BigMouth (2011)

SKaGeN, Richard Jordan Productions LTD, Theatre Royal Plymouth, DeSingel & Stuk

Monologue by Valentijn Dhaenens

He who picks his words well can turn the weakest argument into the strongest. The absolute truth doesn’t exist. It is just a pretty lie for those who desire world power, or just the hand of their beloved.

In a tour de force performance, Valentijn Dhaenens pays tribute to 2,500 years of oration. Ingeniously weaving together fragments of seminal speeches from not only the Grand Inquisitor and Socrates to Mohammed Ali and Osama Bin Laden, Bigmouth shows that the tricks of rhetoric have hardly changed.

With five microphones on a bare set, his voice and indefatigable energy, Dhaenens traverses sermons, declarations of war, farewells, final arguments, victory speeches and eulogies from across time. Bigmouth has captivated audiences in Belgium and the Netherlands. SKaGeN follows hot on the heels of Ontroerend Goed as one of the most exciting European companies to come to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

“Brilliant … a fascinating experience.” The Guardian

CREDITS

Direction & Performance:	Valentijn Dhaenens
Light & Sound Design:	Jeroen Wuyts
Costume Design:	Barbara De Laere
Production:	SKaGeN, Richard Jordan Productions and STUK Leuven

About Richard Jordan Productions:

Richard Jordan is an Olivier and TONY award-winning producer. His London-based company Richard Jordan Productions Ltd was founded in 1998 and has produced over 180 productions in the UK as well as 18 other countries, including 54 world premieres and 59 European, Australian or US premieres enjoying associations with many of the world’s leading theatres and arts organisations.
Described by The Stage newspaper as “one of the UK’s most prolific theatre producers”, Richard has been at the forefront of developing and presenting works by a diverse range of established and emerging writers and artists.
He has been named seven times in The Stage newspaper’s top 100 theatre professionals and was the first recipient of the TIF/Society of London Theatre Producers Award. He has been nominated for the TMA Award for Outstanding Achievement in UK Regional Theatre and was a finalist in the first-ever British Council UK Creative Entrepreneur Award. In 2010, for recognition of his work and contribution to the UK and international theatre industries, Richard was chosen for lifetime inclusion in A & C Black’s annual publication, Who’s Who. He was nominated as Best Producer at the 2012 Off-West End Awards.
Most recently in the UK his co-production of Roadkill won the 2012 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement at an Affiliate Theatre. In New York his co-production of Christopher Durang’s new play Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, starring Sigourney Weaver and David Hyde Pierce, is winner of the 2013 Tony Award for Best New Play, as well as the Drama Desk, Drama League, New York Critics, Broadway.com and Outer Critic Circle Best New Play Awards.
Richard’s other productions have won a variety awards including: eight Scotsman Fringe Firsts Awards; two Herald Angel Awards; two Total Theatre Awards; The Spirit of the Fringe Award; three Helen Hayes Awards; the Adelaide Festival Award; the US Black Alliance Award; the Lucille Lortel Award and the John Gassner Award for Best New American Play.

For all enquiries regarding the productions contact:
Richard Jordan Productions Ltd, Mews Studios, 16 Vernon Yard, London, W11 2DX
T: +44 (0) 207 243 9001Email: info@richardjordanproductions.com

playlist

Fri	17/11/2023 - 20u30	CC Strombeek
Thu	23/11/2023 - 20u00	NTGent
Fri	01/12/2023 - 20u00	CC Zwaneberg Heist-op-den-Berg
Tue	05/12/2023 - 20u15	Cultuurhuis De Warande Turnhout
Fri	08/12/2023 - 20u00	KVS Brussel
Wed	13/12/2023 - 20u00	CC Sint-Niklaas
Sat	03/02/2024 - 20u30	Cultuurcentrum Gildhof Tielt
Sat	03/02/2024 - 20u30	CC Gildhof Tielt (Malpertuis)
Mon	12/02/2024 - 20u00	DEStudio Antwerpen
Tue	13/02/2024 - 20u00	DEStudio Antwerpen
Wed	14/02/2024 - 20u00	DEStudio Antwerpen
Thu	15/02/2024 - 20u00	DEStudio Antwerpen