is a favourite season. How do animals and plants know winter is coming? And what special adjustments do they need to make in order to survive the cold?

Every day during the Christmas holidays, Artis Royal Zoo invites you to follow this special tour and walk along the indoor enclosures. The tour is offered in Dutch and English.

19 December until 3 January 2016, 15:00, starting at Monkey Island, duration 60 minutes

of the CoBrA movement, an international group of post-war artists. As such, the exhibition also features 60 works by various CoBrA artists, including Karel Appel, Asger Jorn, Constant and Pierre Alechinsky.

Cobra Museum, until 31 Jan 2016 A RICH TRADITION. TWO CENTURIES OF NETHERLANDISH PRINTMAKING FROM PRIVATE COLLECTIONS Via more than 80 prints, the museum showcases the remarkable development of printmaking in the Netherlands in the 16th and 17th centuries, as well as Rembrandt’s role in it.

Rembrandt House Museum, until 31 Jan PHILIPPE APELOIG – USING TYPE Enter the typographic world of Paris-based designer Philippe Apeloig. His mastery of typography is such that he is able to play a subtle and well-chosen game with characters and fonts.

Stedelijk Museum, until 24 Jan 2016

ROME. THE DREAM OF EMPEROR CONSTANTINE In partnership with the Vatican Museums, the Capitoline Museums and the National Roman Museum, this impressive collecArtis Royal Zoo is open every day. Tickets are free for children tion shows how Christianity grew aged 0 to 2, €16.50 for children aged 3 to 9, and €19.95 for in Imperial Rome. The story is illustrated by treasures of Roman 10+. Reservations for activities are not required. www.artis.nl art and architecture from the 4th century AD and onwards. our wardrobes and the historical facts and the history behind them, Nieuwe Kerk, until 7 Feb 2016 influences that shaped the clothes including porcelain, lacquerware, AFTER THE WAR WAS OVER we wear today. ebony, ivory and silk.

Some 150 photographs by the Museum of Bags and Purses, Rijksmuseum, until 17 Jan 2016 renowned American Magnum until 3 Jan 2016 MUNCH : VAN GOGH photographer Leonard Freed, VAN DE POLL BIJ VAN LOON which offer an impression of JewThe two influential artists ish Amsterdam in the 1950s and Come face to face with generaEdvard Munch (1863-1944) show the recovery of Jewish life in tions of one of Amsterdam’s most and Vincent van Gogh (1853the decades following the war. famous noble families in this 1890) are renowned for their Jewish Historical Museum, until engrossing portrait collection. emotionally-charged paintings 14 Feb 2016 Immortalising the Van de Poll and drawings, their personal and family in paint from the 16th cen- innovative style and their lives full ‘BRUSHES’ AWARD WINNERS tury onwards, portraits by various of hardship.

IN THE RIJKSMUSEUM artists reveal the many faces of Van Gogh Museum, until 17 The Rijksmuseum is exhibiting the high-ranking individuals who Jan 2016 original prints by the winners played their important roles in WHEN I GIVE, I GIVE MYSELF the city over the centuries. of the Penselen (Brushes), the Museum van Loon, until 10 Inspired not by Vincent van Paletten (Palettes) and the Vlag Jan 2016 Gogh’s paintbrush, but by his pen, en Wimpels (Flag and Pennants) this exhibition takes the artist’s awards. These awards honour the MICHELANGELO ANTONIONI famous letters as its starting most beautifully illustrated chil– IL MAESTRO DEL CINEMA point by asking 20 contemporary dren’s books of the past year.

MODERNO Dutch and international artists Rijksmuseum, until 6 Mar 2016 Explore the perfectly framed to create an artwork in direct WE MAY HAVE MET BEFORE world of director Michelangelo response to one of the painter’s Antonioni in this exhibition. As handwritten missives.

An exhibition of the work of seven one of the first directors to priVan Gogh Museum, until 17 contemporary Chinese artists, oritise mise-en-scène as a way to Jan 2016 compiled by the internationally complement narrative and reveal renowned Chinese curator Feng GRAFFITI. NEW YORK MEETS characters’s state of mind, AnBoyi.

THE DAM tonioni is regarded as one of the FOAM, 6 Nov-17 Jan 2016 foremost innovators of film from An exhibition dedicated solely PAUL BOGAERS: MY LIFE IN the last century. The exhibition to New York and Amsterdam THE BUSH OF GHOSTS is accompanied by screenings graffiti from the 1980s, showing of Antonioni’s films and special how a young generation changed Works by Dutch photographer programmes. the street scene 30 years ago, and Paul Bogaers created within the EYE Film Museum, until 17 how their influence is still very past five years. During this period, Jan 2016 much evident in music, fashion his work has developed from and art today. two-dimensional photo combiASIA IN AMSTERDAM – Amsterdam Museum, until 24 nations to the three-dimensional EXOTIC LUXURY IN THE Jan 2016 domain of assemblage, sculpture GOLDEN AGE and installation, in which phoMIRÓ & COBRA. THE JOY OF The Rijksmuseum shares the sentography plays a vital role.

EXPERIMENT sations experienced when exotic Foam, 6 Nov-17 Jan 2016 wares were first brought from the The first major exhibition of Joan East by Dutch merchants at the Miró’s work in the Netherlands in DANA LIXENBERG – IMPERIAL COURTS, 1993-2015 end of the 16th century. This exhi- 60 years shows more than 80 of bition presents the beautiful artehis artworks amidst the context A series of black-and-white photo

56

A-LIST. PART IV THE A-LIST

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS portraits and landscapes photographed at the Imperial Courts housing project in Watts, Los Angeles. The series spans more than 20 years, from 1993 to the present.

Huis Marseille, 12 Dec-6 Mar 2016 FRANCESCA WOODMAN – ON BEING AN ANGEL This a retrospective exhibition showcases works from the exceptional oeuvre of American photographer Francesca Woodman (1958–1981). She started taking photographs when she was just 13 and, up until her suicide at the age of 22, primarily took self-portraits.

FOAM, 18 Dec-9 Mar 2016

EYE FILM MUSEUM Cinematography museum with an internationally renowned collection of films covering the whole history of cinema.

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

It is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world.

GEELVINCK HINLOPEN HOUSE A decadent canal-side mansion showcasing 17th-century patri-

HOUSEBOAT MUSEUM Located in the Hendrika Maria, a former freighter moored on the Prinsengracht, the House-

translucent body slices.

