Thomas Bellinck

Barzakh

The Arabic word barzakh refers to a border space between two worlds in which deceased souls must wait in a state of sleep for a final judgment before they can travel further. It is a recognisable situation for people who are awaiting trial in pre-trial detention, as becomes apparent from conversations between them and theatre maker Thomas Bellinck. During workshops in some Belgian prisons, they write a new performance together and determine what is presented on stage. The opera repertoire serves as a starting point: in operas we often see criminal acts and incarceration in a romanticised way, but does this correspond to reality? Composer Osama Abdulrasol translates the material from the workshops into music for singers and chamber orchestra. Barzakh questions the world views that emerge from operas and takes a critical look at the prison system.

Translation. thomas bellinck, mahdieh fahimi, sarah van camp

The Voice of Fingers

For several years now, theatre-maker Thomas Bellinck and journalist Reza Adib have been working together long-distance. This distance is not a choice, but the result of a border regime that facilitates the international movement of one of them and obstructs that of the other. A journey that takes one of them eight hours, takes the other eight years. Since it is nearly impossible for Thomas and Reza to share the same stage, they’ve written a highly personal text for two performers. From the ridges and grooves that criss-cross the skin of their fingertips, they zoom out. To a world where skin patterns unlock laptops. And where fingers are commandeered by governments as measuring instruments - to determine who is welcome where.

De stem van vingers

For several years now, theatre-maker Thomas Bellinck and journalist Reza Adib have been working together long-distance. This distance is not a choice, but the result of a border regime that facilitates the international movement of one of them and obstructs that of the other. A journey that takes one of them eight hours, takes the other eight years. Since it is nearly impossible for Thomas and Reza to share the same stage, they’ve written a highly personal text for two performers. From the ridges and grooves that criss-cross the skin of their fingertips, they zoom out. To a world where skin patterns unlock laptops. And where fingers are commandeered by governments as measuring instruments - to determine who is welcome where.