Tafel van Vijf
FAREWELL
Bewegingsvoorstelling over rituelen en tradities rond de dood
“Farewell is als een intieme viering van dood én leven, uitgedrukt in expressieve dans en verstilde muziek.” – Theaterkrant
FAREWELL is een expositie en dansvoorstelling over het vieren van leven en dood, in het decor van een fashionshow met catwalk en live muziek. Gouden Krekel winnaar (2022) Perry Gits onderzocht de thema’s verlies en dood, met de nadruk op Ghanese uitvaartdiensten. Welke traditionele rituelen vormen hem en zijn omgeving? Welke maakt hij zelf? Laat Perry deze los om hierin zijn eigen weg te volgen, of kan hij de twee werelden waarin hij is opgegroeid verenigen?
Beïnvloed door fashion, de clubscene en livemuziek plaatst FAREWELL het publiek midden in een speciaal ontworpen immersieve omgeving met een Claywalk—een catwalk van aarde en klei—waar je samen met Perry een coming-of-age verhaal binnenstapt: een reis naar een nieuw begin. De livemuziek van Phantom Wizard en Azubike Onwuka, met composities van Arakaza en Nawaz, gaat een directe dialoog aan met de dans. Terwijl Perry beweegt improviseren de muzikanten, en andersom—een bijna symbiotische ontmoeting van klank en lichaam. Perry Gits nodigt je uit in rood en zwart te komen, geïnspireerd door Ghanese rouwrituelen waarin zwart staat voor verdriet en rouw, en rood voor de intensiteit en emotionele pijn van verlies. Zo delen we een gevoel van verbondenheid en verbinden we oude en nieuwe rituelen.
Maker en performer Perry Gits | Eindregie Dionne Verwey | DansadviesNicole Geertruida | Outside eye Peggy Olislaegers | Vormgeving decor en licht Liza Houben | Muzikale compositie Rory Ronde, Yariv Vroom, Nawaz, Arakaza, Phantom Wizard, Azubike Onwuka | Livemuziek Phantom Wizard, Azubike Onwuka | Kostuumconcept en StylingRicardo van Lachterop | Kostuumontwerp Esmay Wagemans, Dylan Westerweel | Trailer concept en Filmregie Anna van der Velde | MUA trailer Bjorn Mohamadmoesman | PR Okra Agency
Techniek Pepijn Stutterheim, Urban Bendanon | Campagnebeeld Studio Polat | MUA campagnebeeld Shelley Lashley | Locatie Campagnebeeld Visser Automotive BV | Productieleiding | Zarah Ruwhof, Rosalie Witte | Host en Productieassistentie Loïs Joya | Expo Museum Tot Zover
FAREWELL
Perry Gits creates the multidisciplinary production FAREWELL.
Tafel Van Vijf Muziektheater and Museum Tot Zover jointly present a pop-up exhibition and a unique movement performance about the celebration of life and death by performance artist Perry Gits, directed by Dionne Verwey. Perry Gits won the North Holland Culture Prize* and the Golden Cricket* for his performance PERRY.
Influenced by fashion, the club scene, and live music, Perry Gits explores life and death in this new work. Which traditions and rituals shape him and his surroundings? Which ones does he create himself? From February to April 2026, FAREWELL will be performed in theaters and at the unique location of Museum Tot Zover.
Texture, Temperature, Time
In 2024, Perry Gits was artist-in-residence at BAU, Amsterdam. He conducted research on the themes of loss and death, focusing on Ghanaian funeral services. In FAREWELL, he continues this research, focusing specifically on three elements: texture, temperature, and time. He examines the role these elements play and their importance when discussing death.
A Unique Experience
In this unique movement performance, which takes place in a specially designed immersive environment, designed by Liza Houben, in which the audience is also seated, Perry Gits transports the audience to a coming-of-age story about the celebration of life and death. Two musicians (Azubike Onwuka, Phantom Wizard, and musical compositions by Arakaza and Nawaz) bring hypnotic sounds ranging from ambient and electronics to punk. This performance takes place in a specially designed Claywalk (a catwalk made of earth and clay). Perry Gits invites the audience on a journey to a new beginning. There’s a dress code: come dressed in red and black*.
Dialogue between dance and music
The live music of Phantom Wizard and Azubike Onwuka, along with a musical composition by Arakaza and Nawaz, creates drama, harmony, and melody. In this performance, music is not the foundation for the dance, but rather engages in dialogue with it: while Perry dances, the musicians improvise, and vice versa. An almost symbiotic collaboration where the two art forms blend as closely as possible.
Dress code: red and black*
Perry Gits invites you, the audience, to come together in red and black. By dressing together in these colors, we share a sense of connection. This dress code for the audience was chosen because it symbolically refers to Ghanaian funeral rituals, where black represents grief and mourning and red the intensity and emotional pain of loss. Thus, the performance unfolds as a search for connections between old and new rituals.
Perry Gits
Perry Gits is a performance artist and studied at the Lucia Marthas dance schools and the Amsterdam University of the Arts. He danced and performed roles in the musicals Hair and Dreamgirls. Perry Gits belongs to the first generation of the vogue/ballroom community in the Netherlands, is co-organizer of The Black Pride Ball, and works as a booker/programmer in the Amsterdam club and festival scene.
Prijswinnaar*
In 2022, Perry Gits won the Golden Cricket for best stage performance in a youth theater production in the 2021/2022 season. He received this prestigious stage award, presented annually by the VSCD, for his multidisciplinary performance in PERRY (14+). From the jury report:
“Perry Gits is fantastic in the fluid universe he creates with his character and entourage. He transforms, intrigues, and fascinates.”
In 2021, Perry Gits won the North Holland Cultural Prize, awarded annually by the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund North Holland to an individual, group, or institution that has made an exceptional contribution to culture, amateur arts, or nature conservation. The prize is awarded annually in a different region of the province of North Holland. In 2021, it was the Amsterdam region’s turn.
Exhibition and partner
The traveling exhibition at FAREWELL by Museum Tot Zover invites you to reflect on cultural and personal rituals and traditions surrounding life and death.
Museum Tot Zover is located on the grounds of De Nieuwe Ooster cemetery in Amsterdam. The museum collects objects and stories about history, contemporary culture, and how we deal with life, death, and saying goodbye. Exhibitions range from permanent presentations to changing displays.