Choice exhibits

ISA GENZKEN

ISA GENZKEN - MACH DICH HÜBSCH! The first comprehensive retrospective of Isa Genzken’s work – one of the most influential artists of the last 40 years. With work encompassing sculpture, installation, film, video, painting, work on paper, collage and photography, Mach dich Hübsch! offers a dynamic framework for Genzken’s unorthodox vision of the world around us.

Stedelijk Museum, 29 Nov-6 Mar 2016

GERMAINE KRUIP: GEOMETRY OF THE SCATTERING Dutch artist Germaine Kruip reveals the invisible in Amsterdam’s Oude Kerk.

Oude Kerk, 25 Nov-27 Mar 2016 THE COLONIAL WAR 1945-1949 The Dutch Resistance Museum turn its attention to the horrific events that occurred in the Dutch East Indies during WWII. Dutch Resistance Museum, 26 Nov-3 Apr 2016 SETH SIEGELAUB: BEYOND CONCEPTUAL ART An exhibition looking at the life and work of Seth Siegelaub. Often billed as the ‘father of Conceptual Art’, he was a seminal influence on curators, artists, and cultural thinkers, internationally and in Amsterdam, where he settled in the 1990s.

Stedelijk Museum, 12 Dec-17 Apr 2016

PERMANENT EXHIBITIONS ANNE FRANK HOUSE Prinsengracht 263 is where Anne Frank lived in hiding with her family during WWII. BODY WORLDS Captivating visitors the world over, the oft-controversial exhibition of human specimens including wholebody plastinates, organs and

REMBRANDTHUIS (REMBRANDT HOUSE) The place that Rembrandt called home for nearly 20 years boasts an impressive collection of drawings, paintings and etchings by the Old Master himself as well as by his contemporaries.

RIJKSMUSEUM 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.

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.

TRANSMISSION A photography exhibition reflecting the life of Amsterdam citizen Miep. Transmission features photographs by Koos Breukel and Milette Raats which tell a complex story about transgender life.

Amsterdam Museum, 17 Oct-13 Mar 2016 SIXTIES – A WORLDWIDE HAPPENING The exhibition includes legendary objects and world-famous work by fashion designers, photographers and architects.

The exhibition also introduces major artists from Africa, Asia and Latin America whose work remains little known in Europe.

Tropenmuseum, until 13 Mar 2016

mitted to practice their faith in public.

KONINKLIJK PALEIS (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. When the palace is not being used by the royal family, it is open to the public.

STEDELIJK MUSEUM The museum’s permanent collection is now on display in the beautifully restored historical building. 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.

PABLO PICASSO

SPANISH MASTERS FROM THE HERMITAGE Subtitled ‘The World of El Greco, Ribera, Zurbarán, Velázquez, Murillo & Goya’, this grand exhibition of Spanish art and artefacts includes more than 60 superior paintings and a rich collection of graphic works and applied arts masterpieces. As well as the grand masters, it features paintings by their pupils and later painters, up to and including Picasso.

Hermitage Amsterdam, 28 Nov-29 May 2016

© MARTIN ROEMERS

MARTIN ROEMERS METROPOLIS Photographer Roemer explores modern life in megacities, letting us immerse ourselves in these extreme, urban worlds. His atmospheric photographs consist of agglomerations and are taken with long exposure times, meaning traffic and people merge to become blurred, swirling currents.

Huis Marseille, 12 Dec-6 Mar 2016

cian wealth. Highlights include ornamental gardens and sumptuous themed salons.

boat Museum gives a fun insight into life on Amsterdam’s canals – a uniquely Dutch way of life.

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

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 per-

WILLET-HOLTHUYSEN MUSEUM The only completely period furnished canal-side house in Amsterdam has a remarkable collection of Golden Age art and silverware.

ADDRESSES 3D Print Canal House Asterweg 49 www.3dprintcanalhouse.com Allard Pierson Museum Oude Turfmarkt 127 www.allardpiersonmuseum.nl Amsterdam City Archives Vijzelstraat 32 www.stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl Amsterdam Museum Kalverstraat 92 www.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 www.bodyworlds.nl De Brakke Grond Nes 45 www.brakkegrond.nl Cobra Museum Sandbergplein 1 Amstelveen www.cobra-museum.nl Diamond Museum Amsterdam Paulus Potterstraat 8 diamantmuseumamsterdam.nl Dutch Press Museum Zeeburgerkade 10 www.persmuseum.nl Dutch Resistance Museum Plantage Kerklaan 61 www.verzetsmuseum.org EYE Filmmuseum IJpromenade 1 www.eyefilm.nl Foam Keizersgracht 609 www.foam.org Geelvinck Hinlopen House Keizersgracht 633 www.geelvinck.nl Van Gogh Museum Paulus Potterstraat 7 www.vangoghmuseum.nl Het Grachtenhuis (Museum of the Canals) Herengracht 386 www.hetgrachtenhuis.nl Hermitage Amsterdam Amstel 51 www.hermitage.nl Hollandse Schouwburg Plantage Middenlaan 24 www.hollandscheschouwburg.nl Hortus Botanicus Plantage Middenlaan 2A www.dehortus.nl Houseboat Museum Prinsengracht 296K 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 Micropia Artisplein, Plantage Kerklaan 38 www.micropia.nl/en Museum Van Loon Keizersgracht 672 www.museumvanloon.nl 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 Museum) Kattenburgerplein 1 www.hetscheepvaartmuseum.nl Stedelijk Museum Museumplein 10 www.stedelijk.nl Tropenmuseum Linnaeusstraat 2 www.tropenmuseum.nl Willet-Holthuysen Museum Herengracht 605 www.willetholthuysen.nl

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nov & dec 2015

KIDS & FAMILY advertorial

VENUES AMSTERDAM DUNGEON The Amsterdam Dungeon brings 500 years of dark history to life with 11 shows, seven actors and one terrifying experience!

Rokin 78, www.the-dungeons. nl. Open daily 11:00-17:00 (last tour); €22, ages 4-15 €18

Highlight OBA

TROPENMUSEUM JUNIOR Tropenmuseum is renowned for its efforts in child-friendly exhibitions. In the Junior building, interactive exhibits introduce children to new cultures in a playful way.

