Two young but already acclaimed documentary filmmakers on the stage of Europe's major theatres - Silke Huysmans and Hannes Dereereere - are dedicated to the environment, and they work exclusively on themes of environmental protection, preparing each piece with the greatest care. The creative process usually starts with artistic-scientific-journalistic research, interviews with people in the thick of things and experts. The result is a documentary stage work that touches on important, universal themes. This year, Sirens presents two performances from their environmental trilogy.
Out of the Blue is the third part of the trilogy, focusing on the underwater world.
We often hear it said that we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about the ocean floor. According to scientists, only 10% of the ocean floor has been explored and mapped, which is very little indeed.
Following the acclaimed productions of Mining Stories and Pleasant Island, Silke Huysmans and Hannes Dereereere present the final part of their trilogy on mining. This time they focus on a completely new industry - deep-sea mining. As land resources are depleted and overexploited, mining companies are turning to the ocean. In the spring of 2021, three ships meet in a remote stretch of the Pacific Ocean. One of them belongs to the Belgian company Deme-Gsr. Four kilometres underwater, their mining robot scrapes the seabed for metals. On the other ship, an international team of marine biologists and geologists is closely monitoring the operation. On the third ship, the infamous Rainbow Warrior, Greenpeace activists are protesting against this new industry that promises future ecological disasters.
From their small apartment in Brussels, Silke and Hannes are in contact with all three ships by satellite. Each of them represents one of the pillars of the public debate: industry, science and the public interest. Through a series of interviews and other conversations, a comprehensive picture of this new industry is being built up. The work attempts to capture a potentially decisive moment in the history of the Earth. How deep can mining companies dig, and what are we, as humanity, really after? What are the challenges and dangers? What does the future hold?
Creators on the play
Mining and minerals are rare themes in theatre. Perhaps a bit more common in the visual arts, because they work with different raw materials. In fact, everything around us is raw material, and it's interesting to find out where it comes from and how it got to us.
This was a very difficult project to work on, and in the end the play came out about ourselves. We tried to make our opinions and feelings visible. The name Out of the Blue refers to the extraction of resources from the blue ocean. But the colour blue also represents the sadness that haunted us in the making of the play. We know that the future of the world is bleak. News of the deteriorating ecological situation reaches us every day. Deep-sea mining is another way of depleting the Earth's resources, but we are told that it will help us out of this 'sad' situation.
The oceans belong to all of us: they are the common heritage of humanity and they are linked to the future of our planet. Do we still want to engage in such exploitation of the Earth's resources? What are scientists thinking today, when every discovery raises thousands of new questions? Companies use them to achieve their own ends. Greenpeace uses the facts to build its narrative. Scientists help us understand what might have remained secret. Or is it sometimes better not to know?
Consultant: Pol Heyvaert
Technique and Methods: Korneel Coessens, Piet Depoortere, Koen Goossens, and Babette Poncelet
Produced by CAMPO (Belgium)
Co-production: Bunker (Ljubljana), De Brakke Grond (Amsterdam), Noorderzon - Festival of Performing Arts and Society (Groningen), Zürcher Theater Spektakel (Zurich), Beursschouwburgm Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels), PACT Zollverein (Essen), Théâtre de la Ville (Paris), Festival d'Automne à Paris (Paris)
Residencies: Kunstenwerkplaats, Pilar, Bara142 (Toestand), De Grote Post, 30CC, GC De Markten & & GC Felix Sohie
Creative team thanks: John Childs, Henko De Stigter, Patricia Esquete, Iason-Zois Gazis, Jolien Goossens, Matthias Haeckel, An Lambrechts, Ted Nordhaus, Maureen Penjueli, Surabhi Ranganathan, Duygu Sevilgen, Joey Tau, Saskia Van Aalst, Kris Van Nijen, Vincent Van Quickenborne, Annemiek Vink, and to all the people who helped with the transcription of the texts