LA MONNAIE / DE MUNT
Cassandra Festival
Celebrate with us the creation of a new opera and the start of a new season during a week-long festival in and around La Monnaie. With concerts, lectures, performances, films, tours, workshops and debate evenings, we give a voice to the Cassandras of today, fighting for a society that not only listens but also acts.
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Birds
Dance - Seppe Baeyens, Yassin Mrabtifi & Martha Balthazar / Leon
Free • place de la Monnaie
17.9 – 11:00 › 12:00
When the normal course of events is interrupted. In the dance performance Birds, playful interactions between spectators, participants and passers-by result in unexpected compositions in which everyone appears to influence the outcome. Join a generous social choreography that feeds on connection and imagination.
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OPENING CONCERT
La Monnaie Woodwind Quintet
Free • Place de la Monnaie
17.9 – 12:15 > 12:45
A slice of sunny Seville on the Place de la Monnaie ! With the irresistible suite from Carmen, the La Monnaie Wind Quintet averts autumn for a few more days. Bizet's evergreen is preceded by Darius Milhaud's La Cheminée du Roi René and Jacques Iberts's Trois pièces brèves. A charming musical festival opener.
KIDS WORKSHOP
An afternoon with Cassandra
€8 • La Monnaie Workshops • 6 to 12 y
17.9 – 14:15 › 17:00
Dutch / French
On Sunday 17 September, we invite the whole family to dive into the intriguing world of Cassandra. While you enjoy the opera in our Theatre at 15:00, your (grand)children aged 6 to 12 can take part in a fun workshop full of song and dance. Afterwards, everyone will be able to exchange their experiences over a snack and a drink. A family outing to remember!
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MURALS & MUSIC
Vincent Glowinski
Free • ongoing • Place de la Monnaie
17.9 – 12:15 > 12:45
First brush strokes: 17.9 (15:00)
Closing ceremony: 23.9 (16:30-17:00)
Throughout the festival, street art artist Vincent Glowinski draws inspiration from the theme of the Cassandra myth. Stop by the Place de la Monnaie and admire his work-in-progress or celebrate the finished fresco at the closing ceremony, graced by a final performance by the Chœur Cassandra Choir.
THEMATIC GUIDED TOUR
Cassandra, Behind the scenes of a new opera creation
€8 • La Monnaie Theatre
18, 20, 21.9 – 12:30 › 13:20
23.9 – 11:00 › 11:50
Dutch / French / English
Join us for a unique guided tour at the Royal Theatre of La Monnaie! As you learn about the key moments in the history of La Monnaie, you will also discover the different stages involved in the creation of Cassandra.
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Inside the music
€8 • Fiocco Room, La Monnaie Workshops
18.9 – 18:30 › 19:45
French
Meet the composer of Cassandra at an accessible musical lecture. In conversation with Patrick Leterme, Bernard Foccroulle will take an hour to unravel the secrets of his own score.
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Les Midis de la poésie
€8 • Grand Foyer, La Monnaie Theatre
19.9 – 12:40 › 13:45
French
La Monnaie is hosting Les Midis de la poésie for the first time. The event will present two contemporary Cassandras who took to the pen to express their commitment: the Innu poets Rita Mestokosho and Maya Cousineau Mollen.
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Conference around Cassandra
A crisis of the imagination?
€8 • Main Auditorium, La Monnaie Theatre
20.9 – 20:00 › 22:00
in English
What new narratives can capture the impact of the ecological crisis? Can words incite action? And what role does culture play in the transition to a more sustainable society? During this conference-debate, organised in collaboration with Brussels2030, three distinguished speakers address questions that can no longer be left open-ended: paleoclimate scientist Valerie Trouet, historian-novelist David Van Reybrouck, and artist-essayist Grace Ndiritu.
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Concertino
Chamber music by Bernard Foccroulle
€8 • Grand Foyer, La Monnaie Theatre
22.9 – 12:30
This first Concertino of the season turns the spotlight on a very different facet of the composer behind Cassandra: his chamber music! Discover two short song cycles, set to the poems of, respectively, Rainer Maria Rilke and Paul Verlaine, along Maurice Ravel's Sonata for violin and cello.
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Mama's open mic
Wordcraft and slam poetry evening
Angel Patricks Amegbe, Soukaïna Bennani, Cage Vrije Verzen, DJ Assia MK, Jaspe Azabe
Free (upon reservation) • Main Auditorium
22.9 – 20:00 > 21:30
La Monnaie hosts Belgium's most influential and heart-warming platform for word art and slam poetry. For an evening, our Main Auditorium becomes an open stage for the committed jams and slams of contemporary Cassandra's. Enjoy established names, emerging talent or... your own moment in the spotlight!
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LITERARY AFTERNOON
RE:CASSANDRA
Free (upon reservation)
Grand Foyer, La Monnaie Theatre
23.9 – 14:00 › 15:30
Dutch / French / English
During this literary afternoon, representatives of the main literary houses in Brussels echo their favourite passage from the libretto of Cassandra with poetry, novel fragments or theatre texts from the past or present. Organized in collaboration with Muntpunt, Passaporta, the bookshop Tropismes and the Bibliothèque des Riches Claires, this event will be enhanced by musical accompaniment.
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epilogue - Conference around Cassandra
The eco-responsible opera production of 2040
Free (upon reservation)
Grand Foyer, La Monnaie Theatre
26.9 – 20:15 › 22:00
French
What kind of creative and environmentally responsible shows will be staged in 2040? What is the performing arts sector currently doing to reduce its CO2 emissions? How much progress have the actors of change made and how can they act? This conference-debate will present some innovative initiatives and analyse the steps that need to be taken to carry out a radical transformation of current work practices.
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PARTNER EVENTS
CASSANDRA ON THE BIG SCREEN
€8 • Cinema Galeries
During the festival, Cinema Galeries will screen three films that tie in with the theme of La Monnaie’s latest opera.
17.9 (19:00) – Tes jambes nues (Vladimir Léon) – FR/ENG
19.9 (19:00) – This is Not a Burial, It is a Resurrection (Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese)
23.9 (15:00) – Prinses Mononoke (Hayao Miyazaki) – FR – 10+
INFO and TICKETS
Samen lezen NL: Thema Klimaat
Free • Muntpunt
19.9 – 14:00 › 15:00
in Dutch
Samen Lezen NL is a series of group readings for non-Dutch speakers organized by Muntpunt. In the context of the Cassandra Festival, the session of 19 September will focus on the climate through five ecological poems.
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Workshop 'Later word ik illustrator'
Free • Muntpunt • 6+
20.9 – 15:00 › 17:00
in Dutch
Do you love to draw? And would you like to take a creative dip in the world of art? Then illustrator Gunter Segers is the one who can teach you all there is to know about putting your ideas and imagination down on paper! During this wonderful workshop, children will be encouraged to let their creative brain sparkle and to think artistically about the climate and sustainability.
