Portici Muziektheater Transparant

In August 1830, riots broke out during the performance of the opera 'The Mute of Portici' at the Brussels Monnaie Theatre, forming the basis for the Belgian Revolution. The battle on the barricades heralds the definitive end of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the birth of Belgium.

In 'Portici', Silence Radio and Muziektheater Transparant translate that extraordinary story to today. A multilingual cast of two deaf and two Dutch-speaking performers, two dancers, a musician, a poet and an opera singer crawl on, under and over the barricades with only one goal: connection. With sign language, humour and musicality, the story of a country in structural identity crisis is told.

'Portici' is a rhythmic dialogue of the deaf in which music, dance, (sign) language and vibration fight for the upper hand. A revolution in theatre, on the linguistic border between hearing and feeling, amidst the absurdities of Belgian identity.