Linnaeusstraat 2, www.tropenmuseum.nl. Open Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00, Mondays during public and school holidays 10:00-17:00; €12.50, ages 4-18 €8, under-4s free

AMSTERDAMSE BOS This huge park and forest is one of Amsterdam’s super secrets despite being three times the size of New York’s Central Park.

Visitor Centre, Bosbaanweg 5, Amstelveen, www.amsterdamsebos.nl, various times & prices 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.

Suitable for children over ten.

Prinsengracht 263-267, www. annefrank.org. Open Mon-Sat 09:00-22:00, Sun 09:0021:00; €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 resting 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.

Plantage Kerklaan 38-40, www.artis.nl. Open daily 09.00-18.00; €19.95, ages 3-9 €16.50 COBRA MUSEUM OF MODERN ART In addition to presenting interesting exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, the museum also offers a free Children’s Studio – where they’re encouraged to colour outside the lines!

Sandbergplein 1, Amstelveen, www.cobra-museum.nl. Open Tue-Sun 11:00-17:00; adults €9.50, ages 6-18 €6; Children’s Studio, Sun 11:0014:00, free HORTUS BOTANICUS A refuge from the bustle of the city, highlights include a palm and a butterfly greenhouse, four beehives, temporary exhibitions and a café.

Plantage Middenlaan 2A, www.dehortus.nl. Open MonSat, 10:00-17:00; €8.50, ages 5-14 €4.50 HET TWISKE This nature reserve and recreational area is situated in thenorth of Amsterdam between Zaanstad and Purmerend. In addition to large playgrounds, a beach and plenty of green space, you can rent canoes, row or pedal boats, and sailboats. www.hettwiske.nl KINDERKOOKKAFÉ The ‘Kids Cook Café’ is a de-

STEDELIJK MUSEUM The Stedelijk Museum offers a renovated Family Lab in which young and old are encouraged to learn about artists and techniques and create bold artwork.

Museumplein 10, www.stedelijk. nl. Open Mon-Wed, Sat & Sun 10:00-18:00, Thur 10:0022:00; €15, children free

HUMANS OF AMSTERDAM Three years ago, photographer Debra Barraud (b. 1988), inspired by the well-known blog Humans of New York, started her own version called Humans of Amsterdam. Every day Debra roams the streets of Amsterdam, asking passers-by if she can take their picture. She also tries to capture something essential about them in writing, by asking them questions, sometimes quite personal. Her blog Humans of Amsterdam boasts more than 350,000 followers worldwide. Debra's fascinating photos will be on display until 30 November at OBA Expo, in the Central OBA on Oosterdokskade 143. The exhibition is free.

STUDYING AND WORKING IN OBA Are you looking for the ideal spot to work or study, or just to step off the busy streets for a while? Sure, cafés are an option, but for the right atmosphere and focused mindset, the OBA is the right choice. With 26 branches across town, there’s always an OBA near you. And there’s no admission fee!

For more information about the OBA, see www.oba.nl/english lightful and unique restaurant located by the Vondelpark.

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

Vondelpark 6b, www.kinderkookkafe.nl. Open daily 10:0017:00; various prices DE KLIMMUUR Rock climbing in the centre of Amsterdam.

Dijksgracht 2, www.deklimmuur.nl. Various times & prices LOVERS POWERZONE 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.loverspowerzone.nl.

Various times & prices MADAME TUSSAUDS AMSTERDAM The collection of wax figures include the gorgeous Brad Pitt, the outrageous Lady Gaga and the brilliant Einstein.

Dam 20, www.madametussauds.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 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 waters make the Pancake Boat a great activity for all ages.

Ms van Riemsdijkweg opposite nr 38, www.pannenkoekenboot. nl. Various times & prices HET SCHEEPVAARTMUSEUM (NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM) This nautical museum has a variety of exhibitions designed just for kids, including the recently opened ‘Life on board’.

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 science and technology.

Oosterdok 2, www.e-nemo.nl.

Open daily 10:00-17:30; €15, under-4s free

TUNFUN An indoor paradise for children under 12. Kids can enjoy hours of fun in a huge 4,000m2 indoor playground. There’s something for every age and interest.

Mr Visserplein 7, www.tunfun.nl. Open daily 10:00-18:00; ages 1-12 €8.50, accompanying adults free VERZETSMUSEUM JUNIOR A Junior building shows young visitors (9-14 years) how four peers lived during wartime.

Verzetsmuseum, Plantage Kerklaan 61, www.verzetsmuseum. org. Open Tue-Fri 10:00-17:00; Sat-Mon 11:00-17:00; €8, ages 7-15 €4.50, under-7s free WIND ‘N’ WHEELS This large-scale urban ’land yachting’ park is set up on Zeeburgereiland, in the east part of the city.

Wind ‘n’ Wheels, Zuiderzeeweg 1, www.windnwheels.nl. Various times & price WOESTE WESTEN PLAYGROUND An outdoor playground where kids can explore, dig, climb, play in the sand, and check out the frogs and bugs.

Westerpark, www.woestewesten. nl, playground supervisor is present Mon & Tue 12:0018:00, Wed-Sun 11:00-18:00

EVENTS SUNDAY MARKET Artists, designers and craftspeople flog their wares to fuel your shopping frenzy. Sun 1 Nov & Sun 29 Nov (Sinterklaas edition), Sun 6 Dec & 13 Dec (Funky Xmas Market), Westergasfabriek, www.sundaymarket.nl THE AMAZING JOURNEY OF DR FAUST Amsterdam’s Marionette Theatre presents a musical puppet rendition of the age-old tale of the scholar who ‘knew too much and yet never enough’.

Suitable for children aged 10 and over.

Sun 8 & 22 Nov; Sat 12 & 26, Sun 27 & Wed 30 Dec, Amsterdam Marionette Theatre, www.marionettentheater.nl

ARRIVAL OF SINTERKLAAS Sinterklaas arrives from his home in Spain to the Netherlands, bringing gifts and treats for the children. This year’s festivities include a boat parade along the Amstel (ending at the National Maritime Museum), followed by a horse parade through the city centre.

