WIPCOOP: 4 x Work In Progress

WIPCOOP - the Work In Progress Cooperative of Mestizo Arts Platform - is a unique development track in Leuven, Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent. WIPCOOP stands for making space for new voices, stories, forms and languages in the performing arts. In 2023, the first Leuven edition took place at STUK. This year, OPEK is the place to be. Farida, Nata Mandaria, Saloua Hassani and Jolien Baeyens will each show a short work-in-progress. Afterwards, they will talk to professionals about their work and possible support.

Saloua Hassani - Ga je weg. (Working title) is about the unconditional love between a mother and her child. The performance highlights the difficult situations between the two, as well as the importance of a child's as well as a mother's own self-personality.

Jolien Baeyens - Press A to Start is a dance performance inspired by nostalgic and contemporary video games. With her five dancers, Jolien explores the intriguing soundscapes and impressive 3D landscapes of the virtual game world. They explore, fight, reach higher levels and endure the necessary bugs and glitches.

Farida Z. - Spoken Word Fusion: Human Voices is a performance about identity, heritage, migration and trauma; with spoken word, theatre and images. It highlights the differences and similarities between Flemish, home and other cultures, with the necessary humour but also with room for vulnerability.

Nata Mandaria - Moederwittevrouwen / თეთრი დედა ქალები is a critique on the continuously fluctuating role of the woman. From the young girl that has to serve, to the housewife who daydreams. The women around Nata Mandaria never had a choice. She does. In 'Moederwittevrouwen' Nata Mandaria plays with the social image of women. The moederwittevrouw is a pure young housewife who serves her husband and raises her child. She is everything the patriarchy expects from her, and nothing more. The condescending Georgian term: ‘დედა ქალი' , refers to young girls who serve the men in their family and are not taking seriously until marriage. If they act in too adult a way for their age, they are called ‘dedakalebi’. Roughly translated: ‘mother women’.

website Mestizo

TEAM / CREDITS

Saloua Hassani - Ga je weg. (Working title)

Concept & Text: Saloua Hassani / Movement: Mokhallad Rasem / Performance: Loena Ottou and Glenn Vanoverbeke / With the support of Mestizo Arts Platform/WIPCOOP, STUK.

Jolien Baeyens - Press A to Start

Choreography: Jolien Baeyens / Dance: Jolien Baeyens, Marlies Basstanie, Jakoba De Greef, Janne Maes, Hannah Wellens, Kaat Willekens / Thanks to BAC Art Lab, Universitair Sportcentrum KU Leuven. With the support of Mestizo Arts Platform/WIPCOOP, STUK.

Farida Z. - Spoken Word Fusion: Human Voices

Concept & Performance: Farida / Direction: Bart Vanderheyden / With the support of Mestizo Arts Platform/WIPCOOP, STUK.

Nata Mandaria - Moederwittevrouwen / თეთრი დედა ქალები

Direction, text and performance: Nata Mandaria / Coaching: Samuel Valor Reyes / Dramaturgy: Marie Peeters / Costume: Aurora Mesropyan / Scenography: Kayin Luys / With the support of Mestizo Arts Platform / WIPCOOP, fABULEUS.

Saloua Hassani (she/her) is a master's student at the LUCA School of Arts. She starred in Jihad of Love as a replacement for actress Amara Reta alongside Rashif El Kaoui. She also did an internship at Toneelhuis for Jaouad Alloul's play Venus in Libra. In 2023, she wrote and performed a solo for Madam Fortuna's Roots and Wings Festival, in collaboration with Zid Theater in Amsterdam and under the guidance of Mike van Alfen.

Jolien Baeyens (she/her) Jolien is a master's student in Sport and Movement Sciences at KU Leuven with a great passion for dance. In order to focus not only on the sporting, but also on the artistic aspect of dance, she studies half-time. Jolien has already choreographed for the KU Leuven dance company, participated in the Great Belgian Dance Showcase and performed a guest choreography at Dance Project 2024.

Farida Z. (she/her) is an artist from Houthalen, Limburg, where she became slam poetry champion in 2022. She was fascinated by art from a very young age, but growing up, in the 1980s, in a family with a Moroccan mother and father, offered her no opportunities to pursue art education. Farida found refuge in language. Since 2017, she combines her passion for language as a spoken word artist and visual artist. With her initiative WOOM, women only open mic, Farida seeks to connect with other women who find it difficult to connect.

Nata Mandaria (zij/haar) is socio-cultural worker who tries to take these aspects into her work as writer and performer. She was raised in Limburg but moved to Brussels at 18. She prefers to say she was raised in 'Little Georgia'.

Her work often starts from her story as the daughter of Georgian orthodox, first generation immigrants with all the limitations, beauties and pains it brings with it. Someone once told her that everything started with 'a feeling'. She translates that feeling back to the audience by mixing it with rhythmic texts.

Her spoken word was performed earlier at Outside In Festival, FASHIONCLASH, Theater Aan Zee and Europalia Georgia. As a performer she has played in The Age of Love and (The Age Of) Resurrection by Samuel Valor Reyes. Since 2023 she focuses on her own creations.

Stay up to date with here work via Instagram.

CREDITS WIPCOOP

WIPCOOP = MESTIZO ARTS PLATFORM + ARENBERG, KVS, KUNSTZ, CAMPO, KAAITHEATER, TONEELHUIS, RATAPLAN, MARTHA!TENTATIEF, DE CENTRALE, DETHEATERMAKER, MADAM FORTUNA, NTGENT, KOPERGIETERY, FAMEUS, LARF! KAZEMATTEN, 0090, WPZIMMER, ARSENAAL/LAZARUS, OC NOVA, BE HUMAN, PIANOFABRIEK/CITYLAB, VICTORIA DELUXE, THEATERFESTIVAL, GLOBE AROMA, THEATER AAN ZEE, LEZARTS URBAINS, FABULEUS, WORKSPACEBRUSSELS, TRANSFOCOLLECT, VIERNULVIER, BIJ DE VIEZE GASTEN, ZINNEMA, MOUSSEM, DANSPUNT, THASSOS, SOCHA, KC NONA, DE SINGEL, DE MAAN, ZOMER VAN ANTWERPEN, WALPURGIS, HETPALEIS, RAS EL HANOUT, ULTIMA VEZ, BRONKS, DE KOER, CC JACQUES FRANCK, IMPULSION DANCE, MONTY, DE STUDIO, STORM OP KOMST, STUK, VINCENT COMPANY, LE BAMP, GOUVERNEMENT, TATWERK, RIGHT ABOUT NOW, NAU IVANOW, ATELIER 210, GET DOWN AGENCY, LA BALSAMINE, LE RIDEAU, CORSO, 30 CC, TRILL, BURN, HET BOS, CIE TARTAREN, BATARD, DE NIEUWE SPELERS, KAAP / MET STEUN VAN: VLAAMSE GEMEENSCHAP & CAN PORTICUS