Nicole Beutler
In Eyes Wide Open
Art
Synopsis
Eyes Wide Open
In an ongoing series of theatre productions, Nicole Beutler explores how humans are inflicting irreversible damage on planet earth. What does our future look like? Her plays envision the necessary transformation of the position of humans on earth: the end of the Anthropocene takes centre stage. She describes this process as “going into the dark with your eyes wide open”.
Beutler combines a strong artistic vision with room for joint decision-making. By inviting her team to bring their own visions to the table, she creates a collective work of art while challenging traditional conceptions of leadership.
In the film, we see Nicole Beutler working on GINKGO or: 56 million years ago there were palm trees on the North Pole. A confrontational dance opera about the end of the world as we know it, and the first performance of her RITUALS OF TRANSFORMATION trilogy.
Credits
- Character
- Nicole Beutler
- Director
- Floris-Jan van Luyn
- Country
- Netherlands
- Duration
- 14 min
- Year
- 2023
- Co-producer
- Een van de Jongens
Theatre artist Nicole Beutler makes visual dance theatre that inspires critical reflection on humanity.
Nicole Beutler
The productions of choreographer and theatre maker Nicole Beutler (1969) are often the product of a rigorous process of research and encounters and exchanges between artists and disciplines. With a strong artistic vision and room for the performers’ own input Beutler builds Gesamtkunstwerken which bring together visual arts, theatre and dance – artfully designed, intellectually challenging and rooted in history. In her trilogy RITUALS OF TRANSFORMATION (towards a new humanity) she searches for a new worldview in which humans, animals, objects and earth exist in balance.
Acclaims
- Artistic Director of Nicole Beutler Projects in Amsterdam
- Winner of the Gieskes-Strijbis Podiumprijs 2018 for her oeuvre
- Winner of the the VSCD Mime Prize (2009 and 2020/21), MusicTheatreNow Prize (2021) and the Dioraphte Prize (2014)
RITUALS OF TRANSFORMATION
In Nicole Beutler’s trilogy RITUALS OF TRANSFORMATION (towards a new humanity), she searches for a new balance between humans, earth, animals and technology.
Part one, GINKGO, premiered in 2022 and showed the demise of humanity and the world as we know it. Part two, ATMEN, premiered in 2023 and toured from January through May 2024. On the ruins of civilization, a new space full of life and potential emerges. The final part of the trilogy, called NOW WE ARE EARTH, had its showing in 2025.
Read more here.
- SCREENINGS
Eyes Wide Open had its premiere at Go Short International Short Film Festival in Nijmegen in 2023. Since then, the film has been featured at various international film festivals like Exeter Dance International Film Festival in the United Kingdom and InShadow Film Festival in Portugal. Other festivals include:
- Nacht van Ontdekkingen, Leiden, The Netherlands
- NYBA Dance Film Festival, San Jose, United States
- East Coast Dance Arts 25/26, Wicklow, Ireland
The film has also found an extended life beyond the festival circuit through collaborations with cultural and educational partners, including Eye Film Player, DIF TV (from Exeter International Film Festival) and the Amsterdam University of the Arts, helping to make the work accessible to wider and more diverse audiences.
Director
Floris-Jan van Luyn
Floris-Jan van Luyn (1967) is a filmmaker and writer, known for films such as The Bastard (2018), nominated for a Golden Calf, and The Rainmakers (2010), which won awards at several international festivals. Before establishing himself as an independent filmmaker in 2004 he studied history and Chinese after which he worked for the NRC as a China correspondent, editor and columnist.