Sun 15 Nov, www.sintinamsterdam.nl Various locations ICE*AMSTERDAM A unique ice-skating experience, with the Rijksmuseum as a phenomenal backdrop. from 21 Nov, Museumplein, www.iceamsterdam.nl WORLD CHRISTMAS CIRCUS Featuring the crème de la crème of the circus world, the internationally renowned World Christmas Circus returns to this former circus theatre for another magical seasonal run. It’s one of the world’s most acclaimed circus festivals and features countless top stars of the ring.

Thur 17 Dec-Sun 3 Jan 2016, Royal Theatre Carré, www.carre.nl. Various times & prices, CHRISTMAS VILLAGE From mid December, Museumplein is transformed into a magical winter wonderland as the Christmas Village market sets up stall.

Fri 18-Sun 27 Dec, Museumplein, www.museummarket.nl WINTER CIRCUS AMSTERDAM Acrobatics and plate spinning will be joined by modern daredevil performances.

Sat 19 Dec-Sun 3 Jan 2016, Amsterdam RAI, www. wintercircusamsterdam.nl.

Various times & prices LELYSTAD CHRISTMAS MARKET Taking place in a nature park just outside Lelystad, the Christmas Market is a truly cosy family experience.

Sat 19 Dec, Natuurpark Lelystad, www.flevo-landschap.nl NIEUW AMSTERDAMS KINDERKOOR + AMSTERDAM BAROQUE ORCHESTRA The Christmas concerts of the Amsterdam children’s choir and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra are about as heart-warming as it gets.

Tue 22 & Wed 23 Dec, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, www. muziekgebouw.nl. Various times, €27.50 THE CHRISTMAS SHOW Step into a land of winter wonder as the biggest Christmas show in the Netherlands returns with breathtaking dance performances, acrobatics, music and special effects. Dutch will be the primary language.

Sat 26 Dec, 20:00 & Sun 27 Dec, 11:00, Ziggo Dome, www.ziggodome.nl. from €25

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PART IV THE A-LIST.

GALLERIES POWERED BY AMSTERDAM ART WWW.AMSTERDAMART.COM

1. AKINCI

Garden of Vigilant Clothes is inspired by a dispute between the municipal government of St. Petersburg and its citizens about the exploitation of a public park and the last standing house, a traditional wooden dacha.

The so-called Gromov Dacha seems to be spared but what will the future bring?



27 NOV-15 JAN 2016 Gluklya Lijnbaansgracht 317

2. ELLEN DE BRUIJNE PROJECTS

Falke Pisano’s new project The value in mathematics considers mathematics as a cultural construct instead of a value-free global science.

Throughout a series of sculptures, diagrams, text pieces and a film the exhibition interrogates the possibilities of multiple futures that different mathematical universes propose.



UNTIL 19 DEC Falke Pisano Rozengracht 207A

3. JULIETTE JONGMA

The exhibition of Lisa Oppenheim at Juliette Jongma presents work that revolves around questions related to photography as a medium. Making use of archival material or photos found on internet she examines the changing nature of photography in the digital era.

12 NOV-30 DEC



Lisa Oppenheim Gerard Doustraat 128A

4. BOETZELAER / NISPEN

Elaborating on the aspirations of the Tamil Tigers to make an independent state of the Sri Lankan Eelam, Christopher Kulendran Thomas proposes an alternative state based on the ideas of Karl Marx.

21 NOV-9 JAN 2016 Christopher Kulendran Thomas De Clercqstraat 64

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

5. FLATLAND GALLERY

Love Radio is a multi-disciplinary documentary about the complex reality of the divided Rwanda after the genocide in 1994. The project straddles the thin line between fact and fiction and deals with the question how perpetrators and victims can live with and love each other again. The exhibition was made in collaboration with journalist Eefje Blankevoort, and designers Kummer & Herrman and Sara Kolster.

24 OCT-19 DEC Anoek Steketee Lijnbaansgracht 312-314

SPORTS/WELLNESS EVENTS FRIDAY NIGHT RUN Organised by the Phanos athletics association every second Friday of the month, this free group running event is open to both recreational and more serious sportsters. Beginners can join in the 40-minute run at a slower tempo and there’s also the standard one-hour run.

Fri 13 Nov & 11 Dec, Olympic Stadium, www.fridaynightrun.nl. 19:30, free FRIDAY NIGHT SKATE Get your skates on for the weekly Friday Night Skate, an institution in Amsterdam! Departing from the Vondelpark, the skating routes take in all areas of the city, allowing you to skate in places where you wouldn’t on your own.

Every Friday, Vondelpark Pavilion, www.fridaynightskate.com. 20:30, free

Highlight sports

AMSTERDAM SWIM CUP Dive into this three-day event aimed at promoting the sport of swimming in Amsterdam while inspiring plenty of watery fun. The Amsterdam Swim Cup is open to swimmers of varying proficiencies but it’s also the first Dutch qualifying meet for the Olympic Games in Rio 2016, so expect to see a host of top Dutch and international swimmers taking to the water.

11-13 Dec, Sloterparkbad, www.amsterdamswimcup.nl

ICE-SKATING AT JAAP EDEN special 1km event.

8 Nov, Olympic Stadium, If you’re serious about your www.olympischstadionloop. ice-skating, the picturesque nl rinks around the city centre probably aren’t big enough for ICE*AMSTERDAM you. The Jaap Eden IJsbaan is Ice*Amsterdam presents a the city’s main ice rink, hostunique ice-skating experience ing daily skate sessions until on Amsterdam’s Museumplein, March. As well as an indoor with the Rijksmuseum as a arena, there’s a 400-metre outphenomenal backdrop. door track. from 21 Nov, Museumplein, until 20 Mar, Jaap Eden www.iceamsterdam.nl IJsbaan, www.jaapeden.nl.

Various times & prices POP-UP RUN AMSTERDAMSE BOS AJAX VS. FENERBAHÇE Head out into the woodlands The iconic Amsterdam footof the Amsterdamse Bos in this ball team are competing in Pop-up Run. There are 6.5km the UEFA Europa League and 13km routes to choose this winter. Tonight they’re up against successful Turkish from. Runners beware! This is a special mud edition. outfit 21 Nov, Amsterdamse Bos, Fenerbahçe. www.popuprun.nl 5 Nov, Amsterdam ArenA, www.amsterdamarena.nl.

