A-mag – Amsterdam Magazine: Vol 4, No. 2

AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

SIGHTS & SOUNDS COMPLETE LISTINGS DANCING & DINING ART & FASHION MAR & APR 2016

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MAKE TO LAST A NEW GENERATION OF AMSTERDAM MAKERS IS BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE CITY, THE ALL NEW ‘I AMSTERDAM STORE’ SHOWCASES THE FINEST EXAMPLES, + 100 YEARS OF AMSTERDAM SCHOOL DESIGN

Vol 4 NO 2 €3.50

Shop the world’s most exclusive brands, such as Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Burberry and Gucci in our Amsterdam flagship store. Visit the first and only permanent Tax Free Lounge in the Netherlands, and get your instant cash or credit Tax Refund after shopping.

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AMSTERDAM MAGAZINE

VOL 4 N0 2 MAR & APR 2016

LASTING BY DESIGN

P.06 WHAT’S NEW? City confidential: exciting new Amsterdam initiatives, events and venues – including your Top 5 must-do things this issue.

P.10 UP CLOSE Amsterdam makers are at the forefront of sustainable ideas and products, including those found in the brand new I amsterdam Store in Central Station.

P.19 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT A King’s Day guide for every visitor; 100 years of Amsterdam School design and architecture; a modern take on Antigone at the Compagnietheatre; and our critics’ other picks of the best exhibitions, concerts and events.

P.35 EAT, DRINK & CHIC Neighbourhood Watch walks you through Westerpark, plus the hottest new shops & food trends, and our selection of the best restaurants and cafés.

P.66 CLOSING Get out of town with our excursion tips; Then & Now in Amsterdam; top tips from visitors on the way out.

P.53 THE A-LIST Agendas at the ready: from clubbing to gallery hopping, The A-List is your one-stop, at-a-glance guide to the city’s very best music, theatre (language no problem!), sporting, family and gay & lesbian events and venues.

Bart van Oosterhout editor-in-chief A-mag a-mag@iamsterdam.com

STAY IN TOUCH: iamsterdam.com facebook.com/iamsterdam twitter.com/iamsterdam youtube.com/videoiamsterdam

WANT TO ADVERTISE? T: 020 702 6180 E: partner@iamsterdam.com

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

CONTENTS

There’s something about Amsterdammers that has made them hugely receptive of the sustainability trend. No doubt Calvinism, our dominant brand of Protestantism, laid the groundwork. On one hand, Calvinism gives a central role to the biblical parable of The Talents, which explains our knack for investment and trade (think the world’s first stock exchange, Tulip Mania and all that). On the other, it puts a huge stress on inconspicuousness. We love money, but we consider it a major sin to flaunt it, as historian Simon Schama points out in The Embarrassment of Riches.

Add to that the presence of a mighty force of nature continuously threatening our existence, and you automatically develop a preference for stuff that makes economic sense, that is not wasteful or flashy, and most of all that lasts. We didn’t just build dikes to keep the sea out, we built them in a way that they could withstand humongous tidal waves for a thousand years.

Stuff that lasts is the central theme of our cover story of this month. The revival of the city’s manufacturing industry in the past decade is distinctly sustainable in every way. Whether it’s the new breed of bicycle makers, brewers or denim producers, they all start from the premise that their wares should be recyclable and lasting by design, rather than just slapping a ‘green choice!’ label on them.

The new ingredient in this process is fairness. Amsterdam chocolate-maker Chocolonely was founded on the idea that it should be possible to produce chocolate without the use of slaves (it is, and if you’re shocked, read their story on page 14).

Others, such as Marie Stella Maris, like a modern day Robin Hood charge a premium for bottled water at home, and give it to those who have no access to clean water.

If you want to get a good overview of what’s going on in this field, pay a visit to our brand new I amsterdam Store on Central Station, and pick up a piece of Tony’s chocolate. I bet it won’t last very long.

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OPENING

What’s new? (in town)

All the latest cultural news plus the fresh new initiatives, events and venues making Amsterdam the place to be.

mar & apr 2016

‘ISN’T IT REFRESHING HOW EARLY THE DUTCH EAT DINNER? WHEN THEY’RE STILL LAYING OUT THE CUTLERY IN BARCELONA, THEY’RE HANGING THE CLOSED SIGN IN THE RESTAURANTS OF AMSTERDAM.’ WRITER JULIE BURCHILL ADMIRES THE EARLY BIRD APPROACH.

text Mark Smith

ONE DIRECTION

IRON WILL Amsterdam’s accessory museum has, erm, bagged itself a piece of historical arm candy with its latest acquisition.

A grey Asprey handbag owned by former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (aka the Iron Lady) has been acquired by the Tassenmuseum Hendrikje for €22,000 at a Christie’s UK sale of the late politician’s belongings. The bag, one of a selection sold at the auction, was first photographed on its way into Number 10 (the prime minister’s abode) in 1981. It made another high-profile appearance in 1984 when Thatcher took it on a trip to see President Ronald Reagan at Camp David. The Iron Lady’s intimidating demeanour gave rise to the term ‘handbagging’, and her fondness for a robust, rectangular style gave birth to an icon of an era. www.tassenmuseum.nl/en

Judging from the success of a new taxi app, it’s full speed ahead for Amsterdam’s sharing economy.

Abel (slogan: ‘A ride you want to share’) offers reduced fares by combining the journeys of different users going in the same general direction. Abel is an Amsterdam initiative through and through; the company has a fleet of 50 or so electric vehicles manned by drivers with insider knowledge of the city’s dining and nightlife scenes. www.rideabel.com

GIMME SHELTER If the weather hasn’t been kind on your trip to Amsterdam, spare a thought for the homeless at this notoriously changeable time of year. The Sheltersuit initiative began when the rough-sleeping father of a friend of Dutch fashion designer Bas Timmer lost his life on the streets due to hypothermia.

Together with his partner Alexander de Groot, Timmer set about creating an innovative, water- and windproof jacket that can be transformed into a fully protective body suit in seconds with the addition of a sleeping bag. During the day, the whole thing can be zipped into a duffle bag for portability. Sheltersuit’s latest campaign – focused around the Rembrandtplein entertainment district and supported by local businesses including the Three Sisters pub – resulted in the distribution of 400 suits. www.sheltersuit.com

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‘I ALWAYS HAVE AN EMERGENCY POTATO IN MY PANTS.’

‘WAS GREAT FUN AT DE BALIE IN AMSTERDAM. THE DUTCH ARE SO TOGETHER.’

COMEDIAN MAXIM HARTMAN HAS GONE VIRAL WITH HIS UNCONVENTIONAL GUIDE TO BIKING IN AMSTERDAM.

JOURNALIST JON RONSON WON’T BE PUBLICLY SHAMING OUR FAIR CITY ANY TIME SOON.

DINING CARRIAGE

NAME GAME Amsterdam shouldn’t be called Amsterdam at all, if a newly published book is to believed. According to Bas Kok, author of Oerknal aan het IJ (Big Bang on the IJ), the earliest dwellings in what is now known as Amsterdam were built on the banks of the River Die well before 1100, not the Amstel in 1175 as previously thought.

Passengers boarding the NS railway carriage that recently arrived next to Lelylaan station in Amsterdam-West won’t be going anywhere fast; except culinary heaven, perhaps.

Complete with a terrace disguised as a ‘platform’, the vehicle is actually the restaurant component of Arrival Place, a project that’s set to turn the wasteland adjacent to Lelylaan into a bustling mini-village, complete with offices and housing. www.urbanspaceagency.nl/en

FLASH MOB New research suggests that the foremost Dutch Old Master may have been something of a prude. Certainly, Rembrandt’s depictions of naked folk, such as the Seated Nude on display until 16 May at the Rembrandt House museum, are very rare indeed. It’s thought that the great artist only began using nude sitters towards the end of his career because of ‘moral concerns’. www.rembrandthuis.nl

HORN OF PLENTY Zoe Karssen’s wry T-shirts (sample slogan: ‘Live Fast ‘Cause It Won’t Last’) have been worn by the likes of supermodel Lara Stone and singing star Christina Aguilera. Now fans of the Amsterdam-born fashion brand can peruse its sassy wares on home turf, thanks to a new fl agship store on Reestraat in the Nine Streets district. The shop also stocks Karssen’s signature fragrance: Unicorn Tears. www.zoekarssen.com

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mar & apr 2016

OPENING WHAT’S NEW?

‘LITERALLY SO HIGH THESE PAST FEW DAYS LIKE WHAT ELSE R U SUPPOSED TO DO IN AMSTERDAM BESIDES SMOKE N LOOK AT MUSEUMS.’

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‘IT WAS AWFUL AND WONDERFUL.’ BREAKING BAD STAR BRYAN CRANSTON RECALLS A FORMATIVE EXPERIENCE IN AMSTERDAM’S RED LIGHT DISTRICT.

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WILL SOMEONE PLEASE SEND PHOTOGRAPHER JENAH YAMAMOTO A COPY OF A-MAG?

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© TERRY SHAPIRO

3 © CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

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© MEDEA HUISMAN

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RENAL REFORM

www.helpthemescape.org

TOP 5 to do

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An Amsterdam man is at the forefront of a worldwide push to develop the first portable artificial kidney. Fabian Cornelissen, a 36-year-old with hereditary kidney disease, is the face of a campaign by the Dutch Kidney Foundation to raise 10 million to find an alternative to hospital-based dialysis, which is inconvenient and severely restricts patients’ ability to travel. The charity says the campaign – entitled ‘Nothing imprisons you more than a kidney disease’ – is needed because pharmaceutical giants are investing insufficient resources in improving the process of dialysis. It hopes to use the money raised to build a prototype dialysis machine that patients can easily take on a car or plane journey.

If you only do one thing in Amsterdam, make it one of our top picks of must-do events, exhibitions, museums, music and more this issue.

1 PIPPIN Broadway comes to Amsterdam with Tony Award-winner musical Pippin, about the (tap-dancing?) musings and wanderings of Charlemagne’s son.

9 March-10 April Royal Theater Carré www.carre.nl/en

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2 TULIP FESTIVAL The Keukenhof Gardens open their fabulous yearly exhibit of landscaped flowers, with myriads of special

events that honour the country’s famous bulbs.

From March 24 Keukenhof Gardens, Lisse www.keukenhof.nl

3 KING’S DAY Celebrate the monarch’s birthday with all of Amsterdam: orange outfit and dancing shoes required for two days of relentless partying and... the world’s biggest garage sale.

27 April Various locations www.iamsterdam.com

4 LIVING IN THE AMSTERDAM SCHOOL The Stedelijk Museum celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Amsterdam School of

architecture and design with an incredible collection of furniture and objects.

From 9 April Stedelijk Museum www.stedelijk.nl

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5 ANTIGONE This modern take on the classical tale has a feminist twist that defies the centuries.

11-12 March Compagnietheatre www.compagnietheater.nl

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‘AMSTERDAM. EMOTIONAL CHOCOLATE. #RIDERWATCH’ BASSIST MAT OSMAN DISCOVERS AMSTERDAM-BORN BRAND TONY’S CHOCOLONELY ON SUEDE’S RECENT TOUR.

© SASHA DE BOER

LOADS OF ROOM

WHOLE LOTTA OLOF Like the Barbizon Palace hotel in which it’s located, Restaurant Vermeer – one of the city’s best fine-dining restaurants – is closed for renovations as the building undergoes a facelift. Far from putting their feet up for a few months however, the staff of Michelin-starred Vermeer have settled around the corner for a pop-up with a difference. ‘Room Service at Olof’s’ takes place in the historic St. Olof’s Chapel on the Zeedijk and, as the name implies, the whole experience is based around room service. Fixtures and fittings have been salvaged from the outdated Barbizon: think bedside tables and quaint landscape prints hanging from the ancient rafters. The menu, devised by head chef Chris Naylor, is ‘flexitarian’, meaning it centres on remarkable veg with meat offered as a side. Not a club sandwich in sight. www.roomserviceatolofs.com

FLOWER BED It’s tulip season again and, five years since the unveiling of its orange-hued Princenhof, the Amsterdam Sofitel Legend The Grand remains the only hotel to boast its very own variety of tulip. This year, The Grand is taking tulip mania one step further; its stately courtyard will host a whopping eight new tulip strains that have never been seen the light of day before. www.sofitel-legend-thegrand. com

When they first appeared a couple of years ago, it looked like Escape Rooms would be little more than a passing fad.

After all, who in their right mind would pay to be locked in a room with colleagues or friends? Sceptics are eating their words now that Amsterdam has become one of the world leaders in the teambuilding lateral-thinking games. The variety alone is bewildering. ‘Sherlocked’ in the historic Beurs van Beurlage challenges participants to infiltrate a mysterious secret society. ‘Escape Through Time’ on Utrechtsedwarsstraat teleports players back to World War Two to retrieve a painting stolen by the Nazis. ‘Zombie Escape’ and ‘Save Amsterdam’ both deal with the prospect of an undead apocalypse. And ‘Logic Locks’ boasts the highest rating on Trip Advisor – which had to change its algorithms as some of the city’s 34 Escape Rooms were topping renowned museums as most popular attractions. Seems we may be thinking outside of the box for some time yet.

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PART I UP CLOSE

MAKE TO LAST

make to last

Amsterdam inspires socially-minded makers, from brewers through chocolatiers to denim artisans, many of which have gone global.

SMART PEDALLING WITH VANMOOF Who better than an Amsterdam start-up gone global to create the smartest and most desirable electric bike?

Founded nearly seven years ago by brothers Taco and Ties Carlier, VANMOOF – ‘van’ because it sounds Dutch, ‘moof’ as a funky abbreviation of ‘movement’ – set out to redesign the typical commuter bike into a sleeker, smarter incarnation, with a nimbler frame, holeproof tyres and inbuilt LEDs from Dutch lighting pioneer Philips. Their first electric two-wheeler – released in 2014 and touted as ‘the world’s first intelligent bike’ – anticipated the declining sales in regular bikes and the growth of their e-powered counterparts. Sure, the price tag’s hefty, but the electric bike’s GPS tracker – soon to be installed on VANMOOF’s regular bikes, too – makes it nearly impossible to lose, be it to a thief or a forgetful mind. With Amsterdam likely to soon ban scooters from bike lanes, it looks like VANMOOF managed to tap into the eco-conscious commuter’s secret dreams of a bit of extra power in the morning ride to the office or at the end of a hard day’s work. www.vanmoof.com

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For small artisans and big companies alike, the word of the day is sustainability. More than a trend, it’s the development of a new spirit: making things with a conscience, for the city and for the world. text Catalina Iorga

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INSPIRATIONAL SURROUNDINGS

he world’s fourth most sustainable city in the Sustainable Cities Index (launched by design and consultancy firm ARCADIS in 2015); second most bicycle-friendly city in bike culture advisor Copenhagenize’s 2015 rankings; and fifth most innovative city in a 2015 ranking drawn up by global management consultancy Accenture. All these accolades seem to say one thing about Amsterdam: this city is really smart about being green.

And in such an eco-minded setting, makers and artisans with a sustainable edge are thriving and inspiring authorities to emulate their approach to doing business.

As Amsterdam’s Alderperson for Sustainability, Abdeluheb Choho recently said: ‘We’re looking to take the lead from Amsterdamers, organisations and businesses that are already demonstrating that sustainability has both financial and social benefits.’

You needn’t be more than a couple of hours in Amsterdam to realise that – other than the UNESCO-protected canal ring – the cityscape is constantly changing.

From creating new icons, like the spaceship-looking EYE Film Institute across the IJ to redesigning infrastructure, such as

the North-South metro line, Amsterdam’s always busy reinventing itself.

Perhaps the city’s most remarkable transformational feat consists of its conversions of old – and oftentimes polluted – industrial facilities into multi-purpose venues where innovative entrepreneurs, culinary adventurers and cultural institutions can thrive and collaborate. Take the Westergasfabriek: once an abandoned gasworks with a highly toxic soil, it has been, since 2004, a green oasis filled not only with bars, restaurants and an art-house cinema, but also several groundbreaking ventures.

One of the businesses headquartered there is chocolate confectioner slash social enterprise, Tony’s Chocolonely. For over a decade, Tony’s has been a maker of – as Chief Chocolate Officer Henk Jan Beltman puts it – ‘chocolate without any bitter aftertaste’. And he’s not talking about dark, 99 percent cocoa bars, but the company’s mission of manufacturing 100 percent slavery-free chocolate.

Another company HQ to be found at the Westergasfabriek is that of Conscious Hotels, which is not a traditional product maker, but a mini-chain of eco-friendly, energy-efficient lodgings furnished with upcyled designs and soothing green walls

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PART I UP CLOSE

make to last

ENABLING ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER WITH MARIE-STELLA MARIS Another stellar example of a socially-conscious Amsterdam maker, Marie-StellaMaris is the brainchild of Patrick Munsters, former creative director of Amsterdam-based denim makers Scotch & Soda, and partner Carel Neuberg. The company was set up in 2011, soon after a UN resolution adopted in July 2010 recognised the human right to water and sanitation. Marie-StellaMaris makes paraben-free natural care products and also distributes mineral waters sourced locally, from the Dutch town of Hoensbroek – less than 200km away from Amsterdam – and the St. Nikolaus spring in the Rhine region. The company donates a fixed amount per product sold, and every month, the total contribution raised through sales goes to the company’s eponymous foundation in support of clean drinking water projects. The foundation has already been involved in eight such initiatives, helping 17,000 people in countries such as Bangladesh, Tanzania and Uganda get access to safe drinking water. Shopping alone cannot save the world, but if you want to contribute to Marie-StellaMaris’s lofty goal while also pampering your skin and quenching your thirst, head on over to their flagship store at Keizersgracht 357 or check out small retailers such as Dutch sustainability-driven supermarket Marqt. www.marie-stella-maris.com

ORGANIC BREWS AT THE BROUWERIJ ’T IJ For locally-brewed, organic-certified beers, look no further than the ‘tripel’ blonde Zatte (this small brewery’s oldest creation), the ‘dubbel’ dark Natte, the strong amber Columbus and the barley wine Struis purveyed by Amsterdam institution Brouwerij ’t IJ. With its tasting pub open all year round right next to a beloved landmark (the nearly three centuries’-old Gooyer windmill), this microbrewery’s journey to international recognition started in 1985.

Musician and amateur brewer Kasper Peterson was determined to turn his passion for Belgian-style beers – not commonly made in Amsterdam at that time – into a proper business. When searching for a location worthy of his ambitions, Peterson came across a disused municipal bathhouse in Amsterdam Oost. Thanks to its excellent water facilities, as well as position (hard to miss the tallest windmill in the country!), the place was ideal for the new brewery.

Nowadays, seasoned restaurateurs Bart Obertop and Patrick Hendrikse run the business. The duo took over from Peterson in 2008, but kept the quality bar high and the orders coming. To tackle explosive demand, they expanded operations in 2013, making sure to honour the brewery’s local manufacturing philosophy by opening another location just metres away from the original. www.brouwerijhetij.nl

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CRITICAL CONSUMERS Another thing hard to miss in Amsterdam is its growing cohort of achingly hip creatives, staunch environmentalists, selective foodies and health-conscious parents. What do they have in common? ‘I like to think that people here are “eco sexy”,’ Lemmers says. They’re also all in search of organic, fair trade and locally-sourced products, as evidenced by the expansion of Dutch sustainability-driven supermarkets such as Marqt and Estafette, or the growing number of organic goods on the shelves of stalwart Albert Heijn.

Bottled water is a hard habit to shake and you’ll still see it on the shelves of even the eco-friendliest of shops. Fortunately, social enterprises such as Marie-Stella-Maris – who distributes water sourced from Dutch and German springs,

CLEAN JEANS WITH HOUSE OF DENIM Emboldened by their ‘towards a brighter blue’ motto, Amsterdam-based multidisciplinary initiative House of Denim is trying to transform the jeans industry one pair at a time. James Veenhoff, former director of Amsterdam International Fashion Week, and Mariette Hoitink, who leads fashion bureau and consultancy HTNK, set up the platform back in 2009 to promote a more innovative and sustainable denim manufacturing process. It now encompasses a production facility where future graduates of the three-year Jean School programme learn how to design smarter denim, a knowledge hub complete with an inspiring archive also stocking sustainable fabrics, and a laundry innovation centre.

Luckily, we mere mortals can also benefit from the superior skills of the Jean School students. If your favourite pair of jeans happens to rip or if you are harbouring some unfulfilled denim fantasies, drop by House of Denim’s workshop in De Hallen and let them work their blue magic. www.denimcity.org

in addition to natural cosmetics – donates a fixed amount per product sold to clean drinking water projects worldwide. Since the debut of its venture in 2012, the company has raised €300,000 for its humanitarian endeavours and helped 17,000 people gets access to fresh water.

Amsterdamers, on the other hand, are spoiled with perhaps the cleanest tap water in Europe and they also want their beers to fit the bill. Local microbreweries, such as Oedipus – famous for its Szechuan pepper and lemongrass staple Mannenliefde – are thriving and multiplying. But the trend began three decades ago with Brouwerij ’t IJ, a brewery located in a former bathhouse, which prides itself on four organic beers and using the city’s tap water for brewing. ‘Our customers like that the beer is brewed in the city – it’s a large part of the charm,’ confirms brewer Tim Hendriks.

And it’s not only in the city that these brews made a mark.

Taco Carlier, co-founder of slick commuter bike brand VANMOOF, once noticed a few bottles of IJ beer in the fridge of a small Taipei hotel. If people in Amsterdam like it, chances are that the world will love it, too. That is why VANMOOF, which has created some of the most efficient and durable electric bikes around, thinks of the city as the ultimate testing ground for its products. Amsterdam’s demanding crowds seem to approve, as international distributors sell one VANMOOF bike every hour.

With the city’s unwavering support for sustainable innovations and a rising roster of socially-aware makers going global, it looks like Amsterdam is on a smooth, green-lit ride to eco-bliss.

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and rooftops. Marco Lemmers, Conscious Hotels CEO, was inspired by the city’s encouragement of sustainable initiatives, and he says: ‘Together with the local government, the city’s inhabitants and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have made real progress towards a sustainable society’.

Last year’s completion of De Hallen, a former tram depot that now houses a food court, cinema, library, restaurants and several businesses, helps cement Amsterdam’s reputation as a pioneer of urban transformation with sustainability and innovation at its core. Not only does the massive building reduce 50 percent of CO2 emissions thanks to a revolutionary thermal storage system, but it also brings together socially-minded makers.

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PART I UP CLOSE

make to last

Makers with a sustainable edge are inspiring authorities to emulate their approach

THE NEW LIFE OF TREES WITH STADSHOUT

© MICAEL JACOBS

In addition to its more than 30 parks, Amsterdam is also known for its myriad of trees lining big streets and small alleys alike. Unfortunately, construction or maintenance projects mean cutting down some of these trees, most of which used to end up as wood chippings. Enter award-winning wood artisans Stadshout (City Wood), who have been giving local timber a second life since 2010.

The studio works closely with the municipality to transform felled trees into large-scale public installations. You can take shelter from the rain at their pavilion in the Amstelpark, have a bit of a Gulliver’s experience next to the giant Table of Togetherness in Amsterdam Noord, and catch a breather on trunkshaped benches in the Sarphatipark. Leftovers from these massive projects end up as smaller paraphernalia – think bike crates, side tables and wine coasters – which you can buy in their shop in the chic De Pijp district. Our tip: Ask where your wood came from and you might get some info about the source tree’s age, and even its original location. www.stadshout.nu

TOWARDS SLAVE-FREE CHOCOLATE WITH TONY’S CHOCOLONELY In November 2015, Amsterdam-based chocolate maker Tony’s Chocolonely celebrated a decade of its journey to achieving a 100 percent slave-free chocolate industry. The idea first emerged in 2002, when Dutch broadcast journalist Teun (or ‘Tony’) van de Keuken uncovered the harsh reality of child slavery on a number of West African cocoa plantations. Faced with the reluctance of major chocolate producers to debate and act on this issue (hence, the ‘lonely’ part of the brand’s name), Van de Keuken eventually decided to start a business aimed at sourcing fair trade – and organic, if possible – cocoa from fully traceable and responsible farmers. Soon after, the first tasty, red-packaged milk chocolate bars – also available in varieties such as dark, hazelnut and caramel sea salt – hit the shops.

