The Beyond the Black Box festival at De Brakke Grond in Amsterdam will take place this year on January 30 and 31, and February 1 and 2. SoAP will present three works at the festival.
With Edgelanders: Amsterdam On Trial, artists Ehsan Fardjadniya and Raul Balai are working on an indictment against the Municipality of Amsterdam. They demand that the city fulfill its ethical and legal obligations toward undocumented individuals. The project builds toward a public trial on October 27, 2025 (the city’s 750th anniversary) and is presented in several “chapters.” The fifth chapter, The Indictment, will be shown both during and after Beyond the Black Box.
With Before the Black Box, Rita Hoofwijk invites the audience to arrive early, before the festival officially begins. The group gathers at Nes 45, the square in front of De Brakke Grond, for a shared reflection on the watery foundations of the city.
Finally, Salomé Mooij creates space for the stumbling human throughout the festival days. In Study of a Stumble/The Stumbling Corner, she works with the audience to explore the experience of stumbling. What are the ingredients of a believable stumble? What happens if we stay open when things don’t go as expected, when our pride is at stake, or when it feels like we’re failing?