MOVEMBER RUN 19:00 Proudly run your slowest OLYMPISCH STADIONLOOP 5km run of the season, as that free-flowing moustache you’ve The Stadionloop in the Zuid grown for Movember drags District of the city is the final you back in the winter wind! event in the Rondje Mokum Ladies can participate too.

(Amsterdam Circuit) pro29 Nov, Vondelpark, gramme of running compewww.movemberrun.nl titions. Alongside the professional 10km event, there’s also AJAX VS. MOLDE a 5km and 10km event for recreational runners, all starting The iconic Amsterdam football and finishing at Amsterdam’s team take on Norwegian outfit Molde in the UEFA Europa famous Olympic Stadium.

League.

And for younger runners 10 Dec, Amsterdam ArenA, under 13 years old, there’s a www.amsterdamarena.nl. advert 19:00

WELLNESS

THE GLASS MENAGERIE

19 NOV | SURTITLED IN ENGLISH

THE CITY STREET SPA British expat Chantal Naughton’s powder blue boutique spa is a favourite with the city’s Canal Belt clique and discerning expats, but the aestheticians at this urban retreat make everyone feel welcome.

Prinsengracht 764, www.thecitystreetspa.com KOAN FLOAT If gently submerging yourself in warm saltwater sounds like

heaven to you, then head to Koan Float in the city centre.

Here you can leave the real world behind as you experience the tranquillity of a floatation tank or a wide variety of massage sessions.

Herengracht 321, www.koan float.nl. Various times & prices HET MASSAGEHUYS Situated in Amsterdam West, the Massagehuys offers a wide range of massages, including an ‘Authentic Asian’ massage, the ‘She Special’, which pays special attention to hands and feet, a relaxing stress relief massage, the deep-tissue strong muscle massage, a ‘Deep Detox’ massage and even a pregnancy massage.

Jan Evertsenstraat 110, www. massagehuys.nl. Various times & prices SAUNA DECO AMSTERDAM Enjoy the lounge rooms, pleasant atmosphere and all the facilities you require for a day of luxury. And as you can guess from its name, the sauna is styled in historic and beautiful art deco pieces, transporting its guests to a bygone era.

Herengracht 115, www.sauna deco.nl. Various times & prices SENTO SPA AND HEALTH CLUB At Sento you can find complete professional supervision and personal training for every requirement. Enjoy the spa and beauty facilities or go for a swim in the pool.

Marnixplein 1, www.sento.nl.

Various times & prices SPA ZUIVER With facilities including saunas, baths, hammam treatments, relaxation chambers, sports, swimming pool, and dining and hotel options, it’s perfect for anyone looking to relax and recharge.

Please note: clothing is not obligatory.

Koenenkade 8, www.spazuiver. nl. Various times & prices

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nov & dec 2015

GAY & LESBIAN REGULAR EVENTS

Sat 28 Nov, Club Church, 22:00-5:00

WASTELAND Europe’s most notorious MELLOW MONDAY straight / gay mixed fetish Recharge after your busy week- fantasy extravaganza welcomes end with free foot and shoulder fetishionistas from all over the globe to the North Sea Venue. massages, free snacks, free deSat 28 Nov, North Sea Venue, tox scrubs, and dry and steam 22:00-06:00, €49.50 saunas.

Every Mon, Sauna NZ, 19:00, LOVEDANCE €19,50, under-26s €10, men Helping to raise both money only and awareness with a loud, NAKED SWIMMING colourful and fun approach to a serious issue, Lovedance alThe Marnixbad pools contain much less chlorine than most – ways features a huge and varied line-up of artists, musicians, which is good news since you’ll be exposing your sensitive bits. bands, DJs, dancers and other performers.

Every Tue, Marnixbad, 21:15, Tue 1 Dec, Paradiso, www.lovevarious prices dance.nl (Z)ONDERBROEK BEAR NECESSITY Guys: Every Friday night and Bear Necessity started as a bear every first Saturday of the party, but has become more a month, drop all your pretences general gay dance party for men. and dance without pants at Sat 5 Dec, Club Air, 23:00Club Church in Amsterdam.

06:00, €20 The dress code is strictly enforced: briefs and jocks are welcome; swimming trunks, ADDRESSES boxers, sports shorts or going Amstel Fifty Four commando are also permitted.

Amstel 54 Board shorts, Bermudas or www.amstelfiftyfour.nl other streetwear prohibited.

Church Every Fri night & first Sat Kerkstraat 52 of the month, Club Church, www.clubchurch.nl 22:00-05:00, €10 Eden Amsterdam Manor Hotel Linnaeusstraat 89 www.lgbtqoosterpark.blogONE-OFF spot.com EVENTS Engel van Amsterdam Zeedijk 21 NUDE CLUB www.engelamsterdam.nl Hotel Arena Nude Club Amsterdam is a 's-Gravesandestraat 5 nude gay cruise and play party www.hotelarena.nl once a month on Sunday afterLellebel noon. Dress code: shoes only.

Utrechtsestraat 4 Safe only. www.lellebel.nl Sun 1 Nov & 6 Dec, The WareMarnixbad house, Doors open 15:00, €10 Marnixplein 1 GAY MOVIE NIGHT www.hetmarnix.nl Club NYX Nurse your hangover in the Reguliersdwarsstraat 42 dark, while enjoying a screenwww.clubnyx.nl ing of the gems of gay cinema.

Paradiso Wed 4 Nov & 2 Dec, Pathé de Weteringschans 6-8 Munt, 21:00, €10 www.paradiso.nl FUNHOUSE Pathé de Munt Vijzelstraat 15 Popular gay dance parties at www.pathe.nl Wester Unie, at WestergasfabPrik riek Amsterdam. The popular Spuistraat 109 and busy party is in a old inwww.prikamsterdam.nl dustrial factory hall and feature The Queen’s Head dancers in crazy costumes.

Zeedijk 20 Sun 15 Nov & 20 Dec, Wester www.queenshead.nl Unie, 22:00-05:00 Saarein HORSEMEN & KNIGHTS Elandsstraat 119-HS www.saarein2.nl Big willy gay sex party. Dress Sameplace code: naked or underwear.

Nassaukade 120 Drop ’em and if you measure www.sameplace.nl up, entrance is free.