Given the chocolate’s ubiquity (you can find it in any supermarket) and the company’s ever-soaring profits, it looks like Tony won’t be lonely for much longer. www.tonyschocolonely.com

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GUILT-FREE LODGING AT CONSCIOUS HOTELS Travellers keen on minimising their environmental impact while fully enjoying Amsterdam will be relieved to hear about the Conscious Hotels mini-chain. The first Conscious outpost opened in 2009, close to the leafy Vondelpark, Amsterdam’s largest urban park, soon followed by a second near the Museum Square, the city’s very green cultural heart. Both hotels run on wind power, separate and recycle waste, conserve water and energy through smart showerheads and LED lighting, and are furnished with pieces made from recycled materials – think breakfast tables that were once yoghurt pots or ‘stone’-looking bathroom countertops actually created from pressed paper. Throw in amenities such as organic, locally-sourced food and drinks, and eco-cotton towels, and you’ve got yourself a Green Key-certified business (an eco-label for sustainable operations in the tourism industry). Proving that sustainability is not just the right thing to do, but also a profitable formula, owners Marco Lemmers and Sam Cohen plan to open two new hotels in 2017, one of which will be called The Tire Station as a nod to the building’s Michelin tyre-changing station heritage. www.conscioushotels.com

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PART I UP CLOSE

THE NEW I AMSTERDAM STORE IN CENTRAL STATION Those already craving local treats with a conscience should look no further than the brand new I amsterdam store, housed under the mirrored roof of Central Station’s shiny IJ hall. A sprawling 300m2 affair, the shop wants locals to feel proud of the city’s vibrant cultural scene and innovative artisans.

Among the socially-minded products that you can bag straight away are chocolate bars from Tony’s Chocolonely, which strives to only use traceable, fairly-produced cocoa; organic brews from the city’s original microbrewery, Brouwerij ’t IJ; and natural, paraben-free skincare goodies made by MarieStella-Maris, a social enterprise keen on making clean drinking water the global norm.

One of the store’s highlights is a wall showcasing 27 home-grown products and brands.

The focus is on the stories behind their success, and sustainability is purposefully woven into many of these brands’s DNA. You can use the wall’s interactive display to learn more about denim makers G-Star, who regularly assign projects to the eco-conscious students of House of Denim’s Jean School; Dutch flag carrier airline KLM, the world’s most sustainable airline for the past 11 years; or Champions League-winning football club Ajax, whose climate-neutral stadium is home to 4,200 solar panels.

Other brands celebrated in the store include mobility developers VANMOOF and Bugaboo. Commuter bike creators VANMOOF have introduced the smartest electrified two-wheeler around, while durable stroller producer Bugaboo gives waste-wary parents the chance to lease pre-owned carriers.

Those wanting to stay in the loop are also in luck as the store features the five hottest happenings in town on a large screen. For more personalised advice, ask one of the enthusiastic insiders, who will be walking around the store, ready to tell you where the city’s finest coffee or most cutting-edge exhibitions are to be found.

Central Station IJ Hall www.iamsterdam.com

make to last

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The I amsterdam Store is open!

If Amsterdam would be a store, what would it look like? Find the answer to that question on the south side of Amsterdam Central Station. Discover the best of Amsterdam in the I amsterdam Store.

BEST OF AMSTER DAM

#iamsterdamstore

mar & apr 2016

PART II 20 22 24 29 30 32 33

ENTERTAINMENT

'I LOVE THAT EVERY SEASON IN THE CITY HAS VERY SPECIFIC COLOURS.'

Ching-Lien Wu, the National Opera Chorus rehearsal director, enjoys the beauty of our city year-round.

FLOWER SEASON

The Netherlands is the main producer of flowers for the European market and much of the world. Every springtime, the Dutch love for blossoms erupts in myriads of colourful events, not only with the wildly anticipated opening of the Keukenhof Gardens and its Tulip Festival (24 March-16 May), but also the 42km flower parade from Noordwijk to Haarlem (23 April) and the Spring Snow Festival.

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KING'S DAY FOR EVERYONE TINKLE TOWN THE AMSTERDAM SCHOOL THE NEW AMSTERDAMMERS ANTIGONE FILM NIGHTLIFE ESSENTIALS CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL

The Japanese Sakura (Cherry Blossom) Festival marks the coming of spring. It’s traditionally celebrated by picnicking with family and friends under the blossoming cherry trees.

In Japanese culture, the cherry blossom represents both a new beginning and the fragility of life. While undoubtedly a favourite with Japanese expats from the Amsterdam Area and beyond, the Cherry Blossom Festival at the Amsterdamse Bos attracts a broad cross-section of residents who are keen to enjoy the blossoms, as well as partake in traditional Japanese food, drink and cultural customs.

9 April Amsterdamse Bos, Nieuwe Meerlaan, Amstelveen

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King’s Day

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A King’s Day for everyone

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A quick guide to help you join the rest of the city for the biggest birthday bash in the world. text Marie-Charlotte Pezé photos Cris Toala Olivares

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very year on 27 April (since his coronation in 2014, and following a tradition started in 1885), throngs of orange-garbed Amsterdamers descend upon the streets to celebrate King Willem-Alexander’s special day, confettis, party hats and dancing shoes at the ready.

27 APRIL King’s Day Various locations See www.iamsterdam.com for a full listing of King’s Night and King’s Day events.

FOR THE PARTY ANIMALS King’s Day’s celebrations actually start the day before on King’s Night, and so many clubs will be throwing a party that you’ll need a good excuse to not be stumbling onto

one dancefloor or another.

Among many, WesterUnie is having its trademark rave party on King’s Night, while Voltt pumps NDSM-werf full of house and techno. On King’s Day, infamous technofest Loveland is taking over Meerpark in Oost, while NDSM, RAI and Houthavens throw their own festivals, which all should keep you dancing until the colour orange has become abhorrent to you.

FOR THE CLASS ACTS It’s a party fit for a king, so dust off your gown or tuxedo

and attend the King’s Ball organised by the Sofitel Legend Amsterdam Grand, which chooses ‘Roaring Twenties’ as the theme for this posh blacktie event featuring live music, theatre acts and dancing. Also on the quieter side, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra will accompany Benjamin Clementine’s poetic voice.

FOR THE MARINEERS It wouldn’t be an Amsterdam celebration if it didn’t also take the canals by storm with thousands of party boats, so the choice is yours: comman-

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don’t miss these

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 CINEDANS © RICHARD RUTLEDGE CINEDANS

This international movie festival celebrates dance on the screen: short and full-length dance films, documentaries, interactive installations and a special children’s programme are all on the agenda during this 13th edition of an event that celebrates two artistic mediums at once, with passion and energy. The ‘Dance on Screen’ festival, the largest and most diverse of its kind, offers five days of inspiring insights into the world of contemporary dance and ballet, showcasing choreographers and dancers from all over the world.

© DESIRÉ VAN DEN BERG DGTL

PLLEK

16-20 MARCH EYE Film www.cinedans.nl

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

 EASTER FOR DEVILS

deer your own embarkation (beware of special regulations in place during King’s Day), or get tickets to a small party boat or a big cruise such as that organised by Anura, Bam Boe and Knus, who promise a full night of ‘maritime mayhem’. It’s also fun to watch the parade of boats trying to cover each other’s sound systems from the streets.

FOR THE HOARDERS AND BARGAIN HUNTERS One man’s trash is another man’s treasure: King’s Day is the chance for Amsterdamers

to peddle all their unwanted stuff literally everywhere in the streets and parks, transforming Amsterdam into a giant garage sale. No permit is required, and haggling is encouraged – which is always fun in dense crowds of drunk people wearing orange boas.

FOR FAMILIES You wouldn’t think such a rowdy party would be kid-friendly, but children get their own vrijmarkt (free market) in Vondelpark where they can sell their old toys, and a slew of events are designed

especially for them, such as face-painting, puppet shows, games or sporting events. The Bredeweg Festival in Oost is also very kid-friendly.

FOR THE AGORAPHOBIC Between 600,000 and a million people descend onto the city to celebrate the King’s birthday, and while the Dutch are a lot more civilised than football hooligans, Amsterdam will be one giant rambunctious beehive for two days. Stay home and lock the doors – but not without your orange party hat.

Want to celebrate Easter, but not a fan of the Passion of Christ? DGTL’s Easter Festival is invading NDSM-werf with 12 stages, which will pack as much underground dance music as your ears and stomping feet can take over one weekend. The programme promises an overwhelming musical experience, with a huge selection of artists such as Agoria, Cinnaman, Gold Panda, John Talabot and many more. The festival also puts visual arts at the forefront, with imposing 3D installations such as Altijd Raak’s 10-metre tall tower of lights and mirrors, the winner of their 2016 Art Pitch.

25-27 MARCH NDSM-werf www.dgtl.nl

 EASTER FOR ANGELS For the more demure side of Easter, café-restaurant Pllek is inviting classical music DJs Mengel & Berg, accompanied by Classical Music Rave violinist Larion Dyakov, to provide the soundtrack to their tasteful seven-dish brunch.

On 23 March, Obrecht Church will present a short, contemporary version of Bach’s Saint Matthew Passion accompanied by video projections. The Concertgebouw will also put on its traditional performances of Saint John Passion on 24 March and Saint Matthew Passion on 25 March. The same day, Bijlmer Parktheater revisits Saint Matthew Passion with a tango twist.

23-27 MARCH Various locations

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

tinkle town

Tinkle town Nothing worse than a nagging urge when you’re out on the town. Here’s our handy guide to public relief. text Lauren Comiteau

W

ith so-called ‘indiscriminate urination’ carrying a potential €140 fine, it’s best to avoid the urge, anatomy permitting, to relieve yourself on the nearest tree or historical monument. It’s also not such a great idea to try and write your name in the water, especially while inebriated: ‘Most bodies found floating in the canals sport an open zipper,’ reveals Robin, a boat tour guide from Canal Cruises. Stay safe and on the right side of the law with one of the options we’ve thoroughly researched for you.

FOR FREE There are 32 permanent public peeing places in the city centre, mostly the green metallic krullen (curled) variety built after WWII; but there are also gems like the Amsterdam School stone urinal on Oudezijds Voorburgwal, and a few pre-war, two-person (don’t ask) krullen designed by 19th-century architect Johan Melchior van der Mey (of Scheepvaarthuis fame). On crowded days, urinal numbers can swell to 120, when the portable plastic plaskruizen come out in force in the places you most need them (Leidseplein, Rembrandtplein, etc…).

If you’re spending the day on a boat, hopefully they’ll have something more than a porthole to offer: men leaning their goods or women squatting over the hull are actually not a rare (or pretty) sight.

FOR A FEE Most cafés charge non-patrons a fee for the usage of their facilities, especially on busy days like King’s Day (exception made for pregnant women; but don’t try and pass off that beer belly for a baby.) A 50c coin will give you access to the train stations' surprisingly clean toilets.

And, as there’s an app for everything, AirPnP provides a map of local residents who will let you rent their bathroom, with user ratings and practical info such as… paper thickness.

Urilift International, the Dutch company that has three permanent, self-cleaning daytime toilets in the city that serve (for a fee) the entire population, is also the brains behind the UriLift, a urinal that rises phoenix-like from the pavement at night. In addition to the 10 UriLifts and one Urilady (in the Dappermarkt) already in full flush in the city centre, company

KRULLEN

director Marco Schimmel says they’re about to make the Urilady obsolete by releasing the Uricombo – a groundbreaking urinal that works for both male and female, addressing the needs of the half of the population, Schimmel adds, that has been largely ignored because we’re not the ones causing the problem. Who knew the sanitary industry would become a helpful player in resolving the battle of the sexes?

Check www.iamsterdam.com for the official King’s Day PDF that will disclose where to pee for free.

URILIFT

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24

PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

amsterdam school

The art of workingclass palaces

The Amsterdam School of architecture and design celebrates its 100th birthday with a major exhibition at the Stedelijk Museum.

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text Catalina Iorga

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ixteen years ago, on a rare sunny day, Alice Roegholt, Director of Museum Het Schip (The Ship), was cycling in the Spaarndammerbuurt when she suddenly came across a massive ship-shaped building, its unusually wavy red bricks perfectly framed by clear blue skies. One side of the building harboured a post office sign, and Roegholt immediately went in. ‘It was the most unexpected room, my jaw dropped,’ she recalls.

She had been exploring the city to find a location for a bottom-up initiative, a small museum dedicated to illuminating the bond between the architectural style called Amsterdam School and beautiful social housing for the city’s working-class residents. Luckily, the Dutch post office had already decided to abandon this location masterminded by Michel de Klerk, the Amsterdam School’s most prominent architect and creator of ‘working-class palaces’, as Roegholt likes to put it. The room could thus be restored to its full 1920s glory, and in 2001, marking the centenary of the 1901 Dutch Housing Act (that had enabled better housing conditions and affordable prices for poorer citizens), the old post office reopened as Museum Het Schip.

MUSEUM HET SCHIP

ART WITH A SOCIAL MISSION Esthetically, Roegholt describes the style as ‘an expressionist style full of humour and small details just waiting to be discovered.’ And socially aware to boot. ‘Back then, the socialist city authorities were looking to craft a better living world for workers, who should also see art on a daily basis, not just factories. These architects were going all-out to help solve a pressing societal problem,’ she explains. It wasn’t just buildings that De Klerk and his contemporaries were responsible for, but a complete artistic experience also comprising furniture and decorative objects. ‘You can think of Amsterdam School furniture as miniature buildings, and the buildings as scaledup furniture, as both these types of structures contain similar elements,’ Roegholt adds. Unlike Art Deco, a style recognisable the world over, Amsterdam School objects are deeply rooted in the culture of their time and have a stronger sense of place, reflecting Amsterdam’s multicultural society by featuring motifs rang-

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don’t miss these AMSTERDAM COFFEE FESTIVAL

LIVING IN THE AMSTERDAM SCHOOL 9 April-28 August Stedelijk Museum Museumplein 10 www.stedelijk.nl

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MUSEUM HET SCHIP Spaarndammerplantsoen 140 www.hetschip.nl

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18-20 MARCH

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Westergasfabriek Haarlemmerweg 8 www.amsterdamcoffeefestival.com

UNFAIR ART FAIR An innovative platform for emerging creatives in the Netherlands, Unfair presents 40 new and established talents of the past decade directly to the public (all proceeds go to the artists). The fair’s goal is to put the artists and their work at the forefront, and puts the accent on fostering cooperation, sustainability and the exchange of knowledge. Discover the new generation of painters, illustrators, photographers, sculptors and performance artists – and if you don’t want to bring a piece of art home, the new ‘Unframed’ project of the fair allows you to purchase… an embroidered version of the artwork.

© SJOERD KNIBBELER

100TH ANNIVERSARY EXHIBITION You can admire such furniture at the Living in the Amsterdam School exhibition, which will be on display from April to August at the Stedelijk Museum. The show features more than 300 dressers, cabinets, lampshades, ceramics, clocks and anything in between from many architects and designers such as De Klerk and Piet Kramer, Amsterdam School’s figurehead after De Klerk passed away.

To Roegholt, these objects best embody the principle of ‘colour by form, with clever light and shadow effects that reveal new shades without the need to use paint.’ And thanks to the research efforts of the Stedelijk Museum, who scoured both its own collection and those of enthusiastic amateurs for the most exciting pieces, the innovative Amsterdam School design may finally get the international exposure it deserves.

30 MARCH-3 APRIL Zuiveringshal Westergasfabriek Pazzanistraat 37 www.unfairamsterdam.nl

WORLD PRESS PHOTO It takes a bit of bracing to face this yearly exhibit where the photojournalists crowned during the World Press Photo competition expose the harsh realities (but also the wonderful ones) of the past 12 months. It is also an essential moment filled with revelations and reflection – and inspiration, as the beauty of this photographic art, which is slowly losing its tenure in a world of citizen reporting, becomes obvious.

Large prints of the podium winners of each category, from general news and portraits to sports and animal photography, are on display at De Nieuwe Kerk.

© WARREN RICHARDSON

ing from Indonesian through Japanese to Swedish.

Coffee has become a culinary subculture in itself, and it now has its own festival. The three-day event also gives a place of honour to the liquid gold’s cousins, tea and chocolate, as well as tasty healthy street food. Connoisseurs, ‘Urban foodies’, industry players and anyone else who likes a fine cup of joe will enjoy the slew of organised events, which include a secret three-course dinner with fine food and coffee pairing by restaurant Scandinavian Embassy; a True Artisan café where baristas share their techniques; and the SCAE barista championship, the competition that decides who grinds the best bean.

16 APRIL-10 JULY

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De Nieuwe Kerk www.worldpressphoto.org

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PART II ADVERTORIAL

I AMSTERDAM CITY CARD

S P EC I A L OFFER

Breitner' s Gir at the R l in Kimono €2.50 dis ijksmuseum co I amsterd unt with your am City C ard

You’ll be surprised at how much of Amsterdam and the surrounding region you can see with your I amsterdam City Card.

Get out of town ZAANS MUSEUM, ZAANSE SCHANS With its traditional houses, windmills, warehouses and workshops, the historic village of Zaanse Schans offers a preserved glimpse of what it was like to live in the Netherlands in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the Zaan region was one of Europe’s first industrial areas. The Zaans Museum tells the story of daily life in the Zaan region over the centuries.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card:

AMSTERDAM MUSEUM MADE IN AMSTERDAM: 100 YEARS IN 100 WORKS 9 March-31 July

Amsterdam Museum celebrates the city’s creative spirit with this exhibition that showcases 100 works of art by prominent Amsterdam artists of the past century, including masters such as George Hendrik Breitner, Karel Appel and Marlene Dumas, and lesser known talents who have also left their mark in museums, galleries, and even on the streets.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

VAN GOGH MUSEUM EASY VIRTUE Until 19 June

This colourful exhibition explores how Van Gogh and other masters such as Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso were inspired by street walkers, brothels and wealthy courtesans of the Parisian Belle Epoque, using their brushes not only to depict splendour or misery and debauchery, but also to spark social discussions on a controversial subject.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

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The I amsterdam City Card is available at I amsterdam Visitor Centres, hotels, canal cruise companies and GVB Tickets & Info offices. For more information, see www.iamsterdam.com/citycard

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

FRANS HALS MUSEUM FLOWERS FROM AFAR 24 March-16 May

The Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem (which is located in the Bulb Region) celebrates spring by decorating its halls with gorgeous fresh flower arrangements displayed in rare vases designed by such artists as Bernard Heesen and Jan van der Vaart. In addition, a small exhibit will retrace the history of the Dutch passion for tulips during the Golden Age, with works from artists who travelled far and wide in search of unusual and exotic blooms, and give visitors a chance to admire The Tulip Book by famous painter Judith Leyster.

FREE entrance with your I amsterdam City Card

© FRANS HALS MUSEUM, PHOTO GERT JAN VAN ROOIJ

GALLIEN’S GIRL, FRANTIŠEK KUPKA, PRAGUE, NÁRODNÍ GALLERY

ON THE TERRACE, NOLA HATTERMAN, 1930, STEDELIJK COLECTION

In Amsterdam

THE AMSTERDAM & REGION TRAVEL TICKET This special 24-hour public transport pass is valid on metros, trams and buses operated

by GVB, Connexxion, Arriva and EBS. Get yours for the special price of €10 with the I amsterdam City Card (normal price €13.50). www.iamsterdam.com/citycard Offer exclusively available at the I amsterdam Visitor Centres at Stationsplein (across from Central Station) and at Schiphol.

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highlights

PART II

TonTon Club XL

Gamers rejoice: a supersized playground comes to Westerpark

© MARK OKOH, CAMERA PRESS LONDON

text Kim van der Meulen

Amy Winehouse: A Family Portrait.

Peeling the layers off the public persona to reveal the person text Leda Georgiades

A

Family Portrait was originally put together

by Winehouse’s brother Alex and his wife who bonded with Amy over their shared love of Snoopy and Peanuts cartoons. The exhibition focuses on Amy’s distinctly normal upbringing in North London, and includes personal belongings such as clothing, her vinyl collection, outfits worn on stage and the guitar she co-owned with Alex. Perhaps most poignant of all is a suitcase full of family photos that Amy had been looking through with her father Mitch a few days before she died.

London, family, tradition and her strong Jewish roots are what this exhibition is about, offering us a bittersweet glimpse at the girl behind the famous artist. Amy was, at her core, a North London Jewish girl, and as her brother says: ‘Amy was someone who was incredibly proud of her Jewish-London roots. Whereas other families would go to the seaside on a sunny day, we’d always go down to the East

End. That was who we were, and what we were. We weren’t religious, but we were traditional. I hope that the world gets to see this other side not just to Amy, but to our typical Jewish family.’

Many of the photos on display are an intimate foray into all of these elements; Shabbat dinners in the suburbs, her brother’s bar mitzvah, and vintage photos of her family, including Grandmother Cynthia, who dated legend Ronnie Scott in the 1940s. Her family’s history was hugely important to Amy, and music was an ever-present force on both sides of Amy’s family.

Both were hugely influential in forming her eclectic musical tastes. ‘She wouldn’t have cared less about the exhibition,’ adds Julie-Marthe Cohen, the exhibition’s local curator. ‘All she cared about was her music, and using it to help people forget their troubles for a while.’

UNTIL 4 SEPTEMBER Jewish Historical Museum www.jhm.nl

L

ast year, the game lovers behind TonTon Club, the 250m2 amusement arcade in the Red Light District, enticed fanatic gamers and newbies alike to spend the entire weekend playing popular games like Mortal Kombat, air hockey and coin pushing at the Westergasterrein. This year, they’re taking things to the next level. ‘The idea was to make all the games at TonTon Club ten times bigger,’ says initiator Serdar Tonkas. Tonton will bring it on with XL versions of famous games, including an eight-person version of Mario Kart, a Dance Dance Revolution stage for 20 people and TonTon's own invention: Mega Jenga, a seven-metre-high Jenga game made from moving boxes and foam rubber, where two teams compete against each other using a cherry picker. ‘Playing a game with so many people is an experience in itself,’ says Tonkas. This also applies to his favourite, Balls of Cthul-

hu, a pentagram-shaped pinball machine that he’s had shipped from France especially for the festival. ‘It must be strange to play pinball at the same time as five others; pinball is usually ideal for playing alone. Although I do understand the magic of it: every pinball machine tells a story you can really lose yourself in – from the Game of Thrones battles to the Metallica machine, where you can bang your head to classic album tracks.’

The lights, the hysteria, the abundance: TonTon gets the blood pumping and is all about the experience. Last year the festival attracted around 15,000 visitors; some played a few games, others carried on until two in the morning. The abundance of such an unprecedented collection of gaming booths and arcade games appeals to many.

11-13 & 18-20 MARCH Zuiveringshal Westergasfabriek www.tontonclub.nl

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

highlights

ES ORI ST

DNB Visitors’ Centre: Sarphatistraat 1, Amsterdam www.dnb.nl/en/about-dnb/dnb-visitors-centre

DNB visitors’ centre

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Immerse yourself in the world of money in the Visitors’ Centre of De Nederlandsche Bank, Dutch central bank and supervisory authority. The centre presents everything you ever wanted to know about DNB’s areas of expertise, and how they affect your everyday life.

Individual visitors are welcome to drop by and visit the ground floor exhibition of the DNB Visitors’ Centre at no charge. We are open to the public on business days between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm.

E N FE PAYED IO I SS

AD M I

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THE NEW AMSTERDAMMERS

Originally from Taiwan, ChingLien Wu lived in many countries before settling in our city as the National Opera’s chorus director. text Marie-Charlotte Pezé

‘Amsterdam’s spirit is open, direct & dynamic’ 1. WHAT HAS BROUGHT YOU TO AMSTERDAM? I was asked to try out as the new chorus master at Dutch National Opera. I was very honoured to be a candidate for this position.

The process took two years, as the chemistry between the master and the chorus is crucial.

It was a good decision to come to Amsterdam – Dutch people are very open, direct and enjoy their lives fully.

2. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ASPECT OF AMSTERDAM? I love sitting by one of the canals and watching the reflections of the light on the water. My favourite aspect is definitely the beautiful light in the city, and the fact that every season has very specific colours.

3. ANYTHING YOU DON’T LIKE ABOUT THE CITY? Not really, but I do avoid going to the city centre during the weekends!

4. WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST ABOUT YOUR HOME COUNTRY? My family and friends, of course.

When you travel and move around a lot, you always leave friends everywhere and everyone is busy so it is hard to catch up.

Skype and Facetime help us keep in touch. I plan visits, or my friends come to Amsterdam to see a production at the opera.

5. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE PLACES IN AMSTERDAM? I like to walk around the canal areas in the city centre to browse quirky antique shops and look at the pretty houses.

6. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS? The Dutch National Opera is my favourite of course! And I love the Concertgebouw and the many museums, which I can visit as often as I like thanks to my Museum Card. The Rembrandt House is close to our theatre, so

sometimes I go there for a few minutes to relax. It is small but beautiful, and they change collections quite often.

7. WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF WORKING IN A CREATIVE FIELD HERE? There is always a group feeling and cohesion which is not always easy to achieve in other cultures.

In Northern Europe, people want to develop themselves, but are always open to others, which is a very important quality for singers in a chorus. Cohesion makes the difference between a group of good musicians and a great orchestra.

