Van Cappellen Festival: Kofferbakcollectief with The Vegetarian Hunt Cantata

A cheerful drama set to music by Bach - that is how director Jasper van Hofwegen describes The Vegetarian Hunt Cantata by Kofferbak Collectief.

In a country house deep in the woods, a group of hunters has withdrawn for a peculiar ritual: an extensive group therapy session to say goodbye to themselves. Old money, refined but grounded - all that remains is the hunt, the last tradition they believe has not yet been destroyed by yuppies. But society condemns their traditions as inhumane and elitist, so they must let go. The therapist pulls out all the stops: breathing exercises, all stages of grief. Meanwhile, the traumatized noble deer is being rehabilitated and Diana, goddess of the hunt, makes a final desperate attempt to defend her right to exist.

Van Hofwegen: "The performance style is grotesque and comic. This is how we try to make fun of the audience and ourselves, and hold up a mirror. After all, don't we all struggle with letting go of the parts of ourselves that perhaps need renewal?"

Musically, the production is loosely inspired by J.S. Bach's Hunt Cantata BWV 208, supplemented with repertoire from the Baroque and beyond. Kofferbak Collectief creates small-scale, mobile music theatre: sung in Dutch, with minimal means - one suitcase full - turning any location into a temporary opera stage. The collective previously performed Plastic Party! at Van Cappellenhuis.

The Vegetarian Hunt Cantata is a co-production with Opera2da, with libretto by Bart Sietsema and the following cast:

Klaartje van Veldhoven (soprano)
Mattijs van de Woerd (baritone)
Roman Brasser (tenor)
Renée Bekkers (accordion & arrangements)
Charles Watt (cello)