Sauna Nieuwezijds Sat 14 Nov & 19 Dec, The WareNieuwezijds Armsteeg 95 house, 15:00, €8 www.saunanieuwezijds.nl GARBO FOR WOMEN Strand West Stavangerweg 900 Single ladies strut their stuff at www.garboforwomen.nl this regular ladies-only meetTaboo up. Celebrating its tenth anniReguliersdwarsstraat 45 versary in 2015. www.taboobar.nl Sat 21 Nov & 19 Dec, Strand Theater Amsterdam West, 18:00, €8 Danzigerkade 5 LADZ www.theateramsterdam.nl The Warehouse The gay dance party for lads, Warmoesstraat 96 scallies, gabbers, sneaker- and www.warehouseamsterdam. sportswear boys. DJs play the com harder styles of dance music.

FILM FAVOURITES EXPAT CINEMA

Foreign movie lovers, despair no more! The third season of Ex-Pats Cinema has begun!

Every other Tuesday, LAB111 hosts the screening of a recent foreign language film – with English subtitles. Coming up: Prins (the Netherlands), A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (Sweden) and White God (Hungary).

Every other Tuesday at LAB111. www.lab111.nl/film/ex-pats-cinema

HE NAMED ME MALALA

What’s in a name? Was Malala Yousafzai fated to become one of the world’s most known activists for female education because her father named her after the Afghan version of Jeanne D’Arc? Malala herself is endearing – it’s easy to forget she’s also still a schoolgirl – but the documentary doesn’t really tell us anything new.

Directed by: Davis Guggenheim Release: 5 November

THE END OF THE TOUR

Rolling Stone reporter David Lipsky (Jesse Eisenberg) embarks on a five-day tour with acclaimed novelist David Foster Wallace (Jason Segel), writer of the blockbuster novel Infinite Jest. The two leads are a good fit, although, of course, playing a lovable lug (Segel) and a frustrated intellectual (Eisenberg), is what they do best.

Directed by: James Ponsoldt Release: 12 November

SERET ISRAELI FILM FESTIVAL

It may be a bit out of the way, but a short trip to Amstelveen for the Seret Israeli Film Festival will definitely be worth your while. Don’t miss Zero Motivation, the zany, but perceptive portrait of a unit of young, female Israeli soldiers stationed in the middle of nowhere, and The Green Prince, a documentary about the son of a Hamas leader who becomes a spy for the Israelis.

14-16 November at Cinema Amstelveen, 15 November at Rialto. www.schouwburgamstelveen.nl/ nieuws/seret-film-festival www.rialtofilm.nl

THE PROGRAM

‘He recovered from cancer and returned as bloody super-

man!’ Irish sports journalist David Walsh (Chris O’Dowd) just isn’t buying Lance Armstrong’s (Ben Foster) Phoenixlike reappearance in the cycling scene and starts hunting for evidence that his recent victories are anything but clean-cut.

Directed by: Stephen Frears Release: 19 November

BY THE SEA

This one is somewhat of a guilty pleasure. Directed by Angelina Jolie, and reuniting Jolie and hubbie Brad Pitt on screen for the first time since Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005) – the movie where the two hooked up. How bad could/would/ should/will it be? One can only hope.

Directed by: Angelina Jolie Release: 26 November

STEVE JOBS

It’s probably best for all parties concerned to forget that there ever was any other feature film about Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher who?). And with big names like Danny Boyle (director Slumdog Millionaire), Aaron Sorkin (screenwriter The Social Network) and actor Michael Fassbender (in Magneto – I rule the universe! – mode) you can hardly go wrong.

Directed by: Danny Boyle.

Release: 3 December

A WALK IN THE WOODS

Robert Redford decides to temporarily leave his home (and wife Emma Thompson) to hike the Appalachian Trails with old friend Nick Nolte.

A Walk in the Woods has only one real demerit: they definitely should have taken Emma Thompson along for the hike! Based on the excellent novel by Bill Bryson.

Directed by: Ken Kwapis Release: 17 December

CAROL Director Todd Haynes is known to take his time, but Carol, his first feature film since I’m Not There (2007), is definitely worth the wait! From the moment Therese (Rooney Mara), a shopgirl in 1950s New York, locks eyes with the luxurious housewife Carol (Cate Blanchett), she’s hooked. But who has the most at stake?

Directed by: Todd Haynes Release: 17 December

Molen koe grachtpandje fiets

With the Amsterdam Explore Amsterdam Area Region Day Ticket you With the Amsterdam & Region can travel 24 hours by Day Ticket you can travel 24 hours bus, andmetro metro in by bus,tram tram and in and around Amsterdam. and around Amsterdam.

Available at the Visitor Purchase your Amsterdam & Region Day Ticket with information Centres e your I amsterdam City Card and get €3.50 discount.

PricPrice is exclusively available at the I amsterdam 50 This offerin 3.13,50 Amsterdam and €1€ Visitor Centres in Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport. €3.50 discount with your I amsterdam City Card Schiphol Airport

VISITOR INFORMATION

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nov & dec 2015

VISITOR INFORMATION

Find u s @ iamst erda .com m

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

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 sameday performances: I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRE CENTRAL STATION Stationsplein 10 (across from Central Station) Open daily

I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRES

STADSSCHOUWBURG AMSTERDAM Leidseplein 26 Open Mon-Sat 12.00-18.00

FOR INFORMATION AND TO BOOK EXCURSIONS, VISIT ONE OF THE VISITOR 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

AMSTERDAM PUBLIC LIBRARY (OBA) Oosterdokskade 143 Open Mon-Fri 10.00-19.30; Sat & Sun 10.00-18.00 www.lastminuteticketshop.nl

I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRE CENTRAL STATION* Stationsplein 10 (across from Central Station) Open daily (check opening times on: iamsterdam.com/visitorcentres) *Last Minute Ticket Shop I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRE SCHIPHOL AIRPORT Schiphol Airport, Arrivals 2 at Schiphol Plaza Open daily 07:00-22:00 I AMSTERDAM STORE IJ-hal (inside Central Station) Opening mid February 2016

SPECIAL OFFER FOR I AMSTERDAM CITY CARD HOLDERS! Purchase the Amsterdam & Region Day Ticket for a special price of €10. Combine the 24-hour public travel pass with the I amsterdam City Card and make good use of both products! This offer is availabe at the I amsterdam Visitor Centres at Stationsplein and Schiphol Airport.

Molen koe grachtpan dje fiets

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 the I amsterdam Visitor Centres or from GVB, EBS and Connexxion ticket points.