8. WHICH OF YOUR PRODUCTIONS FOR THE DUTCH NATIONAL OPERA ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF? I’m sure I’m going to be proud of Chovansjtsjina. It was one of my first productions as chorus master in 1992, and it was so hot outside that the lead singer, who wore heavy costumes with real fur, almost fainted. The

memories make me happy to do it again. It’s not performed often because it is a huge production with a very large chorus who has to learn the music and the Russian lyrics by heart. But the music is so beautiful that I was able to keep everyone motivated.

9. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT AMSTERDAM’S SPIRIT? Open, direct and dynamic, you feel it everywhere in the city.

When I visit Geneva, where my partner lives, I really feel the difference with Amsterdam.

10. DOES AMSTERDAM FEEL LIKE HOME TO YOU? I’ve been in Amsterdam a year and a half now, and I’m still discovering it. Taiwan will always be my homeland, but I have lived in several countries and cities and everyone of them has a special place in my heart: I always find ways to enjoy life in every city.

But I’m looking forward to that ‘I am home’ feeling that you get when you return from travelling.

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

highlights

Dare to be a girl This modern take on Antigone, purposefully situated outside of time and space, is woven with tinges of woman empowerment.

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text Jayne Robinson

between the play and the audience. So we took away that space, kept the classical staging and structure of the ancient Greek tragedy, but added images from other periods in history.’

It opens with an explosion. Are we in modernday Syria? 9/11 New York? Or Ancient Greece?

The answer is all of these places at once. As the action unfolds, the audience is inspired through the transformative power of theatre (and a distinctly un-Ancient Greek DJ set) to question the world around them and their own place within it. At least, that’s the desired effect. As Voutsa explains, ‘I want audiences to leave feeling that they are perfect, they are unique, and they have the power to create their own reality.’

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ou might think that a play written 2,000 years ago about a girl whose brother is her father, and who is violently murdered for defying the patriarchy, would be somewhat of a hard sell to the modern theatre-going mind.

That’s why Greek-born director Theodora Voutsa has gone to great lengths to ensure

A FEMINIST TWIST There’s one particular section of society that Antigone specifically aims to empower. In fact, it’s half of our planet – that half which, as research and evidence shows, still remains perilously unequal to the other. ‘There is a strong female energy in the play,’ says Voutsa. ‘Everywhere I found a strong female image or character, I stole something and made it my own through Antigone.’ As such, the play’s fabric is woven through by an entire world of gender equality discourse and experience, resulting in a rich cultural tapestry that incorporates references to women from Rosa Parks to Marina Abramovic, Simone de Beauvoir to Malala Yousafzai.

Antigone kicks off a four-part series of plays in Amsterdam which explore women’s place in society. Charting both a timeline of women’s issues and an evolution in theatre from ancient Greece to post-modern times, productions of Taming of the Shrew, The Glass Menagerie and Miss Julie will follow hot on the heels of Antigone in the next few years. that this original adaptation of Sophocles’ political thriller about a young woman who stands up for what she believes in strikes obvious – and resonant – chords with everybody’s here and now.

‘We took away time and place,’ she explains.

‘If I set it in 442 BC and explained that Antigone is in Thebes, it creates a space

Follow #daretobeagirl to get involved in the debate.

11-12 MARCH Compagnietheater Kloveniersburgwal 50 www.compagnietheater.nl

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featured artist

don’t miss these

text Bregtje Schudel

PIPPIN

‘I don’t need to be twenty-two again.’

Dangerous stunts and acrobatics, wonderful music and a touching, relatable story, with some daring knife-throwing added to the mix: the Tony Award-winner Broadway show Pippin is finally coming into town. ‘Pippin is not really a musical,’ explains Kyle Dean Massey, the performer who plays Pippin, the fictional son of Charlemagne: a prince on a quest for the meaning of life.

‘It’s a character-driven circus act, featuring many ex-Cirque du Soleil performers. Performing in Carré, which is like a great indoor-circus, is quite perfect,’ he adds.

BEST OF BALANCHINE The National Ballet is honouring one of the greatest choreographers of the 20th Century with this production of Best of Balanchine which presents three well-known masterpieces

by George Balanchine, including Theme and Variations, an ode to Balanchine’s Russian background, and his early work Apollon Musagète, about Apollo and his muses. One of his works that is new to Dutch National Ballet is also performed, the Tarantella, a delightful and humourous pas de deux. Balanchine’s ballets are so innovative and timeless that they are compared to the paintings of Picasso and the music of Stravinsky, who was a great inspiration to the artist.

TIM PERSENT Born: 15 April 1964 in Cape Town.

Talent: For most professional dancers in the industry, 40 is when you start thinking about retirement. But Tim Persent, gracious, soft-spoken and now 51, is still going strong. In the 25-year existence of Amsterdam-based dance group LeineRoebana – led by choreography couple Andrea Leine and Harijono Roebana – he has been a steady presence for 20. And he still can’t quite put his finger on what makes them tick.

‘We’ve basically been growing up together. But they still manage to surprise, and confuse me.’

22-24 MARCH Theater Bellevue Leidsekade 90 www.theaterbellevue.nl

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ABBEY ROAD AT ZIGGO DOME

© DEEN VAN MEER

In their latest collaboration Seele (part of the double bill Seele/Herz), Persent is dancing the part of a faun, who is ‘dancing past his sell-by date’.

‘It does make you wonder,’ Persent laughingly confesses.

‘Is this a hint? In a way I do think this piece is about my history, my baggage, my experience. I’ve been on stage for almost 30 years. I’ve lost close friends. I’m now at an age where I realise that my parents will probably pass away soon. It’s all about letting go. I hope I haven’t passed my “dance-by date” though. I don’t think so.

I haven’t heard any alarm bells yet!’

A can’t-miss event for Beatles fans: Ziggo Dome is recreating the Abbey Road studio sessions, a breathtaking journey through the recording career of the iconic band from 1962 to 1969, from the first recordings like ‘Please Please Me’ to the last cut in ’The End’. The Sessions is re-staging the studio, which Paul McCartney called their ‘monastery’, in the most minute detail: the studio will be entirely reconstructed, mics and instruments from back then will all be positioned exactly as they were in the original recording, the arrangements and vocals will be identical to the original recordings, while the world’s best Beatles impersonators perform live.

9 MARCH-10 APRIL Royal Theatre Carré www.carre.nl/en

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25 MARCH-10 APRIL Dutch National Ballet www.operaballet.nl

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17 APRIL Ziggo Dome, De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

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PART II ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

film

Taking you through Amsterdam’s movie scene, one event at a time.

To the East and beyond

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This spring’s film festivals turn the spotlight on Eastern cultures and talents; plus, the Imagine Fantastic Film Festival. text Bregtje Schudel

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CINEMASIA FILM FESTIVAL 1-6 MARCH Kriterion, Roetersstraat 170 Rialto, Ceintuurbaan 338 www.cinemasia.nl

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FESTIVAL CINÉMA ARABE 19-24 APRIL Rialto, Ceintuurbaan 338 www.cinemaarabe.nl

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IMAGINE FANTASTIC FILM FESTIVAL 14-24 APRIL EYE, IJPromenade 1 www.imaginefilmfestival.nl

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his March, the Kriterion will host the 9th edition of the CinemAsia Film Festival, an annual celebration of Asian cinema. CinemAsia certainly spreads a broad canvas, with films from Singapore and Indonesia to Japan and China. The jumping-off point for this edition’s main theme (Chinese-language films) was one person: Sylvia Chang.

Chairperson of the Golden Horse Awards (the Chinese Oscars), she’s also a producer, screenwriter, director, singer and actress. All of these talents are on full display this festival, starting with the opener, musical thriller Office, directed by Hong Kong legend Johnnie To. Not only did Chang adapt her own play to fit the big screen, she also plays one of the leads (next to Chow Yun-Fat).

The Netherlands just signed a co-production treaty with

China, so to programme this festival around Chinese-language films was pretty much a no-brainer, says festival director Lorna Tee. ‘I’d really like to bring both film cultures together at the festival.’

BATTLING MISCONCEPTIONS As far as Asian cinema goes, we still have a lot to learn. ‘Usually, people think of Jackie Chan, Japanese animation or horror films. But Asian cinema is so much more.’ The biggest misconception? Ironically, that ‘there’s just not enough exposure to Asian cinema to form one.’

Battling mis- and preconceptions lies at the heart of Festival Cinéma Arabe. Understandably and inevitably, migration will be a big theme this (the eighth) edition, although there’s also room for family and love, as in

Nawara, about an optimistic servant girl who keeps cleaning the house of her runaway employers.

IMAGINE No film festival calendar is ever complete without Imagine, an ode to everything fantastic, from sci-fi and animation to horror. The main theme this year will be Building Dreams and Nightmares, about the importance of architecture in fantastic films (from the haunted hotel in The Shining to dystopian Blade Runner). Don’t miss the lecture by director Vincenzo Natali (Cube, Splice). Films to look out for this year are The Witch (a mixture of The Crucible, The Shining and The Exorcist), The Invitation and Hardcore Henry (think Robocop as a full-length first-person shooter). For the die-hards, there’s the Night of Terror.

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highlight

nightlife essentials

Our must-see film(-related) pick this issue…

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: AMALUNA

The famous acrobatic circus from Canada is on tour with its new production, and is passing by Amsterdam for a lucky month and a half of performances. A dazzling show featuring aerial straps, teeterboards, water tanks, and the de rigueur glittery and colourful costumes, Amaluna is the story of an island inhabited by goddesses where a storm wrecks a ship of young handsome men. Set to Cirque du Soleil’s mesmerising signature backgrounds, a love story told through beautiful and daring choreographies ensues, with the usual challenges and complications.

17 MARCH-1 MAY Amsterdam Arena  www.cirquedusoleil.com

Roze Filmdagen

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SCAPINO ROLLERCOASTER BALLET

© HANS HOMBURG

t first glance, this 11-day festival seems like a far cry from the small-scale underground event that began 20 years ago. Yet, the existence of a Dutch LGBTQ film festival is more important than ever, contends artistic director Werner Borkes.

For one, you’ll still be hard-pressed to find LGBTQ-themed films in your local cinemas. And not because there’s nothing on offer. ‘For this edition alone we saw 500 (!) films,’ says Borkes.

‘But with the exception of high-profile films like Carol or The Danish Girl, almost none of them reach its audience.’

Roze Filmdagen shows you films you can’t see anywhere else. But, it’s also about community. In a time of growing intolerance, says Borkes, the festival offers a safe haven where there’s room for dialogue. That’s why a movie like Stonewall, by gay blockbuster director Roland Emmerich, also made the final cut. ‘I think his heart was in the right place, and it is about an important piece of gay history, but choosing to film the riots through the lens of a fictitious, Caucasian boy was probably not his wisest move. That’s something I’ll gladly put up for discussion.’

One of the main themes this year that’s also up for debate is LGBTQ and Sport, one of the final taboos. Maybe even more intriguing is the theme programme Desire Without Limitations, LGBTQs with a handicap. ‘In a way, they have a double impediment,’ says Borkes. ‘They’re ostracised for being gay by ‘normal’ society, but they also get discriminated in their own community for being disabled.’ One movie will definitely change our minds, and our hearts: Margarita with a Straw, about a young bisexual Indian woman with cerebral palsy in New York.

10-20 MARCH Het Ketelhuis www.rozefilmdagen.nl

© MAYA ROEST & YOSUKE KUSANO

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ROMEO & JULIETTE

Berlioz’s timeless interpretation of Shakespeare’s grandest love story is brought to the National Ballet stage by director and choreographer Sasha Waltz (who guest-directed Orfeo in 2014), in a magnificent production where dance and opera share the limelight. Berlioz wrote the masterpiece with a powerful choir that also acts as narrator. A classic of romance and tragedy that’s not to be missed. Note: there will also be an introductory presentation of the production’s history and background in the lobby of the opera house 45 minutes before showtime.

15 APRIL-01 MAY National Opera Ballet www.operaballet.nl 

AWAKENINGS EASTER SPECIAL

Two nights of the infamous Awakenings party, especially for Easter weekend, is a better The sensational ballet from treat than chocolate bunnies.

Rotterdam (under the name An even sweeter surprise is a Twools) is finally on tour, and coming to Amsterdam for one full two hours of mighty Carl Cox (playing between 02:00 night only. Top choreograand 04:00 on 25 March). Also phers have come together with great new dance talents playing are Kölsch, Pig & Dan, Joseph Capriati and Pan-Pot. to produce a series of fastpaced performances with dif- The second night is all about ferent styles and personalities Swedish techno with sets by Ida – such as Itamar Serussi’s hilar- Engberg and Adam Beyer and a two-hour finale with the two ious dance language, and DJs playing a back-to-back set Marcos Morau’s more narrative take on dance – which fill to carry us into Daylight Savings – and the actual chocolate hunt. the stage in dizzying succession. It’s not often you can call 25-26 MARCH Gashouder, Westergasfabriek  ballet a rollercoaster ride. www.awakenings.nl 20 MARCH Stadsschouwburg, Leidseplein SOUNDS OF THE UN26  DERGROUND FESTIVAL www.scapinoballet.com SOTU is a staple of musical counter-culture, with a music VONDELFESTIVAL festival that celebrates not only A discovery tour of Vondelindependent music (noise, prog, park that’s all cloak and dagfolk, avant jazz, hardcore, elecgers: visitors must say the code word to the guard to re- tronica and bass), but also the ceive the mysterious itinerary independent art community, by that will take them around the inviting curators and collectives park’s buildings and artworks. that bring their diverse knowledge and common passion for After an early dinner (17:30) at Vondelpark 3, the audience international underground culture. Visual installations accomwill follow the secret route, and be able to enjoy a variety pany the musical performances, and dinners and other social of performances of different events are also organised for disciplines, from dance and cabaret to classical music and debate and networking opportunities. theatre, before the closing 20-24 APRIL party at the Hollandsche Various locations Manege. www.sotufestival.com 23 APRIL Vondelpark  www.theaterinhuis.nl

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PART III ADVERTORIAL

STEP INTO THE WORLD OF DUTCH MASTERS

An exciting new exhibition that offers a first-hand experience of the masters of art opens this month in Madame Tussauds Amsterdam.

I AM ART Amsterdam is the city of art. With over 50 museums and exhibitions, it is the ultimate destination of every art lover. On 15 March 2016, Madame Tussauds Amsterdam will start an art project of its own: I Am Art. In this exciting new area, visitors to the waxworks attraction will literally be part of the biggest masterpieces ever made. Interactive sets make I Am Art a unique and rare event. You can be part of the artworks and stand next to the wax figures of the biggest masters that ever lived, such as Dutch artists Rembrandt van Rijn, Piet Mondriaan and Vincent van Gogh. The spotlight also falls on icons Salvador DalĂ­, Pablo Picasso and other international masters. Visitors have a big part to play in this new show, stepping into artworks, creating their own paintings in the exhibition of rock legend and artist Herman Brood, or joining the worldfamous Mona Lisa in her frame. These are just some of the activities on offer.

With lots of photo opportunities, interactive surprises, modern technologies and thrilling details, I Am Art is an absolute must-see!

Madame Tussauds Amsterdam Dam 20 www.madametussauds.nl

mar & apr 2016

PART III

EAT DRINK CHIC

‘IT’S GREAT THAT AMSTERDAM THROWS EVENTS WHICH FOCUS ON IMPORTANT ISSUES LIKE SUSTAINABILITY.’

36 42 44 46 49 51

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NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH: WESTERPARK EATING OUT ON THE MENU PRETTY THINGS WHAT’S IN STORE COLUMN

PENSION HOMELAND The Marineterrein has existed for 350 years, and was originally a huge shipyard which closed its gates in 1915. In addition to the historical buildings, including the lovely Gate House (now classified a national monument), new accommodations were constructed in the 1960s for Marine officers during their Amsterdam stay. Pension Homeland, a hotel-restaurant that opened its doors last summer, is housed in the building that welcomed the officers. The common longroom, where the Marines used to relax, play billiards, or throw swanky parties in their white uniforms, has been transformed into the hotel’s restaurant, which is open from breakfast to dinner and serves polished European fare such as Dutch Oysters, Deer Wellington and Mandarin Trifle. What’s really worth the detour is the authentic 1960s décor, from the pop artwork hanging on the wood-panelled walls to the colourful furniture.

Pension Homeland Kattenburgerstraat 5 www.pensionhomeland.nl

© ARJEN VELDT FOTOGRAFIE

Sharon Otten and Ilona Stoel, fashion students attending Amsterdam Fashion Week

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

Neighbourhood watch

neighbourhood watch

WESTERPARK

FATIMA ZAHRA NOUZI, 27 Stylist at Gustafson

‘In the summer, I come here almost every day and sit by the canal to enjoy the sun and the water, or to have a picnic. And there is always something great going on: a festival, a fair, a party. I love this place so much.’

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Right where the centre dissolves into residential West, odd-couple Westerpark and Westergasfabriek form a peaceful yet thrilling oasis. text & photos Marie-Charlotte Pezé map Monique Wijbrands/SaltyStock

Where nature meets culture

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msterdam’s parks stick to a tried and true formula: a mildly tamed natural look, ponds inhabited by hungry ducks, lonely herons and angry water hens, and vast expanses of manicured lawn where people can spread picnic blankets on sunny days. Of a kindred spirit but more human-sized than big brothers Vondelpark and Rembrandtpark, Westerpark is a welcome break at the end of Haarlemmerdijk, where the effervescence of the city centre meets the more residential Western District. A peaceful abode, the park’s romantic centrepiece is a pond with a fountain, surrounded by benches and framed by centenarian trees and willows that rake at the ground.

Elderly locals stop their bikes for a quiet chat while throwing bread to the seagulls, and families walk their dogs or watch their kids scoot along the winding dirt paths. ‘It’s such a peaceful and beautiful place,’ says Jeva Koop who has lived in the neighbouring Westelijk Eilanden for the past two years with her boyfriend and their dog, who loves the dogwalk where he can get off his leash.

Westerpark was actually the first municipal park of Amsterdam,

originally named Westerplantsoen (Western Garden). It was constructed in 1845 in this emerging working-class neighbourhood as a breath of fresh air from the industrial pollution of the growing city. In 1891, the garden was torn down to make room for the relocated Western Canal, and today’s Westerpark was born. Behind it still stand the old gasworks, the largest gas extraction plant of the Netherlands at the end of the 19th Century, which closed down in 1967 after natural gas was discovered in the North Sea. Designed by renown architect Isaac Gosschalk in popular Dutch Neo-Renaissance style, the 13 remaining buildings of the gas plant were used as storage until they gained the status of national monuments in 1989. As new life was infused into the area by artists flocking to exhibit their work in the beautiful red-bricked, uncannily symmetrical buildings, the municipality turned its attention to cleaning up the grounds, which were heavily polluted with by-products of gas production: tar, cyanide and other mineral oils. It took years to rid the soil of the toxic substances, but envisioning a larger park made sense as

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neighbourhood watch

PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

The Westergasfabriek has become the venue of choice for monumental events where international crowds will flock the area was growing in popularity, and the adjacent neighbourhoods of Spaarndammerbuurt and Staatsliedenbuurt, officially part of the ‘Westerpark’ neighbourhood, were gentrifying and developing a cultural life of their own. Museum Het Schip (The Ship), a magnificent example of Amsterdam School of architecture, opened in 2001.

A CULTURAL POWERHOUSE In 2003, the vision of Kathryn Gustafson, the American landscape architect who was hired to remodel the area, was finally completed: traditional Westerpark was extended into the Westergasfabriek, with a modern pond where children can play on summer days while their parents rest on the concrete beach or nearby sprawling lawn. Trees were planted and alleys drawn along the historical buildings, whose artistic, avant-garde momentum of the 90s was respected: the Westergasfabriek has become a powerhouse of culture and entertainment, with an easygoing and independent flair. Since 2010, under the helm of director Mark de Kruijk, it has become home to as many small, local pop-up events as huge international festivals. That’s what is most fabulous about the place: it will welcome crafts markets such as the Sunday Market Amsterdam (every first Sunday of the month) and locals’s favourite NeighbourhoodFood Market, but it has also become the venue of choice for monumental events where international crowds will flock, such as Amsterdam Fashion Week and the Unseen Photo Fair, hosted in the stunning and unique metal cylinder Gashouder. ‘How wonderful that the Meijer family saved these buildings from demolition,’ says De Kruijk.

‘There are so many great spots here: enjoy

THEATER AMSTERDAM Overlooking the IJ River on the Houthaven, the giant glass building opened its doors in 2014 for the premiere of Anne, its trademark musical about Anne Frank’s life in the Annex. After a swinging two year run, the play yields the stage to their new production, Sky, the fictional story of a teenage girl who deals with her complicated issues in her dream life. A new creation by producer Robin de Levita, songwriter John Ewbank and famous singer Marco Borsato, the show – which will boast amazing decors and 3D projections – promises to be another success.

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Danzigerkade 5 www.theateramsterdam.nl

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© JOCHEM VAN GRUNSVEN

BAK RESTAURANT Bak has a classy flair, with its wood-panelling and breathtaking views over the harbour, but the atmosphere is casual and friendly. The fixed three-, five- or seven-course menus change every day, at the whims of the market’s freshest products. Bak’s mission is to serve high-quality, locallygrown, sustainable foods.

Whatever the catch of the day, the word on the street is that your taste buds will never leave disappointed.

Van Diemenstraat 408 www.bakrestaurant.nl

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GUSTAFSON This is one pop-up hotspot we’ll be sad to lose when it closes its doors in September. In the meantime, their agenda is filled with exciting stuff, from chair massage days to open mic nights. The space also accommodates a a café-restaurant which will indulge a craving for fries or a hankering for caviar, and an out-of-this-world hotel where you can experience alternative sleeping in a tent or a Stack Mad capsule.

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Haarlemmerweg 8 www.gustafson.amsterdam

NORTH SEA JAZZ CLUB The North Sea Jazz Club is one of the prides and joys of the Westergasfabriek, with a regular line-up of fabulous musical talents that span the promising up-and-comers to the old timers of jazz, funk, soul and world music. With its dark, low-ceiling look, colourful lighting and swanky bar, the place’s ambiance is as smooth as the music. They also regularly host lunch and dinner concerts.

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Pazzanistraat 1 www.northseajazzclub.nl

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neighbourhood watch

PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

HET KETELHUIS At its origins in 1999, the Ketelhuis was dedicated to Dutch cinema. Today, after a huge renovation in 2006, it is a staple art-house cinema of Amsterdam, which also shows many European films, American documentaries and other international and independent film-making jewels which you’d be hard pressed to find on other silver screens. Their brightly-lit hall doubles as a café, so you can enjoy some delicious coffee and carrot cake while waiting for showtime.

MARKTKANTINE

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Pazzanistraat 4 www.ketelhuis.nl

BROUWERIJ TROOST The brewers offer a large selection of home-made beers: Lager, Weizen, Amber Ale, Honey Blonde, Triple, Buck, Smoked Porter, and a bunch of IPAs. And they even make their own gin! They rent their boilers to small independent brewers, so their menu is always full of surprises – in addition to staple foods made with local products, such as burgers, salads and cheesecake, for those much-needed breaks between bottles. The staff is really friendly, like the atmosphere.

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Pazzanistraat 25-27 www.brouwerijtroostwestergas.nl

CAFÉ-RESTAURANT AMSTERDAM This beloved factory-sized café used to be the engine room of the pumping station for the water that came to Amsterdam from the dunes at Vogelenzang.

Following the trend of repurposing industrial buildings for entertainment, the station was renovated in the 1980s and leased since 1996 to Café-Restaurant Amsterdam. The result is a monumental dining room with airy high ceilings. While service is more efficient than warm (or as warm as the sunlight that pours through the gargantuan windows), the menu is worthy of the best Parisian bistros, with rillettes, steak tartare, cassoulet and a great selection of fresh seafood.

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Watertorenplein 6 www.caferestaurantamsterdam.nl

Back in the 1930s, Marktkantine was the cafeteria where merchants from the neighbouring giant wholesale food market took their lunch break.

Since then, it’s also been a theatre and a nightclub, and in 2014 the large blocky building rounded up its artistic foundations to launch a huge creative beehive that’s as much of a club, theatre and performance stage as a regular space for fashion shows, vintage markets and masterclasses – and even a hub of working spaces for artists. Their restaurant, Graceland BBQ, is open for lunch and dinner, and serves some of the juiciest ribs and pulled meats in town.

