Theatro dei Cervelli

Performers: Theatro dei Cervelli  |  Company Goldstaub e.V.  |  Andrés Locatelli  musical director  |  Jeffrey Döring  dramaturgy

Pain as necessary evil

For centuries, the notion that pain is part of life has been embedded in both Western and Eastern culture, philosophy and religions. Pain, however unpleasant, provided personal development, reflection and a step towards enlightenment, it was thought. In today’s Western society, however, pain is seen as something undesirable. Pain must be numbed, distractions must be provided: pain is something to get rid of as soon as possible. The Language of Pain is a musical theatrical performance that questions the current Western way of dealing with pain. Don’t we sell ourselves short by avoiding pain? What does pain want to tell us? And what are the social implications, if we no longer feel pain?

Monteverdi

Between his fifth and eighth book of madrigals (1603-1638), Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi developed a musical language to express and convey emotions. His madrigals were often about pain, brought on by distance, rejection, longing and unrequited love.

Using Monteverdi’s music as a musical basis, the Swiss ensemble Theatro dei Cervelli and the German theatre group Goldstaub e.V. present an immersive theatrical experience about pain and empathy, where the boundary between stage and audience slowly disappears.

Jeffrey Döring and Andrés Locatelli

The Language of Pain is the third performance by dramatist Jeffrey Döring, and the first collaboration between Theatro dei Cervelli and company Goldstaub e.V. For previous work, Döring received the Marie-Zimmermann Fellowship 2017 and the Denkzeit Fellowship 2020, among others.

Italian-Argentinian musician and musicologist Andrés Locatelli founded the vocal-instrumental ensemble Theatro dei Cervelli in 2018. The ensemble focuses on rediscovering forgotten repertoire from the 17th century.

Hear Here!

Because we want to give you the opportunity to hear as much classical music as possible. You can buy concerts in bulk with a nice discount! When you buy at least four “Hoor bij ons” aka “Hear Here” concerts, you receive € 5 discount on these concerts and for all future concerts the entire season. This discount is connected to your e-mailadres. In order for this to work your first purchase must be the serie via this link.