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beyond amsterdam

CLOSING

BEYOND

‘I JUST LIKE BEING ON MY OWN ON TRAINS, TRAVELLING. I SPENT ALL MY POCKET MONEY TRAVELLING [...] AND IN EUROPE AS MUCH AS I COULD AFFORD IT. MY PARENTS USED TO THINK I WAS GOING PLACES, BUT I WASN’T, I WAS JUST TRAVELLING THE TRAINS.’

A’DAM

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

TONY JUDT

text Anne de Vries

‘Zaandam is quite remarkable and there is enough to paint for a lifetime’, said great impressionist Claude Monet.

Back in 1871 he spent four months in the enchanting village, and, blown away by Zaandam’s beauty, found enough inspiration for 25 paintings. During the Monet walking tour you will be guided along all the remarkable spots that caught the artist’s eye, like the famous Het Blauwe Huis (The Blue House). But if you prefer to walk or bike the route in silence, then the specially placed Monet-tiles will guide you on your way.

Until 31 December Zaandam www.monetinzaandam.nl

GETTING THERE: Trains from Amsterdam Central to Zaandam run every ten minutes.

Travel time: ten minutes.

SOVIET DESIGN Consumer culture and communism didn’t exactly go hand in hand in the late 1950s, but an expo in Moscow called the American Way of Living made mentalities (and entrepreneurs!) take a sharp turn. A former gunpowder factory started creating the famous Nevalyashka roly-poly dolls, chemicals labs began to produce perfume, and the design of vacuum cleaners was reflected on space travel. Slowly but surely the Russians stopped copying western design and developed their own trademark consisting of robust, sustainable and contructivist-inspired forms. If you are curious to know more, De Kunsthal is displaying more than 360 examples of Soviet Design in their new exhibition, Red Wealth, Soviet Design 1950-1980.

Until 14 February 2016 De Kunsthal, Rotterdam www.kunsthal.nl

GETTING THERE: Trains from Amsterdam Central to Rotterdam Central run several times a day; from Rotterdam Central hop on tram 4 (to Marconiplein) and get off at Mathenesserlaan. Then it’s an eightminute walk. Travel time: one hour

© HENK ZWOVERINK

FOLLOWING MONET’S FOOTSTEPS

DINNER ON WHEELS Dinner with a view doesn’t get any better than the Panorama Rail Restaurant. The historical rolling restaurant leaves from Amsterdam Central at 18:15 sharp, to spend three hours travelling past places like The Hague and Leiden, through the gorgeous Groene Hart nature reserve. The friendly staff will be serving a Michelin-star worthy meal: a perfectly balanced pork belly in a green curry, smooth veal cheek and loin, and a finger licking lemon curd.

Hopefully you don’t suffer from motion sickness…

Every Saturday at 18:00.

Amsterdam Central Station www.panoramarail.nl

GETTING THERE: The Panorama Rail Restaurant leaves every Saturday at 18:15 from an undecided platform at Amsterdam Central. You will be informed from where just before departure. You will return at the same station about three hours later.

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‘FOR ME AN OBJECT IS SOMETHING LIVING. THIS CIGARETTE OR THIS BOX OF MATCHES CONTAINS A SECRET LIFE MUCH MORE INTENSE THAN THAT OF CERTAIN HUMAN BEINGS.’

‘ASK A SOVIET ENGINEER TO DESIGN A PAIR OF SHOES AND HE’LL COME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT LOOKS LIKE THE BOXES THAT THE SHOES CAME IN.’ NEAL STEPHENSON, CRYPTONOMICON

© ELSE BERG-MYSTIEKE VIJVER

JOAN MIRO

THE FIRST DUTCH EXPRESSIONISTS

MIRÓ & COBRA

FLOATING CHRISTMAS MARKET A floating Christmas market: is this the real world, is this just fantasy? It’s…

Leiden. The small picturesque city of Southern Holland is hosting the one and only floating Christmas market in the Netherlands. Around 60 chalets will be placed on one of the canals in the beautiful historic city centre, creating a festive winter wonderland. It's the perfect excuse to get some of your Christmas shopping done, or for an escape from Amsterdam to stroll around while enjoying glühwein and bratwurst.

11-20 December Leiden, Nieuwe Rijn www.centrumvanleiden.nl/kerstmarkt

GETTING THERE: Trains from Amsterdam Central to Leiden Central run several times a day; from Leiden Central, hop on bus 169, 187 or 400 to Korevaarstraat. Travel time: 50 minutes

From New York’s Guggenheim to Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid: the work of the great Joan Miró is displayed in the world’s most prestigious museums. But this month, his paintings can also be admired at the Cobra Museum in Amstelveen. This new exhibition, Miró & Cobra, focuses on the connection between Miró and avant-garde movement CoBrA. Both have an experimental and playful way to approach their love for art.

Until 31 January 2016 Cobra Museum, Amstelveen, Sandbergplein 1 www.cobra-museum.nl

GETTING THERE: From Amsterdam Central, take bus 170 or 172 to bus station Amstelveen. Then it’s a short (two-minute walk).

Travel time: 40 minutes

Van Gogh and Rembrandt are probably the first names that come to mind when thinking of great Dutch artists, but do the names Piet van Wijngaerdt and Elsa Berg – part of the first Dutch expressionist art movement De Bergense School – also spring to mind?

Around 1910, these artists settled in Bergen and started painting portraits, still lifes and sceneries by using edgy powerful shapes, broad brush strokes and colour contrasts.

In no time, De Bergense School achieved great success with its contemporary style, and the impressionist days were over. Be sure to see the work of these Dutch artists at Het Singer Museum in the picturesque city of Laren.