Jan van Galenstraat 6 www.marktkantine.nl

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ANA CASTAN, 33 Entrepreneur from Spain

‘I come here to walk my dog every day. In Spain, the parks aren’t this huge, so I’m really glad I moved into this neighbourhood – which is very safe, even at night.’

amazing coffee at the Espressofabriek and De Bakkerswinkel, a delicious lunch at the Algerian Rainarai, or some fresh seafood at Mossel & Gin.’ Permanent fixtures of the culture park also include trendy bars (Troost Brewery for beer lovers, Wester Wijnfabriek for the wine aficionados) and a slew of entertainment venues: art-house cinema Het Ketelhuis, dance club WesterUnie, the North Sea Jazz Club – which boasts a fabulous line-up of musicians year-round – and the DutchView TV studios where ultra-

24 HOUR WEST

JEVA KOOP, 19, AND LEON OSWALD, 21 Students at UVA

‘We’ve lived on the Westelijk Eilanden for two years now and we love it. The park is such a peaceful and beautiful place, and the Westergasfabriek always has something great on the agenda.’

popular live show De Wereld Draait Door (The World Goes On) is produced.

‘I can’t tell you which is my favourite event, because we host about 250 every year,’ adds De Kruijk. ‘But I like when they combine in- and outdoor elements, and if we have a real mix of visitors: young and old, families, locals and international.’ Mission accomplished, as the tranquility of the quaint old park fades perfectly into its delightful neighbour of a village, like a marriage of convenience that naturally turned into true love.

12-13 MARCH 12:00-12:00

Amsterdam West takes centre stage during 24H West on 12 & 13 March: explore the neighbourhood while enjoying a whirlwind of activities. Gastronomers can make Bao buns at Happyhappyjoyjoy, and visit pickle factory Kesbeke and sausage ‘kings’ Brandt & Levie.

History buffs are invited to hear stories of centuries past at Vredenhof cemetery, or for a tour of Museum Het Schip. Budding artists can participate in the giant community canvas at De Hallen, and Erasmuspark will delight all ears with an afternoon of performances by renown singer-songwriters. www.iamsterdam.com

DE NIEUWE ANITA Often heralded as one of the best cocktail bars in town, this out-of-the-way spot hides its game (and its sizable space) on an innocuous residential street in Oud West. In their unassuming décor of heterogeneous vintage furniture that’s more charming than willy-nilly, they not only serve the best mojitos in town but also offer a programme of entertainment that’s as varied as fun, with concerts, comedy nights, three-course dinners, and quirky special events such as fundraisers for abandoned puppies.

Frederik Hendrikstraat 111 www.denieuweanita.nl

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

EATING OUT

Our top dining options, from firm favourites to precocious newcomers.

eating out

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text Karin Engelbrecht

AL NINÈN

NEW © JWSPHOTO.COM

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Westerstraat 77 www.alninen.com

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The region of EmiliaRomagna in Northern Italy is home to local specialities that define Italian cuisine worldwide, such as Parma ham, Parmesan cheese, balsamic vinegar, and pastas such as lasagne, tortelloni and tortellini.

This new Italian- owned trattoria and deli in the Jordaan doesn’t disappoint the palates eager to capture that authentic taste. There’s delicate tagliatelline in brodo with shaved truffle, and hearty lasagne Bolognese, made the traditional way with besciamella sauce and rich, meaty ragout which, we’re told, is slow-cooked for six hours (small €8, large €12) according to the custom of di mama. Don’t miss the toasted tigella (round stone-baked sandwiches from Modena), topped with mascarpone, honey and walnuts, or Italian charcuterie and cheese (€4.80). But don’t expect anything fancy: the décor is unfussy and rustic, with only two tables in the back and a few bar stools by the kitchen. The walls are lined with regional wines, Venchi chocolates, and oils, vinegars and preserves from small Emilian producers.

There’s also a brick-faced deli counter bursting with Italian hams, where you can purchase take-away meals.

43 trendy PAPER PLANES Head to this ‘travelling rockstar breakfast bar’ (see Facebook for current location) for fancy egg and soldiers, smashed avo on toast, hot oats, fluffy American pancakes, acai berry bowls or other ‘LA food’ favourites. When we visited, it was hosted at chic Nacional brasserie near Leidseplein, where we rubbed shoulders with a fashionable mix of trendy travellers, hard-toplease expats and the after-party brunch crowd.

© HOTZE EISMA

Changing locations Look for Paper Planes on www.facebook.com

critic’s choice DE KAS

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his Watergraafsmeer institution has delighted diners for over a decade with its unfailing farm-to-table food that’s so impossibly fresh-tasting because it’s grown only a few feet away. The clue’s in the name: ‘the greenhouse’ is set in a stylishly renovated former municipal nursery with towering glass ceilings and leafy park views. The set three-course menu (€49.50) is based on the day’s harvest from the on-site nursery and herb garden. Meat and fish play a supporting role as there’s a particular emphasis on seasonal fruit and vegetables, cooked with a light, bright Mediterranean touch and the odd Dutch twist.

Kamerlingh Onneslaan 3 www.restaurantdekas.nl

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classic ELKAAR

quick & simple MASTINO PIZZA For authentic thin-crust wood-oven pizza, look no further. We can’t get enough of the Tropea’s Queen, with smoked ham, onion and mozzarella, and the ‘Nduja, with its spicy Calabrian sausage paste, tomato and buffalo mozzarella. There’s also a vegetable option with vegan cheese and a choice of flours (traditional Italian, spelt, multigrain or soya).

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Eerste van der Helststraat 78H Look for Mastino Pizza on www.facebook.com

In 1811 Napoleon rode victoriously through the neoclassical Muiderpoort city gate with his entourage, and promptly demanded refreshments. If he’d done so today, he would’ve found a charming nearby restaurant where he might have dined on lobster bisque with lime foam, venison fillet with morel sauce and molten chocolate cake with pistachio ice cream ( €37 for a three-course Bib Gourmand menu). This petite Plantagebuurt restaurant is the perfect setting for date nights, with its classic candlelit tables set far enough apart for whispered conversations about sweet nothings… or world domination. Ask for the upstairs window seat, which has a view of that storied city gate.

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Alexanderplein 6 www.etenbijelkaar.nl

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ON THE MENU

Three of a kind to suit every taste. text Karin Engelbrecht

shop & eat

laptop-friendly

eggs benedict

THULL’S

VOLKSHOTEL WERKPLAATS

5&33

This one-stop fermented food shop is the place to stock up on house-made pickles and preserves and then stay for lunch: options include fava bean hummus on sourdough bread with mixed pickles, and Beluga lentil salad with feta and pickled beets. Wash it down with healthy (and surprisingly yummy) home-made probiotic drinks.

Pretoriusstraat 69 www.thulls.nl

DAILY Hidden in the basement of the Magna Plaza shopping centre is an outpost of popular Dutch brand Sissy Boy, with an in-store café that offers egg muffins with bacon, tuna melt paninis, and scones with jam and clotted cream, along with other breakfast and lunch options, as well as espresso-based drinks, fresh ginger and mint teas and organic juices.

Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 182 www.sissy-boy.com

MINIMARKT Stop off at this kiddies concept store in Oud-Zuid to refuel on organic sandwiches and salads, house-made madeleines or a cappuccino, while your toddler lives it up at the train table in the adjacent play area. Then, shop for children’s clothing and accessories by brands such as Ferm living, Emile et Ida, Jellycat and I Dig Denim.

Beethovenstraat 5A www.minimarkt-store.com

This laid-back lobby bar/coworking-space at the street level of the 3-star ‘hotel of the people’ is always buzzing with cool creative types. A recent renovation successfully combined a rough-hewn urban aesthetic with plenty of vintage and quirky touches from the building’s former life as a newspaper office, for an atmosphere that’s potently Amsterdam.

Wibautstraat 150 www.volkshotel.nl

HUTSPOT Lovers of Dutch food may be disappointed that the name here does not refer to the native mash-up of veg and potato, but to the eclectic mix of eco-friendly fashion and hip homewares.

Instead, the in-store café serves French fare, from pain au chocolat to quiche, and Provencal salad to salmon rillettes sandwiches and cherry clafoutis.

Rozengracht 204-210 www.hutspotamsterdam.com

CT COFFEE & COCONUTS The local laptop set hunch over hanging tables at this renovated cinema. The high ceilings offer plenty of room for all those big ideas, while the beachy colour scheme keeps stress levels down. Unsurprisingly, the menu offers coconut-lime bread, coffee and coconut pancakes and coconut juice.

Ceintuurbaan 282-284 www.ctamsterdam.nl

There’s a Bloody Mary Brunch (every Sunday from 12:00 til 18:00) in the designy dining lounge of the art’otel. Choose from three types of eggs Benedict (with ham, spinach or salmon) and five varieties of Bloody Mary (try the Smokin’ Mary, with vodka, tomato juice, liquid smoke, tabasco and pickled green beans).

Martelaarsgracht 5 www.5and33.nl

PLUK This healthy-eating hideyhole is always appetisingly styled with picture-perfect baskets of fruit and veg, beautiful baked goods, and hip homewares by brands such as Bloomingville and Broste. Bring your saladloving sweetheart, so you can tuck into your eggs in peace; they come with a croissant, home-made jam, orange juice and coffee.

Reestraat 19 www.pluk9straatjes.nl

CONSERVATORIUM BRASSERIE Prefer your eggs with ham and black truffle and a helping of high-end architecture? Head to this stylish brasserie set in the interior courtyard of a former Conservatory of Music, spectacularly renovated by architect Piero Lissoni, who married 19th-century neo-Gothic with modern design.

Van Baerlestraat 27 www.conservatoriumhotel.com

on the menu

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FLOWER POWER Blooming marvellous

ceous marigolds. While at BAK, there’s the vegetarian joy of soy and mirin-glazed aubergine punctuated by peppery nasturtium flowers. Or you can spruce up your own dishes with Van Mourik Versmarkt’s multi-coloured punnet of pansies (€5.99).

VORK & MES Paviljoenlaan 1, Hoofddorp www.vorkenmes.nl RESTAURANT BAK Van Diemenstraat 408 www.bakrestaurant.nl BRIDGES Oudezijds Voorburgwal 197 www.bridgesrestaurant.nl DE VERSMARKT Albert Cuypstraat 137

© HOTZE EISMA

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t’s not just Dutch fields that are springing into bloom this time of year. Edible flowers are perking up plates at restaurants all over Amsterdam. Chef Jonathan Karpathios, who grows some 200 crops on over 2,500m2 of land for his restaurant Vork & Mes, says he doesn’t have a favourite flower to cook with, but lets the harvest, season and his menu determine which blooms he’ll use to add colour and flavour to the plate, instead. So, for instance, he says, ‘It’s nice to use violets with a dessert, because the taste of honey in the flower [really complements the sweet flavours].’ At a recent visit to Bridges, we enjoyed baked langoustine with goat’s cheese, aromatic elderflower cream and herba-

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

pretty things

PRETTY THINGS Purses at the ready: these tempting stores will have you reaching for your credit card.

© MAX VERSTAPPEN

text Elisah Jacobs

ZOE KARSSEN

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NEW IN TOWN

The fashion label of Amsterdam-based Zoe and Quince Karssen finally has its own store, in the middle of the Nine Streets area, which means fashionistas can now find the complete collection of T-shirts, sweatshirts, dresses and jackets under one roof.

Liven up your look with fun prints that include tongue-in-

cheek quotes such as ‘I’m so rock and roll right now’ or ‘Mrs Cool’, as well as red lips, bats and even cute ghosts (for those who wish to release their inner Ghostbuster).

You’ll also discover the label’s newest kid in town: Unicorn Tears, an eau de parfum that has been named after their most popular print.

Good to know: the fashion brand organises a sample sale

once a year, during which you can shop the collection with lots of fabulous discounts.



Reestraat 9 www.zoekarssen.com

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leather HISMANNERS It’s all about leather at HISMANNERS. The timeless material is everywhere in this new shop of Amsterdam’s Oud-West neighbourhood – even the walls are made from leather, which gives the building, in combination with the steel staircase and the sturdy wooden bar, that typical industrial touch. Another eye-catcher is the tattoo art, including a poem from Yuki Kempees, which you’ll find on that same leather wall. HISMANNERS sells brands such as Amsterdam Cowboys, Henry London, Laimböck, Mujjo, Senz, The Bridge and Tumi.

homey

Eerste Van der Helststraat 1D www.hismanners.nl

MADE.COM



The temporary showroom that graced one of the city’s canals last summer was a hit.

No wonder the British design brand searched for a permanent spot to expose its collection of affordable furniture and interior accessories made by (inter)national designers. See, feel and try MADE.com’s collection and, if you can’t get that green velvet couch out of your head, you can purchase it directly on one of the in-store iMacs. Don’t want to leave? Hairdresser Bubblekid and coffee bar Lot Sixty One are also housed in the same building.



Overtoom 141 www.made.com

natural beauty L:A BRUKET This Swedish beauty brand is available in fashion store We Are Labels. Located at the front of the store, this shop-in-shop makes for a great entrance. Lots of beauty stuff to be found here: from hand soap, (body) scrubs, body butters and shaving cream to scented candles, highly fashionable iron water (!) and even washing-up liquid to match that fancy kitchen of yours. L:A Bruket only sells products based on natural ingredients such as sea salt, beeswax and seaweed.

Raadhuisstraat 46-50 www.labruket.se

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WHAT’S IN STORE Fashion-forward style – for him (M) and her (F)

     

text Elisah Jacobs

NESPRESSO (M/F)

THE PELICAN STUDIO (M/F)

Coffee lovers now have two new Nespresso stores in Amsterdam to indulge in their caffeine craving. The most central one can be found on a side street off Kalverstraat.

Extend your coffee stash with new, limitededition capsules (try the Umutima from Rwanda, or the Tanim from Mexico for sure!), or splurge on a retro KitchenAid Nespresso machine. What else?

The Pelican Studio is a store inspired by the eighties Miami vibe (think plenty of pastel colours). The sickly-sweet staircase makes for a great entrance to their huge collection of brands like Maison Kitsuné, Ami, ETQ, Norse Projects, Won Hundred and Samsoe & Samsoe. Regret not buying that cute dress? Don’t worry: The Pelican Studio also has an online shop.

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Heiligeweg 21-25 Gelderlandplein 114 www.nespresso.com



Raadhuisstraat 35 www.thepelicanstudio.com

BOLIA (M/F) The new Bolia store stocks furniture and interior accessories created by designers from all over the world. Unique pieces for the home are easy to find among the minimalistic Danish designs and other stylish and functional items. Bolia is also a great place to garner interior inspiration. Order a cup of organic coffee, try the comfy chairs and listen to the music playing from the speakers. You won’t actually want to leave…

Utrechtsestraat 78 www.bolia.com

CHOCOLADEWINKEL (M/F))) Chocolate, healthy? At Mumu it really is; they put vitamin elixirs in it. You can choose from vitamin B, D3, Q10 and Chromium. All chocolate is dairy-free, but it tastes just as good as the normal stuff – maybe even better. Our favourites? The chocolates with pecan nuts, seeds, espresso and macadamia. A good excuse to have just another piece, right?



Eerste Jacob van Campenstraat 33 www.mumuvitaminchocolates.com

OGER (M/F)

MIDNIGHTIN.AMSTERDAM (M/F)

This luxury brand for men has been well known in Amsterdam for years. Oger sells suits that will fit every budget, and they also recently opened up a new custom-tailored section with 250m2 of suits and great fabrics. Choose from fabrics by Dormeuil, Ariston and Loro Piana, or shop brands such as Attolini, Brioni and Caruso.

Don’t worry, ladies; there’s also a store for women, Oger Donna, which you’ll find a bit further along on the same street.

P.C. Hooftstraat 75 www.oger.nl



A unique concept: an inspiring shop window in the middle of De Pijp, and a web shop where you can buy all the items on display. All products are inspired by Amsterdam: colourful cushions printed with typical Amsterdam canal houses from the brand V @ Amsterdam, beautiful illustrations made by the British artist Joseph Segaran, or Midnight’s own brand of Delft blue pillow cases. A great place to shop for a fancy souvenir.





Daniel Stalpertstraat 106 www.midnightin.amsterdam

YAY HEALTH STORE & MORE (M/F)



Gerard Doustraat 74 (shop) Albert Cuypstraat 101-103 (café)

© TRISTAN MELANO

A super healthy hotspot. Indulge in banana pancakes, coconut yoghurt with nuts, kale salad and green wraps in the Raw Food Café, or shop in the store for organic goodies like scented beeswax candles, Yak Woollies scarves from Nepal and even organic condoms from Fair Squared.

GASSAN (M/F) Diamonds are forever, and now everywhere too. Gassan is celebrating the opening of their new store on posh P.C. Hooftstraat, the perfect home for this stylish boutique that marries international appeal with an intimate atmosphere.

Their magnificent collection of jewellery is on display along with pieces by other prestigious brands such as Al Coro, Utopia and Audemars Piguet.

P.C. Hooftstraat 84 www.gassan.com

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PART III EAT, DRINK & CHIC

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PART III

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EAT, DRINK & CHIC

When in Amsterdam…

After two decades here, native New Yorker Lauren Comiteau is still working out how to ‘go Dutch’.

DUTCH PRONUNCIATION: DON’T TRY IT AT HOME

A

Lauren Comiteau is a journalist and writer who has been covering the Netherlands for TIME magazine, CBS Radio and others since 1996. She lives in Amsterdam with her two daughters.

s I was driving my daughter to yet another hockey game in yet another Dutch town whose name I could barely pronounce, I was caught off guard by Candy, the voice of our GPS system, whose poor Dutch pronunciation trumps even mine. Yes, as her given name implies, she’s set to American English, but when Candy told us to take a right onto Kenetti-lan, I thought I’d taken a wrong turn into Little Italy. Ah—Kennedylaan, an über-American name you’d think she’d be able to pronounce. Next up, Amstel-ditcht, aka Amsteldijk, pronounced Amstel-dike.

Dutch pronunciation for English speakers can be as hard to navigate as the Red Light’s Lilliputian streets. Almost every vowel becomes its opposite, as the English A-E-I-O-U becomes Ah-A-E-O-Ooh in translation. I learned that when I first touched down on Dutch shores and immediately discovered that my last name contains every vowel. I’ve spent the past 20 years spelling it out phonetically.

‘Dutch is a terrible language,’ says my daughter’s tutor. In addition to difficult sentence structure, she cites pronunciation as a perpetual problem for non-natives, especially the r, g and sch sounds.

Did I not mention that the Dutch r carries class distinctions? And that sometimes it’s

trilled (another linguistic feat I never mastered in high school Spanish)? As for the g and sch, they’re both extremely guttural. As one website puts it: g and sch are pronounced similar to ch but make ‘a sound like [when] you clear your throat. There is no sound like it in English.’

So if you need to pronounce Van Gogh, and likely you will, my advice is to practice with some rocks in your mouth. Or the city’s increasingly available ice cubes. I will spare you the gory details of Dutch vowel combinations here as I’m limited in my word count, but suffice it to say the eu sound, as in reus (rose), and the ui as in uil (owl) are linguistic feats worthy of gold medals. If you are in the west of the city, remember that oo is pronounced as an English long o, as in the arterial Overtoom (pronounced Overtome), where you are likely to be doing some serious shopping, dining and/ or drinking.

And don’t fret it. Even if you botch it up beyond belief, chances are that Amsterdamers will happily guide you to where you’re going.

My favorite blunder? The young American who asked my friend for directions to Led Zeppelein (pronounced pline). ‘Excuse me?’ she asked. ‘You know; the Rembrandtplein, the Led Zeppelein…,’ he clarified.

She had him at the Leidseplein in no time.

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PART IV

THE

mar & apr 2016

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FESTIVALS/MUSIC/ CLUBBING/EXHIBITIONS/ STAGE/SPORTS/FAMILY/ GAY & LESBIAN

>

For complete listings, see www.iamsterdam.com

POP ARTS FESTIVAL

14-24 APRIL Theater Bellevue, Jeugdtheater de Krakeling and Ostade A’dam www.popartsfestival.nl

© ARTWORK KOCHXBOS

Despite its moniker, the Pop Arts Festival is actually an 11-day, three-venue event focusing on local and international puppetry.

Forget Sesame Street and Punch and Judy; think Japanese kabuki, Russian and Czech marionettes and Turkish shadow puppets.

‘There’s not much of a puppet tradition in the Netherlands,’ says artist Ulrike Quade, who calls her company a puppet theatre for adults. ‘My mission is to integrate puppets more and more into theatre, dance and all the disciplines, so it’s one form.’ After her recent success, Quade is once again organising the festival’s opening night, ‘Puppet Explosion’, at the Theater Bellevue, which she describes as an ‘animated party’ with music, dance and puppet acts in addition to the usual drinks and DJ.

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PART IV THE A-LIST

FESTIVALS & EVENTS FESTIVALS & EVENTS CINEMASIA FILM FESTIVAL This annual film festival makes a welcome return with more groundbreaking films from Asia.

One particular focus of the 2016 edition is Chinese-language movies.

1-6 Mar, Kriterion, Rialto, Pakhuis de Zwijger, www.cinemasia.nl

CINEDANS This international dance and movie festival features short and full-length dance films, documentaries, installations and a special children’s programme.

16-20 Mar, EYE Filmmuseum, www.cinedans.nl

Choice festivals

CINÉMA ARABE This Dutch film festival, based in both Amsterdam and Rotterdam, showcases the best of contemporary Arab cinema and provides a fresh look at life in the Arab world. Film screenings are interspersed with director interviews, debates and other special events.

19-24 Apr, Rialto, www.cinemaarabe.nl

EUROPA CULINAIR Treat yourself to a taste of Europe during this culinary event in Amsterdam Noord. Visit a SOTU FESTIVAL host of kitchens serving the most delicious food and drinks, With events held across the city, from Cretan olive oil to Hungarthis three-day festival focuses THE SPIRIT OF AMSTERDAM ian goulash. As well as food by on alternative and independent This international celebration of 28 top European chefs, look out music culture in a variety of whisky allows fans of the amber for tasting experiences, inspiraincarnations. Expect a gloristuff to sample more than 500 tional travel info and live music. ously underground experience types from not only Scotland 18-20 Mar, Kromhouthal, with plenty of noise, indie rock, IMAGINE FILM FESTIVAL and Ireland but also the USA, www.europaculinair.eu psychedelia, avant-garde, bass Japan, India and Taiwan. Expect music, improv jazz and underThe Imagine Film Festival is a home to fantastic ideas and ANTIQUE, VINTAGE, ART delicious drinks and a warm atground dance. creative filmmaking. While the festival still features the very & DESIGN FAIR mosphere to match, with tasting 20-24 Apr, various locations, best international horror releases, it has broadened its taste sessions and masterclasses led Enjoy a fantastic shopping www.sotufestival.com to include fantasy, cult, animé, experimental and science ficby whisky experts. experience in the atmospheric tion. This year’s theme is ‘Building Dreams and Nightmares’, SPRINGSNOW FESTIVAL 5 Mar, Zuiderkerk, www.thesPosthoornkerk. Some 35 selland in addition to dozens of long and short films, directors piritofamsterdam.com ers will be participating in the Every year, Amsterdam’s elm Antique, Vintage, Art & Design trees scatter a blanket of blosare invited to discuss their work in symposiums. And, for ROZE FILMDAGEN Fair, offering up a variety of rare, som over the city’s streets: a hard core horror fans, there’s always the annual Night of With its top-draw programbeautiful and occasionally unphenomenon that has come to Terror at Pathé Tuschinski. ming, the festival has earned an usual wares. be known as ‘spring snow’.

14-26 Apr, EYE Filmmuseum, www.imaginefilmfestival.nl excellent reputation amongst 18-20 Mar, Posthoornkerk, This celebration of spring its visitors, as well as with filmwww.stadsherstel.nl includes a walking route past POP ARTS FESTIVAL some of the country’s most makers and festivals abroad. the city’s elm highlights, AMSTERDAM COFFEE legendary techno events and Subtitled the Amsterdam exhibitions and side Contrary to what you may FESTIVAL they’re back to help you kickLGBTQ Film Festival, its aim is programmes. expect, the annual Pop Arts start your Easter! to highlight all aspects of quality Spilling its beans for the third 21 Apr-21 May, various Festival presents the latest 24-27 Mar, Westergasfabriek, LGBTQ cinema for a broad time, the Amsterdam Coffee locations, www.springsnow.nl developments in the world of www.awakenings.com audience: feature films, docuFestival typically features more international puppet and object OPERA OP STRAAT mentaries and shorts, which are than 100 artisan roasters, equiptheatre, dance, mime and visual DGTL FESTIVAL typically missing from regular ment makers, gourmet food A colourful operatic concept artistry. The festival hits town Fans of top-notch beats are in cinematic programming. stalls and more. with a difference: a one-off for 10 days of action spread for a treat this Easter as more 10-20 Mar, Ketelhuis/West18-20 Mar, Westergasfabriek, performance taking place over the three festival locations ergasfabriek, www.rozefilmwww.amsterdamcoffeefestival. than 80 artists and DJs descend (Theater Bellevue, De Krakeling outdoors on the Bredeweg on on the city’s former industrial dagen.nl com King’s Night. The performance and Ostade A’dam), staging docklands to pump out some of grotesque puppet shows, bizarre typically features members of LONDON CALLING ST. PATRICK’S IRISH FESTIVAL the best underground electronithe Netherlands Philharmonic animations and challenging 2016 ca in the world today.

