Beste Mensen (Dear People) is a monologue inspired by 50 years of climate speeches. A topical performance about passionate climate language, rich imagination, and impoverished politics, performed by Bram Suijker. Directed by Erik Whien (known for Grief is the Thing with Feathers and A Case for the Existence of God).
“As beautiful as it is sad” ★★★★ NRC
“Hopeful and urgent” ★★★★ Trouw
“Makes your head spin with wonder, despondency, and hopeful signals” ★★★★ de Volkskrant
They come in all shapes and sizes. One tries to connect, another to disrupt or precisely to sow doubt: climate speeches. For nearly half a century, they have been delivered on all kinds of stages by world leaders, scientists, and activists. All different in tone, but what unites them is a sense of urgency and a call for change.
For Beste Mensen, theater maker and writer Anoek Nuyens (The Shell Case) researched climate speeches from the past fifty years. Once characterized by optimism, when politicians from both the left and right, such as Margaret Thatcher and Richard Nixon, called for tackling this 'new great problem.' Now, fifty years later, optimism has given way to despair, and climate activists all over the world are taking to the streets. The question now on the table: what comes after that despair? Could the turning point lie in the sum of these speeches?
Bureau Vergezicht is the theater collective of Anoek Nuyens, Erik Whien, and Rebekka de Wit. Together, they create investigative and compelling stories about power, climate, and shared responsibility. The collective prompts citizens, multinationals, and politicians to think and act far beyond the theater hall. Previously, Bureau Vergezicht produced the performances The Shell Case and Een stukje naar de mensen toe.
Idea & text: Anoek Nuyens / Direction: Erik Whien / Cast: Bram Suijker / Dramaturgy: Goya van den Berg / Scenography: Marloes and Wikke / Sound: Marijn Brussaard, Aya-Lina Dupont (intern) / Lighting design: Julian Maiwald / Costume: Rebekka Wörmann, Jelena Bondt (assistant) / Technical production: John Thijssen / Technicians: Noor Thijssen, Frank Hermans / Business management: Lene Grooten / Marketing: Dieke van der Spek, Leonie Poot / Producers: Co-production Bureau Vergezicht & Theater Rotterdam / Special thanks to Frascati, Rebekka de Wit / Made possible by Vriendenloterij Fonds, VSBfonds, Fonds21, AKF, Performing Arts Fund NL