Until 29 November Singer Museum, Laren www.singerlaren.nl

GETTING THERE: Take a train from Amsterdam Central to Amsterdam Amstel, then bus 320 to Ziekenhuis Ter Gooi. Then it’s a few minutes’s walk away. Travel time: one hour

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ADVERTORIAL

m

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

NIEUWE KERK ROME – EMPEROR CONSTANTINE’S DREAM Until 7 February 2016

Emperor Constantine the Great transformed Rome from an imperial capital to the heart of papal power, replacing colossal statues of the emperor with churches and crosses. This monumental exhibition shares art treasures from the Vatican and other institutions: mosaics and frescos, paintings and iconic pieces like the marble sculpture of the Good Shepherd.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

THE I AMSTERDAM CITY CARD INCLUDES: • Free entrance to over 40 museums • Free public transport • Free canal cruise and more 24 hrs – €49 | 48 hrs – €59 | 72 hrs – €69

The I amsterdam City Card is available at I amsterdam Visitor Centres, hotels, canal cruise companies and GVB Tickets & Info offices. For more information, see www.iamsterdam.com/citycard

© SUCCESSIÓ MIRÓ, C/O PICTORIGHT AMSTERDAM 2015

STATUE OF CONSTANTINE ROME © RHEINISCHES LANDESMUSEUM TRIER

VINCENT VAN GOGH, STARRY NIGHT OVER THE RHÔNE, 1888. MUSÉE D’ORSAY, PARIS.

Vincent van Gogh and Edvard Munch’s masterpieces are brought together for the first time in this extraordinary exhibit which illustrates the striking – and often uncanny – parallels between not only the work but also the personal lives of these two titans of psychological painting.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

TEYLERS MUSEUM HAARLEM REAL WINTER From 7 November to 6 March 2016

The reality of 19th century Dutch winters is on show at Teylers Museum, with works from artists such as Schelfhout and Apol, Mauve, Breitner and Van Gogh. Depictions of beautiful icy landscapes and delightful canal-skating scenes are accompanied by paintings showing the harsher side of the season like impassable ice drifts, as well as more abstract images by Witsen and Mankes. An interesting comparison with today’s much milder winters, the exhibit is a silent commentary on climate change.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

THE AMSTERDAM & REGION DAY TICKET This special 24-hour public transport pass is valid on metros, trams and buses operated

by GVB, Connexxion, Arriva and EBS. Get yours for the special price of €10 with the I amsterdam City Card. www.iamsterdam.com/citycard Offer exclusively available at the I amsterdam Visitor Centres at Central Station and Schiphol Airport.

GE OUT T TOW OF N BU PASS S

+ €10

te

MUNCH: VAN GOGH Until 17 January 2016

This new exhibit is the first one to grace the Netherlands in 60 years. 120 pieces by Miró and more than 80 by CoBrA, along with a reproduction of Joan Miró’s atelier in Mallorca, show how the avant-garde movement and the Spanish artist shared a vision: an experimental and playful way to approach their love for art.

s

VAN GOGH MUSEUM

MIRÓ AND COBRA: THE JOY OF THE EXPERIMENT Until 31 January 2016

sy

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card:

COBRA MUSEUM

ion

Get out of town

i n g u al tr a n sl a t

In Amsterdam

u ltil

You’ll be surprised at how much of Amsterdam and the surrounding region you can see with your I amsterdam City Card.

*m

I AMSTERDAM CITY CARD

S P EC I A L OFFER

In 20 15, Ar tis’s micro Micro be zoo, pVia, a isit nd th Portr e pressive ait a the im rman llece the GperfoG ry A oN old f NE at the Ae mnstA e rd geam includ arT eheatre* e2 5in d % ydoisuco I ams r unt for terC dit ard holde aymCC ity rs Card.

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then & now

THEN AND NOW

UNKNOWN VAN GOGH PAINTING, 1885 text Marie-Charlotte Pezé

Before van Gogh became a starving artist and a posthumously acclaimed postimpressionist master, he wanted to be a minister.

Van Gogh spent time in Amsterdam, living with his uncle, studying Theology – 400 days between May 1877 and July 1878 during which he continued his famous correspondence with his brother Theo and expressed his fondness for the city: ‘It’s a beautiful place here, that I’d love to be able to share with you and show you.’ A bit self-prophesising as he’d paint this little-known painting of his fond memory of Amsterdam eight years later, in 1885 – the same year as the Potato Eaters, also shown at this retrospective exhibition of the City Archives, which contains all the letters sent to Theo during his short, failed stint as a future man of the cloth.

Collection P. & N. de Boer Foundation 18 December-17 April 2016 www.stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl

XXXX

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

VINCENT VAN GOGH, 400 DAYS IN AMSTERDAM

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CLOSING

ON THE WAY

OUT

We asked people leaving Schiphol Airport for their Amsterdam advice.

text & photos Marie-Charlotte Pezé

on the way out

NINA K. MATTHIES, 42, FREELANCE ARTIST FROM GERMANY ‘I have known Blond as a brand for more than ten years, from Germany, so I was really happy to visit their shop in Amsterdam. I love their style, it's so cheerful and pretty.’

ALPHA JALLOH, 31, SECURITY OFFICER FROM MANCHESTER ‘I’m a huge fan of EYE Film Museum. They show great retrospectives about iconic filmmakers, so I visit it every time I come to Amsterdam.’

NOEL & CELINE PEDREIRA, 38, THEOLOGIAN AND HOMEMAKER FROM SWITZERLAND ‘The kids loved Micropia, but as a theologian, I was fascinated by the Museum Our Lord in the Attic. Not just its beauty, but the weight of history relating to religious persection.’

CONNIE SNUDERS, 68, RETIRED, VISITING HER FAMILY FROM BRISBANE ‘The Red Light District is such a beautiful area of Amsterdam, in spite of the less tasteful side of its personality.’

THOMAS CIRELLI, 26, FAST-FOOD WORKER FROM MANCHESTER, AND FRIENDS ‘We came for ADE. A non-miss event if you’re a fan of electronic music.’

editor-in-chief Bart van Oosterhout art director & basic design Loes Koomen designer Zlatka Siljdedic copy editor Marie-Charlotte Pezé proofreader Julia Gorodecky contributors Lauren Comiteau, Karin Engelbrecht, Leda Georgiades, Catalina Iorga, Elisah Jacobs, Jowi Schmitz, Bregtje Schudel, Mark Smith, Anne de Vries, Monique Wijbrands/Saltystock, Christiaan de Wit listings EdenFrost (Tamar Bosschaart Steven McCarron & Sarah Gehrke) cover illustration Eili-Kaija Kuusniemi

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. 42 on City Card map

Museum of the Canals

The Guardian

untill 17.01.2016

Book your tickets online vangoghmuseum.com/munch

Van Gogh engages you.

The Guardian

untill 17.01.2016

Book your tickets online vangoghmuseum.com/munch

Van Gogh engages you.