A favourite of music lovers in Orchestra and Chamber Choir, miniatures.

26 & 27 Mar, NDSM-Werf, Amsterdam, taking place twice a If you had dyed-green canals, 14-24 April, various locations, as well as locals from the neighwww.dgtl.nl year in Paradiso, London Calling bad wigs and floods of Guinbourhood and students of the www.popartsfestival.nl showcases a collection of bands ness in mind, think again: this Dutch National Opera Academy.

RESTAURANT WEEK NATIONALE MUSEUMWEEK who’re tipped to make it big, Dutch-Irish cultural celebration 26 Apr, Bredeweg, ww.bredeAMSTERDAM Actually running for longer along with a few more who’re is a tad more sophisticated. weg festival.nl/opera making a comeback: pop, Taking place all day long, there’s than a week, this biannual event Expanded from a weekend to BREDEWEGFESTIVAL rock, electronic and beyond. In everything from traditional Irish sees the city present its culinary a whole week, this event sees bounty to offer memorable this edition, look out for Joan dancing, folk music, film screenCharacterised by a familymuseums all around the Nethmouthfuls at cheap, forgettable erlands organise unique events Shelly, Palehound and Ultimate ings, a chance to watch the friendly vibe, the Bredeweg Painting.

Ireland v. Scotland rugby match, prices. The idea is simple: eat, Festival in Amsterdam-Oost and lower ticket prices, inviting 11 & 12 Mar, Paradiso, www. plus a live performance by Liam drink and be merry at no added is a bustling street fiesta visitors to check out what they expense. It’s a great opportunity londoncalling.nl Ó Maonlaí. featuring a street market, are all about. With admission to sample some of the city’s 19 Mar, Splendor, www.splenfair, theatre performances being reduced to as little as €1 at 24H WEST finest dining venues. The wealth many of Amsterdam’s museums, doramsterdam.com and concerts. of participating establishments From noon on Saturday till There’s live music of all it’s the ideal time to visit.

OPEN TOWER DAY traditionally includes Michenoon on Sunday, the West disstyles spread over a series 16-24 Apr, various locatons, lin-starred restaurants, lauded trict is overflowing with fun and Experience new views of Amof stages, great food to keep ww.nationalemuseumweek.nl celebrity dining haunts and often unusual events. Theatres, sterdam during this popular the energy levels up RECORD STORE DAY trendy eateries. museums, clubs, shops and plac- event. Each year a varied selecand lots of family fun 30 Mar-10 Apr, various loca- Each year more and more bands es of interest open their doors to tion of city towers open their including rides, storytellers, tions, www.restaurantweek.nl participate in Record Store Day, the public. For example, listen to doors to the public – be it old face painters, craft workshops beautiful arias while enjoying a churches, modern office blocks and performance artists. causing fans to queue up and DUTCH CLARINET FESTIVAL cold beer at Bret, or go die-hard or hotels. grab limited-edition indepen26 & 27 Apr, Bredeweg, A weekend of music dedicated DIY at the Student Hotel. Night 19 Mar, various locations, dent album releases or one-off www.bredeweg festival.nl to stars of the clarinet, from owls can dance till dawn to www.opentorendag.nl reissues from heritage rock acts.

KING’S DAY Mozart through to modern-day electronic music at the Radion In Amsterdam, head to local FOOD FESTIVAL jazz.

Weekender, while early birds record stores like Concerto and King’s Day festivities invite loAMSTERDAM 7-10 Apr, Muziekgebouw aan can start their day with a TurkVelvet Music for live in-stores cals and visitors alike to ish breakfast followed by a yoga Serving to remind that food fes- 't IJ & Bimhuis, www.muziekand other surprises. soak up Amsterdam’s open-air gebouw.nl lesson at Podium Mozaïek. tivals aren’t simply for summer, 16 Apr, various locations, fun. In the streets, canals, 12 & 13 Mar, various locathis huge event moves into RAI www.recordstoreday.nl parks and everywhere in ART SQUARE AMSTERDAM tions, www.iamsterdam.

Amsterdam’s mammoth Eubetween, the city is bursting MEIBOCK FESTIVAL com/24h ropahal, promising a wealth of The courtyard of the Hermitage with orange as everyone is Amsterdam hosts the food and drink with more than The spring sister of the Bokbier invited to enjoy the nation’s HISWA AMSTERDAM BOAT latest 70 food trucks, pop-up kitchens Festival later in the year, this biggest party of the year.

SHOW edition of Art Square and bars. beery festival celebrates meibock Check out I amsterdam for Amsterdam. This luxurious This annual fair is the ideal start 24-28 Mar, RAI Amsterdam, (spring beers) from the Netherall the latest information annual art fair showcases more to the new season for water www.foodfestivalamsterdam. lands and further afield. With about what’s in store on the than 30 international contemsports fanatics, featuring hunnl a huge selection of glorious day (and naturally on porary artists, covering a vast dreds of boats, informative lecdraught and bottled ‘bok’ beer King’s Night, the evening AWAKENINGS EASTER array of styles and techniques. on offer, it’s a haven for connoistures, workshops and the latest before).

SPECIAL 14-17 Apr, Hermitage gadgets on the market. seurs and enthusiasts alike.

27 Apr, throughout the city, Amsterdam, 16-20 Mar, RAI Amsterdam, An institution in the Nether17 Apr, Posthoornkerk, www.iamsterdam.com/ www.artsquare-amsterdam.nl www.hiswarai.nl lands, Awakenings is behind www.pint.nl kingsday

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mar & apr 2016

CLUBBING & NIGHTLIFE CLUBBING NGHTDVSN A typical techno night out with two Germans on the bill (Stephan Bodzin and Christian Löffler) plus local veteran purveyor of Detroit techno Steve Rachmad.

Fri 4 Mar, De Marktkantine, 22:00, €19 FRIDAY O4.03 Beatrice Dillon was trained as a classical guitarist, but most of her recent work falls under the experimental techno category.

Also DJ-ing tonight are Lutto Lento, Arif Malawi and U. This night is a must for fans of contemporary mind-bending beats.

Fri 4 Mar, De School, 23:00, €15 SATURDAY O5.03 Techno, electro and acid with DJs Aurora Halal and Jean Pierre Enfant. Aurora Halal likes to play with lots of mind elevating bleeps, vibes and melodies.

Sat 5 Mar, De School, 23:00, €15 VUNZIGE DEUNTJES A particularly festive club night with the Fiesta Macumba DJ team playing a tropical mix of Latin American dance styles plus smooth vocals by Dutch rapper Jayh Jawson.

Sat 5 Mar, Paradiso, 23:00, €16.45 FRIDAY 11.03 Dutch-born Panorama Bar resident Steffi is known for her energetic sets where she blends house with disco and techno.

Also on the bill is ex Rush Hour employee Cinnama.

Fri 11 Mar, De School, 23:00, €15 RADION WEEKENDER Radion uses its 24-hour license to put on this daunting 36-hour event with a very German, techno-heavy line-up including Nathan Surreal, Alex.Do, Developer, Henning Baer, Milton Bradley, Sleeparchive (live) and many others.

Fri 11 Mar, Radion, 23:0011:00 (on Sunday), €15

to his excellent DJ skills where he blends everything futuristic and soulful.

Fri 18 Mar, De School, 23:00, €15 OWAP OWAP’s parties have been around for about a decade and a half, and the aim is to recreate the classic vibes of the early warehouse parties. Musically, today’s line-up contains an interesting and original package of American artists: acid house pioneer DJ Pierre, US garage duo Mood II Swing and Chicago’s producer of soulful house Mike Dunn. The local jocks on the bill are also decent: OWAP initiator Mike Risk, Melon, Eric de Man, Remy and former RoXY resident Dimitri. Wear bright colours and smiley masks to this proper rave.

And remember your whistles.

Sat 19 Mar, Elementenstraat, 22:00-07:00, €39.50 AWAKENINGS EASTER SPECIAL DAY 1 The longest-running techno night in town surprises by programming one of the biggest DJs in the dance music scene as a whole: the mighty Carl Cox (playing between 02:00 and 04:00). Also playing are Kölsch, Pig & Dan, Joseph Capriati and Pan-Pot. Fri 25 Mar, Gashouder, 22:0008:00, €49.50 DGTL FESTIVAL DAY 1 The opening night of this excellent dance festival features sets by German house don Âme (live), London’s techno cum dubstep star Maya Jane Coles, South Africa’s no.1 house jock Black Coffee and many others.

Fri 25 Mar, NDSM, 21:0006:00, €22.50 FRIDAY 25.03 Dance, boogie or nod your head to the jazzy beats by Canadian collective Pender Street Steppers.

For clubbers who like to wander through the no-man’s land between disco, house and new age.

Fri 25 Mar, De School, 23:00, €15

DGTL FESTIVAL DAY 2 SEDUCTION NEW BEAT II Highlights of the second day The wonderful cold world of include Glasgow’s banging 1980s electronic music from Belhouse DJ Jackmaster (Numbers gium was taken out of obscurity Records), bass/house veteran (only slightly) by the amazing Joy Orbison, German king of eu- 2012 documentary The Sound of phoric techno Dominik Eulberg, Belgium. Key genres have been Rush Hour Records’s Interstellar minimal wave, acid, rave, ElecFunk, London’s house DJ cum tronic Body Music and possibly restaurant owner Seth Troxler most importantly New Beat. and Space/Amnesia resident Eddy de Clercq returns to his

Choice clubbing

DJ KRUSH We’re tempted to say ‘Forget about DJ Shadow, forget about Flying Lotus…’ That’s a bit much but we do think Japan’s DJ Krush is the most important figure ever to emerge from the instrumental hip-hop scene. His beats are so coercive, hypnotic, smokey and dopey that your head is bound to nod itself off your torso if you don’t keep an eye on it. Check out his magnum opus Strictly Turntablized before you head out.

Wed 23 Mar, Melkweg, 19:30, €15

per minute without giving in on energy and that’s a big achievement.

Sun 27 Mar, Heineken Music Hall, 20:00, €35 SUNDAY 27.03 A solo performance by up-andcoming Californian DJ Solar who recently rose to the surface through mixtape projects he did for Dekmantel and Tim Sweeney’s Beats In Space.

Sun 27 Mar, De School, 21:00, €15 AWAKENINGS EASTER SPECIAL DAY 3 A very special seven-hour long back-to-back set by Ben Klock and Marcel Dettmann, both residents at Berlin’s much talked about Berghain club.

Sun 27 Mar, Gashouder, 22:00-08:00, €49.50 (presale only) NOISIA INVITES Playing tonight are Australia’s D&B/pop stars Pendulum, Dutch beat/grime producer on the rise Ganz, abstract hip hop/ trap producer Subp Yao, wonky don Jameszoo plus Spectrasoul, The Upbeats, Xtrah, Ivy Lab and – of course – Noisia himself.

Fri 1 Apr, Melkweg, 23:00, €25 CHATEAU 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY Chateau delivers when it comes to techno line-ups and we trust that an organisation which has booked people like Jeff Mills, Blawan, Cari Lekebusch and Robert Hood in the past won’t fail to deliver on its own birthday party.

Sat 2 Apr, De Marktkantine, 23:00-05:00, €10 DIMITRI Seen by many as the best Dutch house and techno DJ, Dimitri Kneppers is known to sometimes mix melodies rather than beats.

Sat 2 Apr, De Marktkantine, 23:00-05:00, €10

DGTL FESTIVAL DAY 3 Easily the best day of this three-day festival with Andrew Weatherall, a DJ set

by Ninja Tune’s biggest artist Bonobo, German house jock Gerd Janson, Russian superstar DJ Nina Kraviz, Norway’s cosmic disco hero Prins Thomas, Kompakt Records head honcho Michael Mayer, Motor City Drum Ensemble, John Talabot and many more.

Sun 27 Mar, NDSM, 12:0023:00, €49.50

PRCPTN: MAZZO IS BACK Middle-aged ravers will fondly remember Mazzo, one of the first local clubs to play solely electronic music.

Their sound was harder than RoXY’s, the city’s other house/techno subculture hotspot, and that’s reflected in tonight’s greying line up: Ambient Daan, Carlijn, Eva, Cellie, Frankie Jones, Flamman & Abraxas, Gizmo and Fierce Ruling Diva (live).

Sat 23 Apr, Radion, 21:3007:00, €23

BRIGHTER DAYS KINGSNIGHT Start your King’s Day session with a bang while legendary Chicago house veteran Mike Dunn spins homemade classic tunes like ‘Welcome 2Da Klub’ and ‘Phreaky MF’. Warm-up and cooling-down services are provided by Bobby Mash and Kamma.

Tue 26 Apr, Canvas, 23:00, €15

XXX DJ Sprinkles is one of the few figures in club music to take the SATURDAY 12.03 opportunity to communicate social messages to his crowds.

A night of techno, house and Many of those are concerned bass music with Casper Tielrooij with awareness of gender ine& Thomas Martojo, the two quality and homosexuality; he founding fathers of the Dekmanfeels people need to be made tel emporium. Also playing is VOLTT KONINGSDAG 2016 conscious of the roots of the London’s Call Super, known Voltt celebrate the King’s from his releases on Hessle Au- beats they dance to. Expect a fair amount of underground disco birthday with a mix of dio and Hemlock. decent local house and Sat 12 Mar, De School, 23:00, and American house that’s funky, soulful and down tempo to Eurotechno jocks. Cinnaman, €15 pean standards.

Dekmantel Soundsystem, SUNDAY 13.03 Fri 25 Mar, Closure, 23:00Makam, Job Jobse and San 05:00, €13, €8 before midnight Proper have been Eclectic electronic night with confirmed so far.

Zaltan, the Parisian label boss of Maceo Plex. roots with a set of New Beat-inAWAKENINGS EASTER Antinote – a pop label with elecSat 26 Mar, NDSM, 12:00spired vintage club tracks, yum! Wed 27 Apr, NDSM, 12:00, €15 SPECIAL DAY 2 tro twists – headlining plus Red 23:00, €49.50 Sat 26 Mar, Canvas, 23:00, BASSLINE Light Radio’s Orpheu the Wizard A night of Swedish techno with €12, €10 before 00:30 SATURDAY 26.03 a two-hour set by Ida Engberg, The longest-running hip and Interstellar Funk (Rush KYGO, CLOUD NINE TOUR another one by Adam Beyer and A big, banging and magical night hop night on the local scene Hour Records.) a two-hour final with the two invites MC Pusha T. - the Sun 13 Mar, De School, 21:00, for this small club with nu school Kyrre Gøvell-Dahl’s dreamy, DJs playing a back-to-back set focus will be on his ace music €15 techno star Paula Temple (R&S tropical sound is revolutionary as until 08:00, which is effectively Records) and Italian dub-techno it marks a clear break from the though tonight; look forward FRIDAY 18.03 09:00 as today marks the start of producer Lucy fighting for the to live performances of banging sound that has domithe daylight saving period.

‘Numbers on the Boards’ Ben UFO rose to underground headline position. Heavy, essennated banging electronic music Sat 26 Mar, Gashouder, and ‘Untouchable’. fame because of his involvement tial stuff. to date. Gøvell-Dahl’s signature Fri 29 Apr, Paradiso, with the futuristic, genre-defying 22:00-08:00, €49.50 (presale Sat 26 Mar, De School, 23:00, song ‘Firestone’ conquered the only) midnight, €20 label Hessle Audio and also due €15 radio at no more than 115 beats

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PART IV THE A-LIST

MUSIC/POP & JAZZ POP & JAZZ

dio and visual setpieces across these three massive arena gigs.

Mon 7, Wed 9, Thur 10 Mar, Ziggo Dome, 20:00, €52-€57

JUNIOR BOYS Three years since their last visMEMPHIS MANIACS it to Amsterdam, the Canadian The ‘Masters of the Mash-up’ electronic pop duo celebrate the release of their long-await- promise a night of high-octane ed fifth album, Big Black Coat. frenzy with explosive mash-ups ‘Effortlessly and solitarily cool’, of killer hits fused from wildly different musical genres. The their idiosyncratic fusion of five-strong collective is intent disco and soul with industrial on working you into a sweaty pop and techno has earned mess and a massive musical them a loyal following. orgasm.

Wed 2 Mar, Tolhuistuin, Thur 10 Mar, Paradiso, 20:30, €14 20:00, €16.50 NEWTON FAULKNER ROBIN SCHULZ The double chart-topping, The 28-year old German DJ multi-platinum selling, and producer shot to interBrit-nominated, acoustic guinational attention with his tar virtuoso and singer-songremix of Mr Probz’s Waves just writer from England has it two years ago, followed by a all – apart from his trademark string of hits including ‘Sugar’, dreadlocks, now sadly gone.

Expect a bit of friendly banter which entered the charts at #1.

Genre-transcending and diswith the audience, and you tinctive, combining deep house may even be asked to sing.

Thur 3 Mar, Melkweg, 19:30, with guitar and melancholy vocals, Schulz is welcomed back €17 to the Melkweg for a JARRYD JAMES second time.

The Australian alternative pop Thur 10 Mar, Melkweg, 19:30, €20 singer-songwriter started out in a band called Holland, but LONDON CALLING it was as a solo artist that he A favourite of music lovers in hit the big time just last year with ‘Do You Remember’. Less Amsterdam, taking place twice a year in Paradiso, London is more for James, who brings Calling showcases a collection a new minimalism into R&B, stripping away the musical fuss of bands who’re tipped to make it big, along with a few more to remind the listener what who’re making a comeback: really matters. pop, rock, electronic and beThur 3 Mar, Tolhuistuin, yond. In this edition, look out 20:30, €14 for Joan Shelly, Palehound and BOUBACAR TRAORÉ Ultimate Painting.

11 & 12 Mar, Paradiso, 18:30, The renowned self-taught €17.50 per day or €35 for singer, songwriter and guitarist both nights from Mali performs a unique stylistic blend borrowing MOHAMMAD MOTAMEDI from American Blues, Arab QUARTET music, and West Africa’s tonal A rising star of Iranian mupatterns. A local superstar sic who is renowned for his in the 1960s, but not signed breathtaking vocal embeluntil 1990, ‘the king of African lishments and tahir yodelling blues’ has made up for lost technique, Motamedi is time since then. accompanied by traditional Sun 6 Mar, Bimhuis, 21:00, Persian instruments. €18-€22 Sat 12 Mar, Bimhuis, 20:30, 10CC €18-€22 The missing link between STEPHANIE BLANCHOUD The Beatles and Gorillaz, the The Belgian-Swiss actress and legendary English art rock singer blends folk, pop and band took the 1970s pop world jazz with a French musical by storm, and hasn’t stopped accent – imagine a French Nasince: the band continues to talie Merchant, produced by T tour the world, with two of the original line-up still going Bone Burnett – and keeps you on your toes with unexpected strong. twists and turns.

Sun 6 Mar, Melkweg, 19:30, Sun 13 Mar, Paradiso, 15:00, €30 €8.50 !!!

SIVERT HØYEM Packing in disco, funk, punk, The smooth-toned Norwegian house and afrobeats, !!! (Chk singer-songwriter fronted Chk Chk) just gets better and the country’s biggest ever better. Expect pumping bass rock band, Madrugada, until lines, driving beats, sexy voic2008, and now boasts five es, funky guitar riffs and catchy acclaimed albums of his own. melodies, all cut through with With another that came out in the sharp edge of punk.

February, he has plenty of new Mon 7 Mar, Tolhuistuin, material to add to this seduc20:30, €14 tive journey through the last 15 MUSE years of his career.

Tue 15 Mar, Tolhuistuin, The last time Muse were in 20:30, €18 Amsterdam they were headlining the Amsterdam ArenA SAVAGES football stadium. Currently Savages by name, savage by touring their newest album nature. This English postDrones, expect a mammoth punk outfit now have two rock show with spectacular au-

Choice pop & jazz

A-HA Norway’s finest have come and gone and come again. Thirty years on from their biggest hits ‘Take on Me’ and ‘The Sun Always Shines on TV’, which fell perfectly in with the MTV zeitgeist of the mid-1980s, this classic pop band is back for a second official reunion. In fact, they’re returning to the same arena at which they bade farewell to their Amsterdam fans just a few years back. As well as the chart toppers, chiselled frontman Morten Harket will be breaking out tracks from their new record Cast in Steel.

Thur 31 Mar, Heineken Music Hall, 20:00, €42

BLACK MOUNTAIN These Canadian rockers just happen to share personnel with the Pink Mountaintops, a band better known for a more indie-friendly and fuzzy garage sound. By contrast, Black Mountain is the no-holds-barred rocker of the family, mixing swirling psychedelic rock moments with Deep Purple-esque riffage, setting hair flailing throughout any hall. Crucially, they’ve never set out to be a retro circus, and their vital male-female vocal interplay ensures hooks that steer the group away from predictable classic rock tropes. After a five-year wait, their new record IV is now out.

Fri 15 Apr, Melkweg, 19:30, €16 critically-acclaimed records to their name and a fierce aesthetic that is intensely choreographed. For once, common comparisons to Joy Division and Siouxsie and the Banshees are utterly justified.

Wed 16 Mar, Melkweg, 19:30, €17.50 SABRINA STARKE The Surinamese-Dutch singersongwriter mixes soul, folk, rhythm & blues and jazz. She rose to prominence with a platinum album in 2008, and her latest, most personal songs take a critical look at her life,

BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE & RCO By 22:00 on King’s Night, Amsterdam is already getting a touch rowdy in the bars and on the streets. In the Concertgebouw, however, it’s become tradition to end the night with serene voices and heartfelt songs.

Thus, from busking Bob Marley songs on the streets of Paris to international acclaim, in just two short years, Benjamin Clementine’s poetic and intense performance style has already earned him a Mercury Prize and an army of fans. In this one-off concert, his soulful songs will be paired with the best backing band in town: the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Tues 26 Apr, Concertgebouw, 22:30, from €23

MONOMYTH The five-strong Hague-based collective promises to take you on a rollercoaster ride through otherworldly instrumental soundscapes from which you may not return. Their sound shifts from space rock to kraut rock, from psychedelia to IDM, from major to minor and everything in between.

Fri 18 Mar, Paradiso, 22:00, €10 AURORA The 19-year old Norwegian singer-songwriter Aurora Aksnes was met with critical acclaim not long after leaving school, and within months was achieving a million streams on Spotify. Electronic pop with haunting echoes of Enya will reverberate through the atmospheric main hall of Paradiso.

Sat 19 Mar, Paradiso, 20:30, €15 OMAR Judge for yourself if ‘the father of British neo soul’ lives up to the hype, when Omar brings his super-smooth tunes back to Amsterdam this month. Hear the latest from the musicians’s favourite musician: the man Stevie Wonder wants to be ‘when he grows up’.

Sat 19 Mar, North Sea Jazz Club, 21:00, €24-€28 JOE LOVANO CLASSIC QUARTET One of the most versatile tenor saxophonists of all time, Lovano has recorded over 20 albums and has won countless awards, including a Grammy.

Now he’s back with his Classic Quartet with Lawrence Fields, Peter Slavov and Lamy Estrefi, diving into the rich history of mainstream jazz through swing and bebop.

Sun 20 Mar, Bimhuis, 20:30, €22-€27 LARRY CARLTON The Californian jazz and blues guitar player has won countless Grammies, among others for the theme to Hill Street Blues. In great demand for his unique, rhythmic, warm guitar chords and ringing guitar tones, he has played with all the greats, including Steely Dan, Sammy Davis, Jr., Michael Jackson, John Lennon and Dolly Parton.

Tue 22 Mar, Tolhuistuin, 20:30, €27.50

SCOTT BRADLEE’S POSTMODERN JUKEBOX This unconventional jazz and her dreams, and the world we ragtime band is best known for live in. its reinterpretations of modern Thur 17 Mar, Paradiso, 20:30, pop songs. Their swinging cov€17.50 ers of Miley Cyrus’s ‘We Can’t Stop’ and Lorde’s ‘Royals’ have SHIRMA ROUSE turned them into viral sensaIn 2013, the Sint-Eustatius tions on YouTube and attractsinger scooped the ing big live audiences who love backing prize at Eurovision their unlikely mash-ups. for her performance with Thur 24 Mar, Paradiso, Anouk, and in the same 20:30, €26 year reached the Voice of THE JONI MITCHELL Holland semi’s. Expect soul, PROJECT jazz, and more than a hint of Aretha.

