\Me & Mr. Jansen
Raphael Rodan en
Titus Tiel Groenstege
Op een dag stuit Raphael Rodan op een zwart-witfoto uit 1943. Op de foto herkent hij zijn huis, in hartje Amsterdam. Ook ziet hij op de foto hoe een oud stel uit het huis wordt gesleurd door mannen in ogenschijnlijk witte jassen. Het blijken SS-officieren te zijn en de voorstelling op de foto is een beeld van een razzia.
In zijn soloperformance ‘Me and Mr. Jansen’ neemt meesterverteller Raphael Rodan het publiek in een verhaal dat verder gaat dan “goed” en “kwaad”. Bestaat er zoiets als onschuld en kunnen wij zelf kiezen welke rol wij zelf aannemen in een narratief? Leert een mens van de geschiedenis of zijn we gedoemd om onze fouten te herhalen? Welke lessen kunnen we uit de geschiedenis trekken? Terwijl Raphael dieper in het verleden duikt, stuit hij op Mr. Jansen; een kapper die toentertijd op de begaande grond woonde. Hij besluit met hem in gesprek te gaan over vergeten geheimen, verre herinneringen en vergeten zonden.
Na het grote successtuk ‘Donkey’s Jaw’ slaat Raphael wederom de handen ineen met cabaretier, acteur, regisseur en theatermaker Titus Tiel Groenstege. Samen maken zij ‘Me and Mr. Jansen’ tot een stuk dat zowel theater als storytelling overstijgt.
Performed by: Raphael Rodan
Written by: Raphael Rodan and Titus Tiel Groenestege
Directed by: Titus Tiel Groenestege
Writing advice: Sahand Sahebdivani
Producer: Storytelling Centre
Production: Storytelling Centre
Publicity: Renske Ebbers
* Dit is een Engelstalige voorstelling
Titus Tiel Groenestege’s (1959, Angerlo, The Netherlands) graduated at the Akademie voor Expressie, a Theatre School in Utrecht, in 1981. In the same year his career really kicked off, as he joined forces with Bavo Galama: the duo became known as ‘Frisse Jongens’ and won two prices at the Camarettenfestival, a cabaret festival in the Netherlands. Together, Titus and Bavo made several shows in the eight years that followed and in doing so they conquered Dutch theatres – and Titus didn’t stop there. Titus’s career as an actor and director stretches over 4 decades, in which he won several more awards and prices. Arguably, his most renowned work is ‘False Waltz’, a trilogy depicting a couple going through three stages of life: love, marriage, and old age. The trilogy was a collaboration with Ria Marks and was well received by audiences. The production toured all over the word, was made into a movie, and even got nominated for an Emmy Award in 2007. Although Titus sometimes still works as an actor, he now mainly focuses on directing. As a director, he draws from his own diverse acting experience in all kinds of theatre, cabaret, slapstick, classical orchestras, bands, and dance.
Raphael Rodan (1980, Jerusalem, Israel) is an award-winning theatre maker and storyteller. His artistic training lasted for over ten years. After graduating drama school, he started taking private lessons with Israeli master of theatre: Hillel Neeman. After that he emersed himself in the Meisner technique at the Actors Temple in London. When Raphael moved to Amsterdam, he scored hit after hit with storytelling shows, like “When Abel met Cain” about the duality of men, and the winner of the Amsterdam Fringe Gold Award in 2017 “My Father Held a Gun”, about the nature of war. His work has received international recognition, playing in theatres and festivals all over Europe, including a prestige run at the National Theatre in Brussels. Apart from writing and performing, Raphael also teaches storytelling at the Mezrab Storytelling School, which he founded in 2014, together with Farnoosh Farnia and Sahand Sahebdivani. Since 2018, he and Sahand Sahebdivani have been working as the artistic directors of the Amsterdam Storytelling Festival. As creative directors, together they link the ancient art of storytelling with today’s most current burning questions.