Dutch spoken theatre monologue for TAZ#2017

“Ik heb haar te pletter gedacht. Kapot gedroomd. Maar nog steeds zit ze daar, klein en veilig, niet kapot te krijgen.

Een meisje.

Het is een meisje en ze zeggen dat ze op mij lijkt.

Ik lijk op mijn vader, niet op mijn moeder. Als ik heel goed kijk. In slecht licht. Dan zie ik dat. Dan zie ik mijn vader, diep in mijn gezicht.”

During the monologue Maybe Marieke, we step into the mind and world of a young woman who just gave birth, who is about to make the most important decision of her life.

For the project De Kleine Boodschap (TAZ#2015), Lieve Blancquaert wrote a story about a mother giving up her child. Fascinated by this text, Dirk Pauwels invited her to create a monologue together with actress and theatre maker Greet Jacobs for TAZ#2017.

For this monologue, Blancquaert spoke with Ostend mothers who live in vulnerable circumstances. Based on these stories, Jacobs and Blancquaert wrote the text for Maybe Marieke and went in search of a theatre language that connects them.

The result is a captivating performance about what it means to become a mother in a world that seems to turn against your direction.

"Her acting is lived through but never over the top, perfectly balanced. Pity is out of the question, understanding all the more."

– Bieke Prunelle, in TAZETTE

"Maybe Marieke is a new mother and child: with both feet in the vernacular clay of the Ghentian school, but also so documentary-fuelled that all clichés about poverty are overcome for deep understanding. [...] Plays have been proclaimed powerful tragedies for less. This one deserves a tour far beyond the elections."

– Wouter Hillaert, in De Standaard ****