Jazz singer Tutu Puoane delivFri 18 Mar, North Sea ers the songs of her hero, Joni Jazz Club, 21:00, Mitchell, with a gorgeous voice €20-€24 and unique phrasing which

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mar & apr 2016

MUSIC/POP & JAZZ / CLASSICAL

WEEZER From dorky alt-rock heroes to absentee cult figures to arenafilling megastars, this American band combines heavy power pop with a geeky humour, selling 17 million albums so far.

April sees the release of their 10th studio album, their own White Album in fact, including singles ‘Thank God For Girls’, ‘Do You Wanna Get High?’ and ‘King of the World’.

Fri 8 Apr, Heineken Music Hall, 20:00, €48

MICHAEL GIRA As the frontman of Swans since the early 1980s, Gira has pioneered a path in dark noise terror – comparable in many ways with Nick Cave – artistically brilliant but never really for mass consumption. On this solo tour, he reverts to his acoustic guitar, performing a mix of Swans, Angels of Light (his other band) and solo creations.

Mon 11 Apr, Paradiso, 22:00, €15

picked up the Q Award for best album with Chasing Yesterday and the gongs keep on coming.

Support from Brooklyn indie rock trio Augustines.

Mon 18 Apr, Heineken Music Hall, 20:00, €35

blues artist of our time,’ said Guitar Player magazine of this singer and multi-instrumentalist. Fond of banjo and cello, Taylor is not your average blues artist. His amalgamation of raw roots styles tackles heavy issues like murder, homelessness and ROGER HODGSON slavery, while his personal style The voice of 1970s prog rock is light hearted. band Supertramp, Hodgson has Fri 22 Apr, North Sea Jazz released just three records since Club, 21:00, €22-€25 parting ways with Supertramp: MARIAH CAREY 1984’s In the Eye of the Storm, 1987’s Hai Hai and 2000’s Thirteen years after her last Open the Door. However, he’s appearance in Europe, the remained busy touring, playing international pop icon brings a mix of both the band’s and her Sweet Sweet Fantasy tour his own work, so expect classics to Amsterdam, rolling out her like ‘Breakfast in America’ and biggest hits, such as ‘Hero’, ‘The Logical Song’ alongside his ‘Always Be My Baby’ and ‘We more recent efforts.

Belong Together’, and topping Mon 18 Apr, Royal Theatre it off with some unmissable Carré, 20:00, €29-€57 surprises.

Sat 23 Apr, Ziggo Dome, PETER HOOK AND 20:00, €44-€59 THE LIGHT With his rock band The Light, BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB: ELIADES OCHOA Peter Hook (ex Joy Division and New Order bassist) perOne of the most popular stars forms New Order material to have toured with the Buena followed by songs from Joy DiVista Social Club, Ochoa revision albums Unknown Pleamains the essential voice when sures and Closer. It started with it comes to Cuban ‘son’. In this a one-off memorial gig in 2010, grand theatre performance, and was too good to ever stop. expect a blend of his own work, Mon 18 Apr, Paradiso, 20:30, as well as a few Buena Vista €20 classics.

Mon 25 Apr, DeLaMar TheNONKEEN ater, 20:00, €19.50-€39.50 Three childhood friends from KONRAD KOSELLECK Germany who shared a love for BIG BAND sampling and mixing with tape recorders have reunited after Founded in 2004 by pianist, tragedy forced them apart at composer and conductor Konthe age of 15. Ambient star Nils rad Koselleck, the band is comFrahm, Frederic Gmeiner and prised of jazz musicians from Sebastian Signwald return to varied backgrounds. They overdubbing, mixing and dipregularly hit the stage ping into their old recordings unleashing unique combinawith debut album The Gamble. tions of cabaret, musical, jazz, Tue 19 Apr, Tolhuistuin, pop, rock, funk, Latin 20:30, €22.50 and classical.

Mon 25 Apr, Bimhuis, COMPAÑIA ANA MORALES 20:30, €16 In her first major show, the expressive rising star of Spanish flamenco takes recycling as her starting point, critiquing our disposable society in a four-part choreography with contemporary dancer Sergio González, complete with costume design by students of Seville’s art academy.

Wed 20 Apr, Paradiso, 21:00, €26

GRANT-LEE PHILLIPS The Americana singer-songwriter makes a long-awaited return to Europe with material from his new album, The Narrows. With deeply felt subject matter, starkly dynamic performance, and uncluttered poetry, the part-Cherokee singer goes from strength to strength.

Tue 26 Apr, Bitterzoet, 21:00, €10 BETTYE LAVETTE This American soul singer has enjoyed fantastic success in recent years. Her singing career was launched in 1962, and over the past decade she’s been something of a rediscovered gem thanks to her thrilling live performances and interesting recording choices.

Fri 29 Apr, North Sea Jazz Club, 21:00, €26-€30 TURIN BRAKES The London folk-poppers’s trademark West-Coast acoustic guitar and widescreen harmony textures wrap themselves around Olly Knight’s enigmatic lyrics in their new material.

It’s still as intimate as ever, but with a new leaning towards epic darkness.

Fri 29 Apr, Paradiso, 20:00, €13

CLASSICAL LUNCHTIME CONCERT The Royal Concertgebouw’s free weekly lunchtime concerts showcase the talents of upand-coming musicians or offer an opportunity to be present at a public rehearsal of one of the city’s big orchestras.

Wednesdays (except 27 Apr) & Fri 29 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 12:30, free

Choice classical

SUGAR MOUNTAIN PRESENTS An evening of roots, country and more, with feet firmly planted in America’s rich musical heritage, and sights set on the future. Featuring Dr. Dog, Cale Tyson, XIXA, and Giant Tiger Hooch.

Thur 21 Apr, Paradiso, 19:00, €15

ADAM LAMBERT JOHN ILLSLEY Kicking off the European leg of The former Dire Straits bass his first solo tour in five years, guitarist, now painter and Enthe American pop megastar glish pub landlord, promotes and Glee actor guarantees a his forthcoming solo album, night of theatrical perfection.

Long Shadows, with new Lambert’s recent single ‘Ghost WESTERN STANDARD TIME numbers alongside classic Dire Town’ hit #1 in 25 countries, SKA ORCHESTRA Straits hits. and was downloaded a hundred Sat 9 Apr, North Sea Jazz Club, million times.

Boldly blending the essence 21:00, €20-€24 Wed 13 Apr, Heineken Music of big band jazz arrangements Hall, 20:00, €39 and Jamaican ska into a vibrant JOOLS HOLLAND’S RHYTHM contemporary sound that AND BLUES ORCHESTRA NOEL GALLAGHER‘S introduces Ellington to The HIGH FLYING BIRDS Every spring, this former pop Skatalites. pianist – who’s now more Noel Gallagher took his prodiThur 21 Apr, Melkweg, 19:30, recognised from his BBC gious songwriting talents with €18 television show – gets back on him when he left Oasis in 2009, OTIS TAYLOR the road with an exceptionally forming High Flying Birds to gifted bunch of musos. They pursue his solo career. He soon ‘Arguably the most relevant

©RONALD KNAPP

make them all her own. Joined specialise in vivacious blasts in this stunning Dutch-Belgian of boogie-woogie and rock ‘n’ jazz ensemble by award-winroll, proving he makes more ning saxophonist Tineke Post- sense when he stops wandering ma, the result is spine-tingling. around a TV studio. This tour Fri 25 Mar, Bimhuis, 20:30, features Gilson Lavis and sing€17-€20 ers Ruby Turner, Mabel Ray and Beth Rowley.

GARY BARTZ Sat 9 Apr, Paradiso, 20:30, Pretty much born in a jazz €32 club, the American jazz and EUROVISION IN CONCERT bop saxophonist has played with Miles Davis, John ColAfter a pretty disastrous run trane, Keith Jarrett and a host at this cheesy pop festival, the of others in his time, bringing Netherlands has been enjoying out 40 solo CDs and featuring better luck at Eurovision, first in a further 200. with Anouk and then with Fri 25 Mar, North Sea Jazz The Common Linnets, who Club, 21:00, €20-€24 were only pipped to the post

by Austria’s Conchita Wurst in FAT FREDDY‘S DROP 2014 (let’s forget about Trijntje These New Zealand dub stars Oosterhuis last year). Now it’s are a top draw in Europe, the turn of Dutch pop star Douselling out tour after tour with we Bob. This popular pre-party their Southern Pacific take on at Melkweg sees many of the the traditional Jamaican sound. competing acts unleash their Touring latest album Bays, songs before an adoring audithey’re set for two sweaty nights ence – ahead of the actual show in Amsterdam. in Stockholm.

Sun 27 & Mon 28 Mar, Parad- Sat 9 Apr, Melkweg, 19:30, €35 iso, 20:30, €31.50 MACKLEMORE & RYAN CHARLES BRADLEY & HIS LEWIS EXTRAORDINAIRES The American hip-hop duo Charles Bradley was already behind mega hit single ‘Thrift 60 when his debut album was Shop’ are back. As well as tracks met with excitement in 2011. from their album The Heist, The ‘screaming eagle of soul’ expect them to be unearthing channels Otis Redding, James tracks from new record The Brown and Wilson Pickett to Unruly Mess I’ve Made. transport you straight back to Sun 10 Apr, Ziggo Dome, the 1960s.

20:30, €39-€79 Wed 6 Apr, Paradiso, 20:30, GIANT SAND & JASON €26 Concertgebouw LYTLE THE CORAL Howe Gelb’s ever-morphing Following a five-year hiatus, band celebrated 30 years last UK psych-rock troupe The year with a tour full of illusCoral bring their swaggering trious guest artists, including new sounds and well-trodden former Grandaddy frontman favourites to Amsterdam. SupJason Lytle. They loved it so port comes from Manchester much they decided to co-headbuzz band Blossoms, fresh from line. Expect fine, gritty Amertheir turn on the BBC Sound of icana and melancholic indie 2016 list. numbers.

Fri 8 Apr, Melkweg, 19:30, Sun 10 Apr, Tolhuistuin, €17.50 20:30, €17.50

NETHERLANDS PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA – SIBELIUS' FIFTH SYMPHONY Sibelius' Fifth Symphony was written when Finland finally gained independence, and the work evokes the natural beauty of the Nordic country. The symphony is preceded

by Brahms' Second Piano Concerto. Marc Albrecht conducts.

Sat 5 & Sun 6 Mar, Royal Concertgebouw, Sat 20:15, Sun 14:15, €20-€49

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PART IV THE A-LIST

MUSIC/CLASSICAL Choice classical

© GERRIT SCHREURS

METROPOLE ORKEST – FILM LUNATREE: ARVO PÄRT IN MUSIC IN CONCERT CONCERT Conducted by Grammy The octet dedicates an evening Award-winning Vince Mento the contemporary Estonian doza, Amsterdam’s Metropole composer Arvo Pärt, performOrkest performs plenty of ing works by Pärt and several sweeping film soundtrack kindred spirits, from Reich pieces written for orchestra. to Eno. Host Eric Corton introduces Wed 9 Mar, Royal Concertgethe works. bouw, 21:00, €23-€36 Thur 3 & Fri 4 Mar, Royal LENNEKE RUITEN Concertgebouw, 20:15, €35€65 Accompanied by pianist Thom Janssen, the renowned CALEFAX Dutch soprano sings songs The Amsterdam-based reed

by Richard Strauss combined quintet performs new works with works by Fauré, Ernest ASKO|SCHÖNBERG by Nico Muhly, Daj Fujikura, Chausson and Poulenc.

DE NIEUWE ROUKENS Theo Loevendie and Jacob TV, Wed 9 Mar, Muziekgebouw Inspiration and imitation are the majority of which has been aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €36 the theme for tonight's procomposed especially for the AMSTERDAM SINFONIETTA: gramme: the ensemble plays a ensemble.

BEAMISH AND THE Thur 3 Mar, Muziekgebouw new violin concerto by Dutch CLASSICS aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €29.50 composer Joey Roukens, who On occasion of the 25th ancombines swinging pop muASKO|SCHÖNBERG + niversary of the Amsterdam sic with romanticharmonies; CAPELLA AMSTERDAM – Sinfonietta performing with 'Restless Feeling' by Scotsman PESSOA CYCLE pianist Ronald Brautigam, the David Horne, which follows up Since 2006, composer Jan van Scottish composer Sally Beamthe sound of the The Velvet de Putte has been working ish has written a concerto for on his extensive Pessoa Cycle, string orchestra and piano, Underground; Steve Reich's and tonight sees the premiere which is premiered tonight.

Radiohead-inspired 'Radio of the fourth and last part, Works by Haydn and Elgar Rewrite'; and Derek Bermel's performed by the Asko|Schönand Mozart’s Piano Concerto 'Canzonas Americanas', an berg ensemble and Capella no. 17 complete the evening’s ode to folk music from North Amsterdam. The Portuguese programme. and South America. poet Fernando Pessoa wrote Fri 11 Mar, Muziekgebouw Thur 17 Mar, Muziekgebouw, under various noms de plume, aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €36 and tonight’s work focuses on 20:15, €29.50 POLO DE HAAS & TOMOKO romantic poems he wrote as MUKAIYAMA pher Maltman, Lucy Crowe Álvaro de Campos. Reinbert de Leeuw conducts.

Pianist De Haas plays works by and Jermey Ovenden joining him in the cast, as well as the Sat 5 Mar, Royal ConcertgeBach, Liszt and Satie and imGerman soprano Lydia Teusbouw, 14:15, €32/€37 provises with Mukaiyama on two grand pianos. The two also cher, American countertenors MARTA KOWALCZYK + OLE David Daniels and Lawrence team up for Brahms’s refined CHRISTIAN HAAGENRUD Zazzo and Dutchman Thomas and joyful Haydn Variations.

Oliemans.

The Polish violinist Marta Sat 12 Mar, Royal ConcertgeFri 18 & Sun 20 Mar, RoyKowalczyk and the Norwegian bouw, 20:15, €28.50 al Concertgebouw, 19:00 pianist Ole Christian HaaJASCHA NEMTSOV – (Fri)/12:00 (Sun), €30-€126 genrud perform works that, ZADERATSKY for them, are close to home: LA PETITE BANDE – Kowalczyk’s performance of The Russian/Ukrainian comST MATTHEW PASSION the Partita by her compatriot poser Vsevolod Zaderatsky’s A different approach to the Witold Lutoslawski is an ode work was banned for most of great work sees it sung by just to their shared home country, his life; most of it has been eight singers in two vocal quarand Haagenrud likes to chamdestroyed. Tonight, pianist tets, acting both as choir and pion Geirr Tveitt, the NorweJascha Nemtsov performs Zaas soloists. gian folk specialist, and also deratsky’s cycle of 24 preludes performs a work by Grieg. and fugues, composed in abject Sat 19 Mar, Royal Concertgebouw, 19:30, €35-€79.50 Sun 6 Mar, Royal Concertgecircumstances while imprisbouw, 14:30, €28.50/€36 oned in a gulag.

ERARD ENSEMBLE: Mon 14 Mar, Splendor, 20:15, 3 X B – BACH, BUSONI THE ENGLISH CONCERT – €17.50 AND BARTÓK ORLANDO RISING STARS: CATHY KRIER The Erard Ensemble, The renowned baroque orspecialised in historical perforchestra The English Concert Tonight’s guest in the Conmances of Romantic chamber performs a concert version of certgebouw’s ‘Rising Star’ Händel’s Orlando, an opera series is the young, but already music, puts on a concert with two original 19th-century not well known, having lost renowned Luxembourgian piaconcert grands (played by out in the competition with nist Cathy Krier, who performs the lighter baroque operas of works with the theme of ‘wan- Carsten Schmidt and Edward its day. dering’: JanáÐek’s On an Over- Janning) and percussion. The works performed are Bach’s Mon 7 Mar, Royal Concertgegrown Path and Schubert’s Concerto for Two Pianos, bouw, 19:30, €30-€78 Wanderer fantasy. A new work Feruccio Busoni’s Fantasia

by Wolfgang Rihm and Berg’s JANINE JANSEN & Contrapuntistica and Bartók’s Piano Sonata are also on the ALEXANDER GAVRYLYUK Sonata for Two Pianos and programme.

Percussion.

The Dutch violinist Janine Wed 16 March, Royal ConcertSat 19 Mar, De Duif, 20:15, Jansen performs Prokofiev’s gebouw, 20:15, €23-€36 €22.50 (under 19s free) Sonata no. 2. She has said that ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW he is one of her favourite KCOV EXCELSIOR – ORCHESTRA, GROOT composers because of the ST MATTHEW PASSION OMROEPKOOR & many layers of his works NETHERLANDS NATIONAL The 120-strong choir has and his precise compositions.

BOYS CHOIR: ST MATTHEW been performing the Works by Poulenc, Brahms PASSION St Matthew Passion in the and Szymanowsky are also Royal Concertgebouw on the programme; Jansen This is not just a grand, but each year is joined by the much-lauded also an international producsince 1953.

Ukrainian pianist Alexander tion of Bach’s masterpiece, Sun 20 & Mon 21 Mar, Gavrylyuk. with Englishman Ivor Bolton Royal Concertgebouw, Tue 8 Mar, Royal Concertgeconducting and his compatri19:30, €33-€45 bouw, 20:15, €21-€54 ots James Gilchrist, Christo-

CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA & DANIELE GATTI Daniele Gatti will become the new chief conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in the 2016/2017 season and tonight, he stops by for a warm-up concert.

Hopefully not to be seen as an ill omen, all works performed deal with trials and tribulations stemming from unhappy or even fatal love: Wagner's Tannhäuser overture, the Symphonie fantastique by Berlioz and Liszt's Orpheus.

Thur 31 Mar, Fri 1 & Sun 3 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15 (Sun 14:15), €30-€126 MONTEVERDI CHOIR – ST MATTHEW PASSION The world-renowned Monteverdi Choir, conducted by John Eliot Gardiner, and the English Baroque Soloists stop off in Amsterdam on their Passion tour of various European cities. This is set to be one of the highest-profile productions of this Passion season in Amsterdam. Tenor Mark Padmore sings the role of the evangelist.

Tue 22 Mar, Royal Concertgebouw, 19:30, €39-€102

an annual tradition.

Fri 25 Mar, Royal Concertgebouw, 19:30, €44/€48 HOFKAPELLE MÜNCHEN – EASTER SUNDAY BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS Like few other composers, Bach is closely associated with Lent and Easter. But while he wrote sacred works for each day from Maundy Thursday to Easter Monday – the most famous of which being his Passions and the Easter Oratorio – today the Hofkapelle München is making the point that his secular works lend themselves well to the period, too. The orchestra performs the second to the fifth of the Brandenburg Concertos.

Sun 27 March, Royal Concertgebouw, 11:00, €20-€26 BACH CHOIR AND ORCHESTRA OF THE NETHERLANDS – MESSIAH This Easter Monday, the Bach Choir and Orchestra of the Netherlands performs Händel’s Messiah. Conducted by Pieter Jan Leusink, the performance uses the same cast formation and instrumentation as Händel did for the work’s world premiere in Dublin in 1742: 16 singers standing in one row and an orchestra without oboes but with trumpets and timpani.

Mon 28 Mar, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €50-€85

TRACKS: HAUSCHKA In Hauschka, Tracks – the Concertgebouw series aimed at young (-ish) audiences by inviting artists that regularly cross the border between the classical realm and that of pop – has found a perfect performer for its concept: an avant-garde pianist and composer who’s equally comfortable with electronica, chamber music and experiments with COV GROOTNOORD: the prepared piano. Tonight, BACH’S ST MATTHEW he is joined by the Alma QuarPASSION tet, which features members of the Concertgebouw Orchestra GrootNoord, a choir founded and the Netherlands in 1948 by combining various Philharmonic. church choirs, performs Bach’s Thur 31 Mar & Fri 1 Apr, St Matthew Passion, conducted Royal Concertgebouw, 21:00,

by Bach specialist Marcel den €15-€25 Dulk.

Wed 23 Mar, Royal ConcertgeLUNCH CONCERT bouw, 19:30, €30/€35.50 Free monthly performance AMSTERDAMS GEMENGD in collaboration with the NaKOOR – ST. JOHN PASSION tionaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds.

The Amsterdam-based mixed Thur 31 Mar & 21 Apr, Muzchoir and the Leiden Chorisiekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 12:30, free ters perform Bach’s St John Passion. While performed with NETHERLANDS PHILHARless frequency than the St MatMONIC ORCHESTRA – thew Passion, the work is just MAHLER’S FIFTH as stirring, combining sadness The orchestra performs and mourning with a great Mahler’s revered Fifth Symsense of hope.

Thur 24 Mar, Royal Concert- phony, plus, with soloist Quirgebouw, 20:15, €33.50/€39.50 ine Viersen, the Cello Concerto

by Henri Dutilleux (on 2 and NETHERLANDS CHAMBER 5 April) and Schumann’s Cello ORCHESTRA, TOONKUNConcerto (on 4 April), respecSTKOOR AMSTERDAM tively. Marc Albrecht conducts. & MARTINI BOYS CHOIR Sat 2 & Tue 5 Apr, Royal Con– BACH’S ST MATTHEW certgebouw, 20:15, €20-€49 PASSION CONCERTGEBOUW The Toonkunstkoor AmsterORCHESTRA – BACH + dam’s performance of the BRAHMS St Matthew Passion in the In a series of four concerts, the Royal Concertgebouw is

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STAGE Concertgebouw Orchestra explores the relationship between Bach and Brahms.

This part is dedicated to Bach’s first liturgical work to Latin words – the Magnificat – and Brahms’ First Symphony. Brahms took inspiration from Bach’s work to overcome inevitable comparisons to the ‘giant’ Beethoven by combining the classic symphonic form with Bach-style polyphonic techniques.

Wed 6 & Thur 7 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €25-€100 ESSENTIALS - BRAHMS’S FIRST SYMPHONY More than 20 years in the making, Brahms’s First Symphony was a homage to Beethoven and at the same time the work that saw him step out of the older composer’s shadow. Tonight it is performed by the Concertgebouw Orchestra; Iván Fischer conducts.

Sat 9 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 21:00, €23-€50 BACH ORCHESTRA OF THE NETHERLANDS: ODE TO BACH In 25 years, Pieter Jan Leusink has conducted all vocal compositions that Bach ever wrote. Today, he conducts his Bach Orchestra, known for playing on period instruments, and a range of soloists, for a selection of the composer’s most-loved arias and cantatas.

Sun 10 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €50-€75 CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA: FRESCOES Renowned composer and conductor Thomas Adès conducts the Concertgebouw Orchestra in a programme of ‘symphonic frescoes’, which includes his own These Premises are Alarmed and Totentanz; Les fresques de Piero della Francesca by Bohuslav MartinÐ; and, on the Friday only, Liszt’s Hunnenschlacht.

Thur 14 & Fri 15 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 21:15/20:15, €23-€42.50 OLLI MUSTONEN – PROKOVIEV’S SONATAS, I On two evenings, the renowned Finnish pianist Olli Mustonen plays all of Prokofiev’s piano sonatas.

Tonight’s first instalment has Sonatas nos. 2, 4, 6 and 9, meaning the programme includes an early work from the composer’s student years (no. 2); the last one he wrote, composed six years before his death (no. 9); and, with the Sonata no.

6, one of his most popular ones.

Fri 15 Apr, Muziekgebouw, 20:15, €36 OLLI MUSTONEN – PROKOVIEV’S SONATAS II On two evenings, the renowned Finnish pianist Olli Mustonen plays all of Prokofiev’s piano sonatas. To-

night’s programme comprises Sonatas nos. 1, 3, 5, 8 and, with Sonata no. 7, the most famous and, for the musician, most challenging of the set.

Sat 16 Apr, Muziekgebouw, 20:15, €36 NETHERLANDS PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA & MAARTEN ENGELTJES – HÄNDEL ARIAS Händel wrote his operas for Italian castrati; today they are often sung by countertenors such as Maarten Engeltjes, who tonight performs a selection of both lyrical and virtuosic arias, interspersed with instrumental suites from those operas.

Sat 16 & Sun 17 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 21:00/15:00, €20-€49 STÉPHANE DEGOUT & ALAIN PLANÈS It’s a thoroughly French evening as the baritone and the pianist perform works

by Debussy, Poulenc, Satie and Ravel.

Wed 20 Apr, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €40 CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA – BRUCKNER’S SYMPHONY NO. 7 According to Bruckner, the motif for his Symphony no.

7 came to him in a dream, along with the promise of success – and the work was indeed highly lauded.

Mozart’s Horn Concerto no.

2 is also on the programme, performed with soloist Laurens Woudenberg; Franz Welser-Möst conducts.

Wed 20-Fri 22 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €25-€100 BANG ON A CAN & TRIO MEDIAEVAL – STEEL HAMMER Steel Hammer is a new composition by Julia Wolfe, one of the regular composers for the innovative US-based ensemble Bang on a Can. The alt-folk work was written for them and the Norwegian vocal ensemble Trio Mediaeval.

