You’re seven years old.
Mum’s in hospital.
Dad says she’s ‘done something stupid’.
She finds it hard to be happy.
Alle schone dingen is the story of a boy who, in order to give renewed hope to his depressed and suicidal mother, makes a list of everything that’s brilliant about the world. Everything that’s worth living for.
1. Dame blanche
2. Kung Fu films
3. Staying up late and being allowed to watch TV
4. The colour yellow
Every day, he puts a note under her pillow with something that’s brilliant written on it. "And I know she reads them because they always come back corrected."
Despite the heavy theme, Alle schone dingen is first and foremost a witty, moving and comforting tale in an intimate setting. An actor, a few props and a couple of delightful jazz numbers – nothing else.
In recent years, the monologue Every Brilliant Thing by British playwright Duncan Macmillan has captured the hearts of audiences and critics around the world and it is now playing in Flanders for the first time. Tom Dewispelaere steps into the shoes of the narrator and takes the audience with him on a search for what makes life worth living.
A heart-warming story for these troubled times.
A little present for those willing to help unwrap it.
Anyone with questions about suicide can contact the Suicide Line anonymously via the toll-free number 1813 or on the website.
Dewispelaere finds poetry in his manner of engaging with the audience. Their half-scripted interventions result in disarming moments.
"Dewispelaere’s performance touches the heart and leaves a warm fire burning there."
"Rather than playing the fraught emotional card, Alle schone dingen above all aims to provide a warm, comforting bath. This production succeeds convincingly in that. The humour smooths off the sharpest edges, to deliver an ode to life. There’s always hope, is the optimistic message, even when things are difficult. Or as the line in the script goes: “If you live a long life and get to the end of it without ever once having felt crushingly depressed, then you probably haven't been paying attention.""
"Tom Dewispelaere wields this profoundly human uncertainly as a weapon against loneliness and suicidal depression."
text
- Duncan Macmillan, met extra materiaal van Jonny Donahoe
translation
- Sanne Parlevliet
performance
- Tom Dewispelaere
coaching
- Katelijne Damen
light design
- Frank Hardy
production
- Toneelhuis
- Olympique Dramatique