Thur 21 Apr, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €33 DANIEL BARENBOIM The world-famous pianist and conductor plays works

by Schubert and Debussy.

Sun 24 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €68/€85 ATRIUM STRING QUARTET & MISHA FOMIN – PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION The pianist has been much lauded for his interpretation of Mussorgsky’s masterpiece, which he performs today with the Atrium String Quartet.

Sun 24 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 14:15, €35/€45 COLLEGIUM VOCALE GENT & BL!NDMAN Bringing together the seemingly incompatible to arrive at new musical experiences

and insights, the ensemble for old music team up with the adventurous modern saxophone quartet to perform a new work by Salvatore Sciarrino, plus pieces

by Alexander Agricola, Pierre de la Rue, Jotsquin des Prez, Jacob Obrecht and Johannes Ockeghem.

Thur 28 Apr, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, 20:15, €28.50 NETHERLANDS WIND ENSEMBLE – SCHUMANN’S DAVIDSBÜNDLERTÄNZE The wind ensemble performs Schumann’s multi-layered Davidsbündlertänze (Dances of the League of David), written as a thorough reflection of the joys and fears of his relationship with his fiancée.

Fri 29 Apr, Royal Concertgebouw, 20:15, €27.50 NETHERLANDS CHAMBER CHOIR With this a-capella performance, conductor Peter Dijkstra makes his debut as chief conductor at the Netherlands Chamber Choir. The focus is on French choral music, with Ton de Leeuw’s A cette heure du jour, Olivier Messiaen’s Cinq rechants, Pierre Villette’s O Sacrum Convivium and, as the main event, the stunning Mass for Double Choir by the Swiss composer Frank Martin.

Sat 30 Apr, Muziekgebouw, 20:15, €29.50

ADDRESSES Amstelkerk Amstelveld 10 www.amstelkerk.net Bimhuis Piet Heinkade 3 www.bimhuis.nl Bitterzoet Spuistraat 2 www.bitterzoet.com De Duif Prinsengracht 756 www.deduif.net Heineken Music Hall ArenA Boulevard 590 www.heineken-music-hall.nl Melkweg Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.melkweg.nl Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ Piet Heinkade 1 www.muziekgebouw.nl North Sea Jazz Club Pazzanistraat 1 www.northseajazzclub.com Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl Royal Concertgebouw Concertgebouw 10 www.concertgebouw.nl Royal Theatre Carré Amstel 115 /125 https://carre.nl Sugarfactory Lijnbaansgracht 238 www.sugarfactory.nl Tolhuistuin IJpromenade 2 www.tolhuistuin.nl Ziggo Dome De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

THEATRE, DANCE & COMEDY EASYLAUGHS This international comedy group performs a hilarious, hi-octane, completely improvised show at the CREA Café every Friday night. There’s also an early bird show, guest performers from around the world, various formats, themes and open podiums. every Fri, Crea Café, 20:00 & 21:00, €5-€10

Sun 6 Mar, Meervaart, 15:00, €14/€19 FIRE OF ANATOLIA A dance spectacle of the Riverdance scale, the Fire of Anatolia is a renowned dance troupe and performance retelling the folk history of Turkey. It mixes traditional Turkish dance with acrobatic modern dance, ballet and lots of fiery passion.

Mon 7 Mar, R AI Theater, 20:00, €36.50-€47.50

NDT – SOMOS Somos – Spanish for ‘We are’ – sees the Nederlands Dans BEST OF BOOM Theater present works by its own, as it performs choreogAfter more than 20 years of laughs and cultural silliness in raphies by four of its associate and house choreographers: Amsterdam, the Boom Chicago Crystal Pite, Marco Goecke comedy crew presents ‘Best of Boom’. This highlights package and the duo Sol León and Paul Lightfoot. combines the troupe’s sharpTue 8-Thur 10 Mar, Stadssest sketches and trademark chouwburg, 20:00, sold out improvisation for a two-hour show that starts big and never PIPPIN slows down.

The Tony Award-winning every Tue & Thur, Boom Broadway hit, featuring songs Chicago

by Wicked’s Stephan Schwartz, SHOT OF IMPROV comes to Amsterdam for a month, complete with its Shot of Improv sees the entire Boom Chicago cast take to the original US cast. This high-flying, death-defying musical is stage, so the laughs are guaranteed to keep on comin’. Com- overflowing with extraordinary acrobatics, wondrous magical pletely different each week, feats and soaring songs that it’s a show that starts big and will glue themselves into your never slows down. head. every Sat, Boom Chicago Wed 9 Mar-Sun 10 Apr, Royal OPERA FORWARD – Theatre Carré, various dates KHOVANSHCHINA and times, €23.50-€93.50 Continuing its exploration of OPERA FORWARD – ONLY the Russian canon, the Dutch THE SOUND REMAINS National Opera presents a In this world premiere, the new production of Modest American director Peter Sellars Mussorgsky’s five-act opera, directed by Christof Loy. Kho- combines two short operas by the Finnish composer Kaija vanshchina, or The Khovansky Saariaho, which were inspired Affair, deals with a revolt

by Japanese Nôh theatre – against Peter the Great led Always Strong and Feather

by Prince Khovansky, and, by Mantle – into one full-length extension, the rise and fall of a performance. noble Russian family. The opTue 15, Sat 19, Tue 22, Thur era was left unfinished in 24, Sun 27 & Tue 29 Mar, Mussorgsky’s lifetime; out of National Opera and Ballet, the several existing comple20:00, Sun 13:30, €15-€142 tions, the DNO has chosen the one by Shostakovich. The soloOPERA FORWARD – ists include Dmitry Ivaschenko, Orlin Anastassov and Anita IL MATRIMONIO SEGRETO Opera Zuid and the NederRachvelishvili. landse Reisopera perform the Tue 1, Fri 4, Thur 10, Sun 13, humorous love-themed opera Wed 16 & Sun 20 Mar, Dutch by the 18th-century composer National Opera and Ballet, Domenico Cimarosa. Sung in 18:30, Sun 13:30, €15-€176 Italian, with Dutch surtitles.

NEW KIDS ON THE GRACHT Fri 18 & Wed 23 Mar, Stadsschouwburg, 19:30, €10-€40 Experience the fresh new energy at the Boom Chicago comedy theatre. This show features three new actors, two advert Boom powerhouses, one musical director and an improvising technician. Together they create scenes, songs and lightning-fast, audience-fuelled improvisation. every Wed, Fri & Sat, Boom Chicago OPERANIGHT The diminutive opera company Pocket Opera, consisting of soprano Esther Putter, baritone Mitchell Sandler, bass Gerard Legeland and pianist Caecilia Boschman, perform a light-hearted 1920s-themed programme featuring arias from La Traviata, La Bohème and Don Giovanni.

THE YEAR OF CANCER 31 MAR, 21, 28 APR SURTITLED IN ENGLISH

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STAGE

LEINEROEBANA – SEELE/ HERZ This production by the Amsterdam-based avant-garde company LeineRoebana comprises two pieces: Seele is inspired by the story of a faun risking everything in his quest for eternal youth; in Herz, the melancholic, contemplative music by Kate Moore clashes with the exaltation of the dancers.

Tue 22-Thur 24 Mar, Theater Bellevue, 20:30, €23.50 THE YEAR OF CANCER Luk Perceval directs the Toneelgroep Amsterdam in this stage adaptation of the novel Het jaar van de kreeft (The Year of the Cancer) by Belgian writer Hugo Claus.

The production emphasises the novel’s contrast between big emotions and banality, between tense expectations and daily burdens. In Dutch, with English surtitles.

Thur 31 Mar, Thur 21, Tue 26 & Thur 28 Apr, Stadsschouwburg, 20:00, €20.50€33 BEST OF BALANCHINE The Dutch National Ballet dances an ode to Russianadvert

THE KINDLY ONES 7, 14 APR | SURTITLED IN ENGLISH

STRAIGHT AROUND In combining the old and the new, the classical, the modern and the mysterious and seductive, Straight Around shows a combination of pieces that bring the artistic scope of Nederlands Dans Theater 2’s dancers and choreographers to the fore. The programme includes works

by Hans van Manen, Romanian choreographer Edward Clug and Israeli duo Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar.

Fri 25 & Sat 26 Mar, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €10-€40

Choice theatre

© PETROVSKY & RAMONE

ED GAMBLE & JENA FRIEDMAN This double bill, presented by Comedytrain International, hosts Ed Gamble, a stand-up comedian, writer and actor, known from BBC America’s Almost Royal and a host of UK TV and radio shows. He’s joined by Jena Friedman, a comedian and filmmaker who has worked as a field producer at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and a writer for the Late Show with David Letterman.

Sun 20 Mar, Toomler, 20:30, €15

American choreographer George Balanchine, with a programme that includes three well-known masterpieces and one of his works that is new to the company: Theme and Variations, Apollon musagète, Tarantella Pas de Deux and Violin Concerto.

Fri 25, Sat 26 & Thur 31 Mar, Fri 1, Saturday 2, Sun 3, Wed 6, Fri 8, Sat 9 & Sun 10 Apr, Dutch National Opera and Ballet, 20:15, Sun 14:00, €16-€61

OPERA FORWARD FESTIVAL The Dutch National Opera celebrates its 50th anniversary with the brand-new Opera Forward Festival, which explores the future of opera through innovative new work by the next generation of artists. The festival programme consists of four innovative operas, including two world premieres, performed at three of the most beautiful concert halls and theatres in Amsterdam. In addition to Khovanshchina, Il matrimonio segreto and Only the Sound Remains (see separate listings), the festival includes Michiel van der Aa’s Blank Out. 15-25 Mar, various dates, locations, times and prices, www.operaforwardfestival.nl

GLENN WOOL & JAMALI MADDIX Another international comedy double bill, this time featuring Glenn Wool and newcomer Jamali Maddix.

Sun 3 Apr, Toomler, 20:30, €15 RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE It’s glitter, fake lashes and glamour galore as a flutter of queens battle it out at the Amsterdam stop-off of the American TV show. Hosted

by Michelle Visage.

Tue 5 & Wed 6 Apr, Melkweg, 20:00, €40-€150 THE KINDLY ONES Belgian director Guy Cassiers directs this stage adaptation of Jonathan Littell’s 2006 historical novel about the persecution of Jews during the Second World War, as told from the viewpoint of the SS officer Maximilian Aue. In Dutch, with English surtitles.

Thur 7 & Thur 14 Apr, Stadsschouwburg, 19:00, €20.50-€33 EUROVISION IN CONCERT After a pretty disastrous run at this cheesy pop festival, the Netherlands has been enjoying better luck at Eurovision, first with Anouk and then with The Common Linnets, who were only pipped to the post by Austria’s Conchita Wurst in 2014. Now it’s the turn of Dutch pop star Douwe Bob. This popular pre-party at Melkweg sees many of the competing acts unleash their songs before an adoring audience.

Sat 9 Apr, Melkweg, 19:30, €35 ANNE This long-running production explores Anne Frank’s life before her family went into hiding, giving an impression of what life was like

© NOAM GALAI

SCAPINO BALLET – ROLLERCOASTER The renowned Rotterdambased company presents an evening of bursts of dance in a non-stop performance of short choreographies by different choreographers such as Marco Goecke, Itamar Serussi, Marcos Morau, Gentian Doda and Joeri Dubbe.

Sat 19 & Sun 20 Mar, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €10-€37.50

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: AMALUNA As always, incredible circus acrobatics, dance and physical performance are at the heart of this Cirque du Soleil performance, driven by a narrative loosely inspired by Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

The story is set on a mysterious island that’s governed by goddesses. After a group of men wash up on the island’s shore, a visually dramatic love story unfolds.

18 Mar-1 May, Grand Chapiteau (P2 ArenA), various dates, times and prices in the annex and provides an insight into what happened after the family was discovered. A dedicated translation system is available in multiple languages. every Sun from 1 Apr, Theater Amsterdam, various times & prices THE BLACK PIECE Flemish choreographer Ann van den Broek examines the taboos surrounding the word ‘black’ in this experimental performance, joined by musicians Arne van Dongen and Dez Mona.

Wed 13 Apr, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €25

THE SESSIONS Standing apart from the usual tribute concerts, THE SESSIONS recreates the famous Abbey Road Studios in the midst of this arena. As such, this concert/performance isn’t just an opportunity to relive the music of The Beatles, but to fully experience their recording sessions, from first to last. A combination of live music, choreography and cinematic effects retells the history of the world’s most important pop band.

Sun 17 Apr, Ziggo Dome, 20:00, €39-€59 ROMÉO ET JULIETTE Sasha Waltz delivers a distinctive interpretation of the timeless and universal love story in Hector Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette. For the first time, in this Dutch premiere the Dutch National Opera and the Dutch National Ballet share the stage in a production where opera and dance play equal roles.

Fri 15, Sat 16, Wed 20, Thur 21, Sun 24, Mon 25 & Thur 28 Apr, Dutch National Opera and Ballet, 20:00, Sun 14:00, €20-€176 NAKED LUNCH Dynamic, obstinate and raw: labels that perfectly capture

the productions of Club Guy & Roni.

For Naked Lunch, choreographers Guy Weizman and Roni Haver sought inspiration in the masterwork of the same name by the American writer William Burroughs. The dancers and actors perform along with four singers from Silbersee and four percussionists from Slagwerk Den Haag.

Sat 16 Apr, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €25 COMPAÑIA ANA MORALES In her first major show, the expressive rising star of Spanish flamenco takes recycling as her starting point, critiquing our disposable society in a four-part choreography with contemporary dancer Sergio González, complete with costume design by students of Seville’s art academy.

Wed 20 Apr, Paradiso, 21:00, €26 ABSOLUUT AMERIKA This Introdans programme turns the spotlight on American choreographers Karole Armitage, Lucinda Childs, Jennifer Muller and Robert Battle.

Mon 25 Apr, Stadsschouwburg, 20:30, €10-€37.50 ADDRESSES Boom Chicago Rozentheater Rozengracht 117 020 423 0101 www.boomchicago.nl Crea Café Nieuwe Achtergracht 170 020 525 1423 www.crea.uva.nl Dutch National Opera & Ballet Amstel 3 020 625 5455 www.operaballet.nl Melkweg Lijnbaansgracht 234A www.melkweg.nl Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl RAI Theater Europaplein 22 020 549 1212 www.rai.nl Royal Theater Carré Amstel 115/125 0900 2525255 www.carre.nl Stadsschouwburg Leidseplein 26, 020 624 2311 www.stadsschouwburg amsterdam.nl Theater Amsterdam Danzigerkade 5 www.theateramsterdam.nl Theater Bellevue Leidsekade 90 020 530 5301 www.theaterbellevue.nl Toomler Breitnerstraat 2 020 670 7400 www.toomler.nl Ziggo Dome De Passage 100 www.ziggodome.nl

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EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS TEMPORARY EXHIBITIONS

VINCENT DELBROUCK An exhibition of work by Belgian photographer Vincent Delbrouck. Inspired by painting, he aims to capture the flow of life through his photography, photobooks and installations.

Foam, until 13 Mar

ing. The exhibition includes letters to his brother Theo, describing the city around him, as well as two oil sketches of Amsterdam.

Amsterdam City Archives, until 17 April

into the life, work and sometimes death of people including Ulysses, Justinian I and Michiel de Ruyter.

Allard Pierson Museum, until 8 May

ISA GENZKEN - MACH DICH HÜBSCH! CALLY SPOONER: AND YOU The first comprehensive retroSETH SIEGELAUB: BEYOND WERE WONDERFUL, ON spective of Isa Genzken’s work CONCEPTUAL ART STAGE HERMAN BROOD – one of the most influential An exhibition looking at the life An immersive five-channel film artists of the last 40 years. With The famous Dutch musician/ installation by British artist work encompassing sculpture, artist Herman Brood, who died and work of Seth Siegelaub. Often billed as the ‘father of ConCally Spooner. installation, film, video, paintin 2001, would have turned 70 ceptual Art’, he was a seminal Stedelijk Museum, until 17 Apr ing, work on paper, collage this year. Here you can see his influence on curators, artists, and photography, Mach dich paintings and photographs from ART SQUARE AMSTERDAM and cultural thinkers, interHübsch! offers a dynamic framea host of collections, while a work for Genzken’s unorthodox reconstruction of his studio even nationally and in Amsterdam, The courtyard of the Hermitage vision of the world around us. includes the Yamaha piano upon where he settled in the 1990s. Amsterdam hosts the latest ediThe exhibition occupies both which he wrote his biggest hits. Stedelijk Museum, until 17 Apr tion of Art Square Amsterdam.

This luxurious annual art fair the upper galleries of the new Museum Jan van der Togt, SICILY AND THE SEA showcases more than 30 interwing and half of those of the until 20 Mar By exploring the sea’s secrets national contemporary artists.

Stedelijk’s historic building, enaround the island of Sicily, this Hermitage Amsterdam, 14-17 couraging you to lose yourself in GERMAINE KRUIP: GEOMETRY OF THE SCATTERING exhibition gives unique insight Apr Genzken’s world.

Stedelijk Museum, until 6 Mar Dutch artist Germaine Kruip reveals the invisible in AmsterMARTIN ROEMERS – dam’s Oude Kerk. In cooperMETROPOLIS ation with curator Krist GruiPhotographer Roemer explores jthuijsen, they’ve selected a host modern life in megacities, letof works by a variety of artists – ting us immerse ourselves in some created specifically for this these extreme, urban worlds. church space, others adapted.

His atmospheric photographs Oude Kerk, until 27 Mar consist of agglomerations and THE COLONIAL WAR are taken with long exposure 1945-1949 times, meaning traffic and people merge to become blurred, The Dutch Resistance Museswirling currents. um turn its attention to the Huis Marseille, until 6 Mar horrific events that occurred in the Dutch East Indies during DANA LIXENBERG – IMPERIWWII. AL COURTS, 1993-2015 Dutch Resistance Museum, A series of black-and-white until 3 Apr photo portraits and landscapes JACQUES HENRI LARTIGUE – photographed at the Imperial LIFE IN COLOUR Courts housing project in Watts, Los Angeles. The series spans Jacques Henri Lartigue was more than 20 years, from 1993 most famous for his spectacular MADE IN AMSTERDAM to the present. photos of car races, aeroplanes, In 100 works of art, Made in Amsterdam showcases the Huis Marseille, until 6 Mar and people and animals in momost important artists, ideas and movements in the tion. However, his breath-taking FRANCESCA WOODMAN – Amsterdam art world over the last century. Presented in colour photography is less well ON BEING AN ANGEL known. Most of the photos on chronological order, the selection includes works from This retrospective exhibition display in Life in Colour come leading artists, such as George Hendrik Breitner, Karel showcases works from the ex- from his personal albums, where Appel and Marlene Dumas, as well as lesser-known ceptional oeuvre of American he collected photos telling the artists from the city. photographer Francesca Woodstory of his life.

Amsterdam Museum, 11 Mar-31 Jul man (1958–1981). She started Foam, until 3 Apr taking photographs when she BLANCO was just 13 and, up until her suicide at the age of 22, primarily The first major museum-based took self-portraits, using phosolo exhibition by Dutch photography as a form of expression tographer Awoiska van der Moto profile herself. len. Her often profoundly black Foam, until 9 Mar baryta prints contain mysterious contrasts between darkness and SIXTIES – A WORLDWIDE light. Whereas today’s 24-hour HAPPENING society is marked by speed and Take a trip back in time at this continual communication, celebration of 1960s culture.

Awoiska opts for quietude and Exploring themes that characthe craft of analogue photogterised a decade, the exhibition raphy. includes legendary objects and Foam, until 3 Apr AMY WINEHOUSE: ARITA PORCELAIN TODAY world-famous work by fashion A FAMILY PORTRAIT The centuries-old tradition MARC CHAGALL’S CALVARY designers, photographers and Looking beyond the hype, of porcelain manufacture architects. The exhibition also Regarded as a key work by the introduces major artists from young Marc Chagal, his Cubothis exhibition presents an in- in the Japanese town of Africa, Asia and Latin AmerFuturist Jesus portrayed in ‘Caltimate portrayal of the life of Arita has entered a new ica whose work remains little vary’ was created when he was Amy Winehouse, emphasisera. Under the supervision known in Europe. just 25 years old in 1912. Owned ing her passion for music and of the Dutch design duo Tropenmuseum, until 13 Mar by the Museum of Modern Art, fashion, as well as the history Scholten & Baijings and New York, this large-scale paintof her Jewish family and her the Japanese designer TRANSMISSION ing will be exclusively on loan school days. The Winehouse Teruhiro Yanagihara, an A photography exhibition refor the fifth instalment of the flecting the life of Amsterdam Masterpiece. family has offered access elite group of international citizen Miep. Transmission De Nieuwe Kerk, until 10 Apr to many of Amy’s personal designers have produced features photographs by Koos belongings for this colleca number of new ceramic VINCENT VAN GOGH, 400 Breukel and Milette Raats tion, while the stories by her creations that can be seen DAYS IN AMSTERDAM which tell a complex story about brother Alex make the expein this exhibition. transgender life.

Experience some personal inrience even more personal.

Rijksmuseum, 22 Apr-31 Amsterdam Museum, until sights from the famous Dutch Jewish Historical Museum, Oct 13 Mar artist, who spent time living in Amsterdam studying theology until 4 Sep before concentrating on paint© THE WINEHOUSE FAMILY

BREITNER, ROKIN, 1923, RIJKSMUSEUM

Choice exhibits

AMSTERDAM PARK Experience stunning in-the-air photos of Amsterdam’s numerous parks, captured by artist Jeroen Hofman.

Amsterdam City Archives, until 17 Apr ZONDE Seven artists are invited to reflect upon the seven deadly sins.

Each month sees a different artist present works inspired by their designated sin.

Biblical Museum, until 30 Apr SECRET LOVE, SEXUAL DIVERSITY IN CHINA This art exhibition explores the state of social acceptance of LGBT people in today’s China.

Contemporary artists have played an important role in the shift in awareness and growing social acceptance of sexual diversity, and the fight for equal rights.

Tropenmuseum, until 8 May SASKIA NOOR VAN IMHOFF A solo exhibition by Dutch artist Saskia Noor van Imhoff (1982), with her installation taking direct inspiration from the Stedelijk’s collection.

Stedelijk Museum, until 8 May BERLAGE, GODFATHER OF DUTCH DESIGN Berlage could be considered to be the most important designer in Dutch history. He not only designed the Beurs van Berlage in Amsterdam, but also the many exceptional objects and pieces of furniture inside the building. This exhibition showcases authentic pieces of furniture from Berlage’s hand, as well as looking at contemporary Dutch Design.

Beurs van Berlage, until 15 May CATWALK An exhibition dedicated to some 100 spectacular examples of Dutch fashion, dating from 1625 to 1960. Look out for vibrantlycoloured French silk gowns and luxurious velvet gentlemen’s suits of the 18th Century, classically-inspired Empire dresses and bustles of the Fin de Siècle culminating in 20th-century French haute couture by Dior and Yves Saint Laurent.

Rijksmuseum, until 15 May REMBRANDT’S NAKED TRUTH Based on the latest research, Rembrandt’s Naked Truth features 17th-century nude studies that have never before been brought together in such large numbers. It will be the first time that Rembrandt’s frank approach to drawing nudes will be examined in depth and brought to the attention of a wide audience. Expect more than 50 objects collected from around the world, shown alongside pieces from the museum’s own collection.

Rembrandt House Museum, until 16 May CLOSE-UP – A NEW GENERATION OF FILM AND VIDEO ARTISTS IN THE NETHERLANDS As the title suggests, this exhibi-

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A-LIST. PART IV THE A-LIST

EXHIBITIONS & MUSEUMS tion is an opportunity for the EYE Filmmuseum to offer up space to recent film graduates and other fresh talents. Presented as a group exhibition of film/video works and installations, expect to discover a variety of interesting artworks.

EYE Filmmuseum, until 22 May BREITNER: GIRL IN KIMONO Breitner created this muchloved series between 1893 and 1896, with young model Geesje Kwak being immortalised in his art. Here you can see the entire series of 14 paintings, including an unfinished version and an unknown ‘Girl in a Red Kimono’, telling the story of how these works were created through the many preparatory drawings, sketches and photographs that the artist produced.

Rijksmuseum, until 22 May SPANISH MASTERS FROM THE HERMITAGE Subtitled ‘The World of El Greco, Ribera, Zurbarán, Velázquez, Murillo & Goya’, this grand exhibition of Spanish art and artefacts includes more than 60 superior paintings and a rich collection of graphic works and applied arts masterpieces. As well as the grand masters, it features paintings by their pupils and later painters, up to and including Picasso.

Hermitage Amsterdam, until 29 May DWDD POP-UP MUSEUM This exhibition elevates various regular guests of the popular Dutch talk show De Wereld Draait Door (The World Goes On) to curators, letting each of them pick a favourite work from the archives of 11 Dutch museums.

Allard Pierson Museum, until 31 May STREET COUTURE The ‘Street Couture’ style is all about mixing and matching: high-end fashion combined with street fashion, sports with pop culture, and Dutch with European design. The exhibition brings together couture classics from the museum’s collection with street fashion from various parts of the world.

Museum of Bags & Purses, until 8 May UNE FEMME Dutch photographer Jeroen Robert Kramer presents a poetic photographic narrative based on the life of Monsieur Khiar, an older Lebanese man with whom he has a special friendship. In their personal narrative that forms the basis of the exhibition, it gradually becomes clear that the impacts of the civil war in Beirut is the ‘elephant in the room’.

Huis Marseille, 12 Mar-5 Jun EASY VIRTUE The Van Gogh Museum presents a visual presentation of prostitution in French art

from the years between 1850 and 1910. Visitors can admire more than 100 paintings and works on paper by important artists such as Picasso, Van Gogh Toulouse-Lautrec and Degas, as well as some unusual objects, such as an extravagant 19th-century bed.

Van Gogh Museum, until 19 Jun DOCUMENT NETHERLANDS: EDUCATION Every year since the mid-1970s

War II. Now converted into a museum, it contains a sobering exhibition about persecution.

BODY WORLDS After captivating visitors the world over, the oftcontroversial exhibition of human specimens including whole-body plastinates, organs and translucent body slices features an extensive selection of authentic human specimens.

Choice exhibit

REMBRANDTHUIS (REMBRANDT HOUSE) The house that Rembrandt called home for nearly 20 years boasts an impressive collection of drawings and paintings by the Old Master himself as well as by his contemporaries.

The Rembrandthuis is also home to 290 of Rembrandt’s etchings with an alternating selection.

RIJKSMUSEUM Visit the state museum and embark on a journey through Dutch art and history from the Middle Ages and Renaissance right up until the 20th Century.

HET SCHEEPVAART MUSEUM (NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM) The National Maritime Museum comprises a series of small exhibitions exploring various elements of maritime life. Moored outside is the Amsterdam, an exact replica of a famous Dutch East India Company ship.

LIVING IN THE AMSTERDAM SCHOOL With 2016 marking 100 years of the Amsterdam School architecture movement, this exhibition sees the furniture and interior designers who were most active in this period receiving the recognition they deserve for the first time. It also reveals that their expressive furnishings functioned within an exuberant, colourful environment.

Stedelijk Museum, 9 Apr-28 Aug the Rijksmuseum has invited a Dutch photographer to focus on a topical social phenomenon in the Netherlands. On this occasion photographer Carel van Hees has collected a series of shots inspired by ‘education’ in Rotterdam.

Rijksmuseum, 24 Mar-22 Jun WORLD PRESS PHOTO The winning images from the world’s most prestigious annual press photography contest begin their world tour in Amsterdam each year, presenting a reflection of trends and developments in photojournalism. This collection of images not only presents the (at times gruesome) reality of events on the world stage, but also the beauty of life, sports, art, science and nature.

De Nieuwe Kerk, 16 Apr-10 Jul DUTCH MASTERS Step into the world of the Dutch Masters and immerse yourself in some of the greatest paintings ever made at this new, interactive art exhibition.

Madame Tussauds, from 1 Mar

PERMANENT EXHIBITIONS ANNE FRANK HOUSE Prinsengracht 263 is where Anne Frank lived in hiding with her family for more than two years during World

EYE FILM MUSEUM Cinematography museum with an internationally renowned collection of films covering the whole history of cinema.

GEELVINCK HINLOPEN HOUSE A decadent canal-side mansion showcasing 17th-century patrician wealth. Highlights include ornamental gardens and sumptuous themed salons.

HET GRACHTENHUIS (MUSEUM OF THE CANALS) A tribute to the Canal District, with multimedia exhibitions showing how the engineering marvel was built on swampland during the 17th Century.

HORTUS BOTANICUS For nearly four centuries, Amsterdam’s Hortus Botanicus has regaled visitors with its lush greenhouses and exotic plants.

It is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world.

HOUSEBOAT MUSEUM Located in the Hendrika Maria, a former freighter moored on the Prinsengracht, the Houseboat Museum gives a fun insight into life on Amsterdam’s canals – a uniquely Dutch way of life.

ONS’ LIEVE HEER OP SOLDER (OUR LORD IN THE ATTIC) This clandestine church in a 17th-century canal house attic dates back to the Reformation, when Catholics were not permitted to practice their faith in public.

KONINKLIJK PALEIS (ROYAL PALACE) The Koninklijk Paleis (Royal Palace) on Amsterdam’s Dam Square is one of three palaces still in use by the Dutch royal family. When the palace is not being used by the royal family, it is open to the public.

STEDELIJK MUSEUM The museum’s permanent collection is on display in the beautifully restored historical building. Half of the ground floor is reserved for the design collection.

TROPENMUSEUM The ‘Museum of the Tropics’ has eight geographically-themed permanent exhibitions and an ongoing series of temporary presentations, including both modern and traditional visual arts and photographic work.

WILLET-HOLTHUYSEN MUSEUM The only completely period furnished canal-side house in Amsterdam has a remarkable collection of Golden Age art and silverware.

ADDRESSES Allard Pierson Museum Oude Turfmarkt 127 www.allardpiersonmuseum.nl Amsterdam City Archives Vijzelstraat 32 www.stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl Amsterdam Museum Kalverstraat 92 www.amsterdammuseum.nl Anne Frank House Prinsengracht 263-267 www.annefrank.org Museum of Bags & Purses Herengracht 573 www.tassenmuseum.nl Beurs Van Berlage Damrak 243 www.beursvanberlage.com Biblical Museum Herengracht 366-368 www.bijbelsmuseum.nl Body Worlds Damrak 66 www.bodyworlds.nl

De Appel Arts Centre Prins Hendrikkade 142 www.deappel.nl De Brakke Grond Nes 45 www.brakkegrond.nl Cobra Museum Sandbergplein 1 Amstelveen www.cobra-museum.nl Diamond Museum Amsterdam Paulus Potterstraat 8 diamantmuseumamsterdam.nl Dutch Press Museum Zeeburgerkade 10 www.persmuseum.nl Dutch Resistance Museum Plantage Kerklaan 61 www.verzetsmuseum.org EYE Filmmuseum IJpromenade 1 www.eyefilm.nl FOAM Keizersgracht 609 www.foam.org Geelvinck Hinlopen House Keizersgracht 633 www.geelvinck.nl Van Gogh Museum Paulus Potterstraat 7 www.vangoghmuseum.nl Het Grachtenhuis (Museum of the Canals) Herengracht 386 www.hetgrachtenhuis.nl Hermitage Amsterdam Amstel 51 www.hermitage.nl Hortus Botanicus Plantage Middenlaan 2A www.dehortus.nl Houseboat Museum Prinsengracht 296K www.houseboatmuseum.nl Huis Marseille Keizersgracht 401 www.huismarseille.nl Museum Jan van der Togt Dorpsstraat 50, Amstelveen www.jvdtogt.nl Jewish Historical Museum Nieuwe Amstelstraat 1 www.jhm.nl Madame Tussauds Dam 20 www.madametussauds.com/ Amsterdam Micropia Artisplein, Plantage Kerklaan 38 www.micropia.nl/en De Nieuwe Kerk Dam Square www.nieuwekerk.nl Ons’ Lieve Heer Op Solder (Our Lord in the Attic) Oudezijds Voorburgwal 40 www.opsolder.nl Oudekerk Oudekerksplein 23 www.oudekerk.nl Rembrandt House Museum Jodenbreestraat 4 www.rembrandthuis.nl Rijksmuseum Jan Luijkenstraat 1 www.rijksmuseum.nl Royal Palace Amsterdam Dam square www.paleisamsterdam.nl Het Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Museum) Kattenburgerplein 1 www.hetscheepvaartmuseum.nl Stedelijk Museum Museumplein 10 www.stedelijk.nl Tropenmuseum Linnaeusstraat 2 www.tropenmuseum.nl Willet-Holthuysen Museum Herengracht 605 www.willetholthuysen.nl

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KIDS & FAMILY VENUES AMSTERDAM DUNGEON The Amsterdam Dungeon brings 500 years of dark history to life with 11 shows, seven actors and one terrifying experience!

Rokin 78, www.the-dungeons. nl. Open daily 11:00-17:00 (last tour); €22, ages 4-15 €18 AMSTERDAMSE BOS This huge park and forest is one of Amsterdam’s super secrets despite being three times the size of New York’s Central Park.

Visitor Centre, Bosbaanweg 5, Amstelveen, www.amsterdamsebos.nl, various times & prices ANNE FRANK HOUSE This is the hiding place where Anne Frank wrote her diary during World War II. Quotations from the diary, photographs, films and original objects – including Anne’s diary. Suitable for children over ten.

Prinsengracht 263-267, www. annefrank.org. Open Mon-Sat 09:00-22:00, Sun 09:0021:00; €9, ages 10-17 €4.50 ARTIS ROYAL ZOO Admire the tropical fish in the Aquarium and travel through time in the Planetarium. See giraffes resting amongst the zebras and wildebeests.

Surround yourself with hundreds of fluttering butterflies in the Butterfly Pavilion or stroll through the historical park with its centuries-old trees and a multitude of plants.

Plantage Kerklaan 38-40, www.artis.nl. Open daily 09:00-18:00; €20,50, ages 3-9 €17 BLEEKMOLENS RACE PLANET Burn off some steam and rubber at this indoor go-karting track. Minimum age for karting is eight years old.

Helmets and protective clothing are included. There’s also a large playground, bowling alley and restaurant.

Herwijk 10, www.raceplanet. com. Open Mon-Fri 13.0023.00, Sat & Sun 12.0023.00; various packages available COBRA MUSEUM OF MODERN ART In addition to presenting interesting exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, the museum also offers a free Children’s Studio.

Sandbergplein 1, Amstelveen, www.cobra-museum.nl. Open Tue-Sun 11:00-17:00; adults €9.50, ages 6-18 €6; Children’s Studio, Sun 11:0014:00, free HORTUS BOTANICUS A refuge from the bustle of the city, highlights include a palm and a butterfly greenhouse, four beehives, temporary exhibitions and a café.

Plantage Middenlaan 2A,

www.dehortus.nl. Open MonSat, 10:00-17:00; €8.50, ages 5-14 €4.50

Highlight kids

HET TWISKE This nature reserve and recreational area is situated in thenorth of Amsterdam between Zaanstad and Purmerend. In addition to large playgrounds, a beach and plenty of green space, you can rent canoes, row or pedal boats, and sailboats. www.hettwiske.nl KINDERKOOKKAFÉ The ‘Kids Cook Café’ is a delightful and unique restaurant located by the Vondelpark.

Children (ages five to 12) do everything to help run the restaurant, including cooking, serving, bartending, tidying up and running the register.

Vondelpark 6b, www.kinderkookkafe.nl. Open daily 10:00-17:00; various prices DE KLIMMUUR Rock climbing in the centre of Amsterdam.

Dijksgracht 2, www.deklimmuur.nl. Various times & prices LOVERS POWERZONE Strike it big at one of the six glow-in-the-dark bowling alleys, or pit yourself against the enemy on the laser tag battleground.

De Ruyterkade 153, www.loverspowerzone.nl.

Various times & prices

EASTER EGGS IN AMSTERDAM On Easter Sunday, local petting zoos in Amsterdam often host special parties with an egg hunt, egg decorating, festive treats and fun activities. Around Easter, farms in the Amsterdam area also hold ‘lamb days’ where kids can cuddle and feed new-born lambs. Look out for special egg hunts taking place around the Amsterdamse Bos, while Artis Royal Zoo always has a fun line-up of activities scheduled during the Easter holiday, including special (educational) egg hunts.

25-28 Mar, various locations, www.iamsterdam.com daily 09:00-17:00; €15, ages 5-17 €7.50, under-5s free SCIENCE CENTER NEMO NEMO introduces young and old to science and technology.

Oosterdok 2, www.e-nemo.nl.

Open daily 10:00-17:30; €15, under-4s free

MADAME TUSSAUDS AMSTERDAM The collection of wax figures include the gorgeous Brad Pitt, the outrageous Lady Gaga and the brilliant Einstein.

Dam 20, www.madametussauds.nl. Open daily 10:0018:30; €22, ages 5-15 €18, under-5s free

STEDELIJK MUSEUM The Stedelijk Museum offers a renovated Family Lab in which young and old are encouraged to learn about artists and techniques and create bold artwork.

Museumplein 10, www. stedelijk.nl. Open Mon-Wed, Sat & Sun 10:00-18:00, Thur 10:00-22:00; €15, children free

MIRANDABAD SWIMMING POOL Subtropical swimming pool complex with a beach, palm trees, several indoor pools, and wave machines. Other amenities include squash courts, a solarium and a restaurant.

De Mirandalaan 9, www.mirandabad.nl. Various times & prices

TROPENMUSEUM JUNIOR Tropenmuseum is renowned for its efforts in child-friendly exhibitions. In the Junior building, interactive exhibits introduce children to new cultures in a playful way.

Linnaeusstraat 2, www.tropenmuseum.nl. Open Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00, Mondays during public and school holidays 10:00-17:00; €12.50, ages 4-18 €8, under-4s free

PANCAKE BOAT A cosy boat, all-you-can-eat pancakes and a view of Amsterdam’s waters make the Pancake Boat a great activity for all ages.

Ms van Riemsdijkweg opposite nr 38, www.pannenkoekenboot.nl. Various times & prices HET SCHEEPVAARTMUSEUM (NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM) This nautical museum has a variety of exhibitions designed just for kids, including the recently opened Life on board.

Kattenburgerplein 1, www. scheepvaartmuseum.nl. Open

TUNFUN An indoor paradise for children under 12. Kids can enjoy hours of fun in a huge 4,000m2 indoor playground.

There’s something for every age and interest.

Mr Visserplein 7, www.tunfun.nl. Open daily 10:00-18:00; ages 1-12 €8.50, accompanying adults free VERZETSMUSEUM JUNIOR A Junior building shows young visitors (9-14 years) how four peers lived during wartime.

Verzetsmuseum, Plantage Kerklaan 61, www.verzetsmuseum.org. Open Tue-Fri

10:00-17:00; Sat-Mon 11:0017:00; €8, ages 7-15 €4.50, under-7s free WIND ‘N’ WHEELS This large-scale urban ‘land yachting’ park is set up on Zeeburgereiland.

Wind ‘n’ Wheels, Zuiderzeeweg 1, www.windnwheels.nl. Various times & price WOESTE WESTEN PLAYGROUND An outdoor playground where kids can explore, dig, climb, play in the sand, and check out the frogs and bugs.

Westerpark, www.woestewesten.nl, playground supervisor is present Mon & Tue 12:0018:00, Wed-Sun 11:00-18:00

EVENTS HET FANTASTISCH KINDERFILM FESTIVAL Leave the Frozen costumes at home as the Fantastisch Kinderfilm Festival is set to dazzle young audiences with a host of fun film programming.

Look out for amazing animations, creative storytelling and other lively activities to keep the kids happy. Do keep in mind that most of the films will be in Dutch.

Mon 29 Feb-Thur 10 Mar, EYE Filmmuseum, www.fantastischkinderfilmfestival.nl CIRCUS KRISTAL EXTRAVAGANZA Enjoy an afternoon of circus fun during the spring vacation. As well as the true entertainers of this circus troupe, there are lots of special activities and workshops to keep the young ones bouncing and happy.

6 Mar, Pllek (from 14:00), www.pllek.nl

SUNDAY MARKET Artists, designers and craftspeople flog their wares and delicious food & drink is on offer to fuel your shopping frenzy. There is always some form of entertainment or crafty workshop on and plenty of kids clothing and toy stalls to browse through.

6 Mar & 3 Apr, Westergasfabriek, www.sundaymarket. nl KING’S GAMES More than 1.5 million children at 7,500 schools around the nation engage in sports and exercise together as part of the King’s Games (Koningsspelen). On this special occasion, the King’s Games replace their regular lessons and kids can enjoy a special national day of celebration, games and health.

22 Apr, various locations, www.amsterdam.nl/sport CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: AMALUNA As always, incredible circus acrobatics, dance and physical performance are at the heart of this Cirque du Soleil performance, driven by a narrative loosely inspired by Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

The story is set on a mysterious island that’s governed by goddesses and guided by the cycles of the moon. After a group of men are washed up on the island’s shore following a terrible storm, a visually dramatic love story unfolds.

18 Mar-1 May, Grand Chapiteau (P2 ArenA), various dates, times and prices WWE LIVE WRESTLEMANIA REVENGE The superstars and divas of the WWE wrestling world are tearing their way through Europe, stopping off at arena after arena, spreading their oily-muscled glamour alongside soap opera drama. This is the first time the WWE crew has visited Amsterdam, bringing along big names like Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt and The Dudley Boyz, and setting up some ring-smashing grudge matches.

15 Apr, Ziggo Dome, www.ziggodome.nl 24H WEST From noon on Saturday till noon on Sunday, the West district is overflowing with fun and often unusual events.

Theatres, museums, clubs, shops and places of interest open their doors to the public.

For example, listen to beautiful arias while enjoying a cold beer at Bret, or go die-hard DIY at the Student Hotel.

Night owls can dance till dawn to electronic music at the Radion Weekender, while early birds can start their day with a Turkish breakfast followed by a yoga lesson at Podium Mozaïek.

12 & 13 Mar, various locations, www.iamsterdam. com/24h

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PART IV THE A-LIST.

FILM FAVOURITES

GALLERIES

CINEDANS

POWERED BY AMSTERDAM ART WWW.AMSTERDAMART.COM

1. SOUVENIR D’INTIME

The 13th edition of Cinedans takes the term ‘moving images’ to a whole new level, with dance documentaries (about choreographer Marco Goecke and Dutch ballet veteran Jaap Flier among others), a live performance registration of DV8 Physical Theatre, the Dutch premiere of choreographer Wim Vandekeybus’s feature film debut, Galloping Mind, and lots and lots of dance film shorts.

For nearly 10 years Ruud van Empel has been depicting hundreds of innocent-looking children in dense nature.

Recently he also creates still lifes and nudes, on which this show focuses. His pictures resonate with classical artwork, using elements, compositions and topics from previous epochs to create his own, poignant style.

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12 MARCH – 30 APRIL Flatland Gallery Lijnbaansgracht 312-314

2. UNDER COVER

16 – 20 March, EYE. www.cinedans.nl

Ten years in the making, Dirt Under Cover shows a selection of books designed

by Irma Boom (the ‘Queen of Books’) along with those she considers crucial in the history of bookmaking. For the exhibition she designed Hommage a Kelly, for sculptor Elsworth Kelly who created ‘the most beautiful book ever’.

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ROOM

For young Jack (Jacob Tremblay), the small room that he shares with his mother (Brie Larson) is his entire world.

He doesn’t know any better.

But what happens when they get out? A harrowing and heartfelt adaptation of the book by Emma Donoghue (who also penned the script), with great performances by newcomer Tremblay and Larson, who was nominated for an Oscar.

12 MARCH – 16 APRIL Irma Boom Kerkstraat 105-A

3. TIME GOES BY SO SLOWY…

Alek O. carefully blends notions of the readymade with craft, embroidery, painting, collaging and other traditional conventions of art making, and alternates anonymous findings with personal treasures.

Directed by: Lenny Abrahamson Release: 3 March

A BIGGER SPLASH

UNTIL 26 MARCH Jeanine Hofland De Clerqstraat 62

4. FLUSS (RIVER)

Michael Lange’s latest series FLUSS focuses on the Rhine River and the adjacent meadows of the Upper Rhine in the south of Germany. He examines nature, aiming to find stillness in motion and order in chaos. A new facet is the mix between secluded and open landscape, the interaction between river, dense vegetation and the ever-changing weather and water levels.

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5 MARCH – 9 APRIL Galerie Wouter van Leeuwen Hazenstraat 27

5. EDGING IRIS

C&H Art Space presents a selection of the latest work by Dutch artists Rob Bouwman, Arthur Stokvis and Vincent Uilenbroek. The selection shows a focus on colour and the act of painting itself. The three artists experiment with overflowing colours, graffiti techniques and templates for a dazzling experience.

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5 MARCH – 9 APRIL C&H Art Space 2de Kostverlorenkade 50

© JASON ROBINETTE

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For his first feature film since I am Love, Italian director Luca Guadagnino was inspired by the simmering Romy Schneider-Alain Delon thriller La Piscine (1969).

Thankfully, A Bigger Splash also works very well on its own, thanks to a stellar cast, especially Tilda Swinton as a mute Bowie-like rock star and Ralph ‘funny-bones’ Fiennes as her former lover.

Directed by: Luca Guadagnino Release: 17 March

BROOKLYN

For a movie about a young Irish woman trying to find her way in 1950s New York, Brooklyn is a surprisingly soothing concoction. You just want to wrap yourself up in its nostalgic embrace. Having Saoirse Ronan and Emory Cohen play one of the sweetest couples in cinematic history certainly helps.

Directed by: John Crowley Release: 17 March

WHERE TO INVADE NEXT

Don’t let the title – and the director – fool you. Where to

Invade Next is one of Michael Moore’s most playful documentaries to date. Desperate to once again make America the greatest country on earth, Moore travels around the globe, ‘invading’ other countries and stealing their secrets for a healthier, happier life.

Directed by: Michael Moore Release: 24 March

EXPERIMENTER

If there’s one name no Psychology 101 class should do without, it’s Stanley Milgram (Peter Sarsgaard), a social psychologist who, in 1961, conducted his radical (and to some, infamous) obedience experiments where ‘teachers’ had to shock their ‘pupils’. If only his private live was as controversial. Winona Ryder co-stars.

Directed by: Michael Almereyda Release: 31 March

DEMOLITION

The protagonists in films by Jean-Marc Vallée (Dallas Buyers Club, Wild) usually have to go a long way for a little peace of mind. When closedoff Wall Street financier (Jake Gyllenhaal) loses his wife in a car accident, he takes his father-in-law’s advice – to first take apart and then rebuild his life – just a bit too literally.

Directed by: Jean-Marc Vallée Release: 14 April

HEART OF A DOG

The death of her beloved rat terrier Lolabelle was the starting point for this creative and meditative documentary on mourning, letting go and post-9/11 America by performance and music artist Laurie Anderson. The scene to remember? Anderson gives birth to her dog (Yes, it’s that kind of film).

Directed by: Laurie Anderson Release: 28 April

RACE

The filmmakers of Race must have been pretty pleased with themselves when they thought up the title for this historical movie, based on African-American track and field athlete Jesse Owens, who went to compete in the 1936 Olympics in Nazi-Germany.

But will the rest of the movie deliver as well?

Directed by: Stephen Hopkins Release: 28 April

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SPORTS

GAY & LESBIAN

is the second event in the Rondje 3 Apr, Amsterdam Science Park, Mokum (Amsterdam Circuit) www.rokjesdagloop.nl programme of running competiNESCIOLOOP FRIDAY NIGHT RUN tions. Alongside the professional 10km event, there’s also a 5km The next instalment of the RondOrganised by the Phanos athand 10km event for recreational je Mokum (Amsterdam Circuit) letics association every second runners, all weaving their way takes running enthusiasts to Friday of the month, this free through urban and countryside Amsterdam Oost/IJburg for a group running event is open areas of the northern district of challenging 15km course. Startto both recreational and more Amsterdam. And for younger ing and finishing at the AV’23 serious sportsters. Beginners can runners aged between 7 and 12, athletics club grounds, the event join in the 40-minute run at a there’s a special 1km event. includes two crossings of the slower tempo and there’s also the 13 Mar, AV Atos, Nesciobrug and trails through standard one-hour run.

Sportpark Elzenhagen, the charming Diemerpark. If Fri 11 Mar & 8 Apr, Olympic www.louisvinkloop.nl 15km seems like a bit of a stretch, Stadium, 19:30, www.fridayyou can also take on the 8km nightrun.nl BRETTENLOOP version: almost half the distance ICE SKATING AT JAAP EDEN This will be the seventh edition but certainly not half the fun! of this running competition or10 Apr, AV’23, Radioweg 89, If you’re serious about your ice ganised in and around De Bretwww.nescioloop.nl skating, the Jaap Eden IJsbaan is the city’s main ice rink, hosting ten nature reserve in Amsterdam AMSTERDAM DIVING CUP daily skate sessions from October West. Starting and finishing at the Westergasfabriek, choose Watch the Netherlands’s best through March. As well as an from 5km and 10km courses divers make a splash at the 21st indoor arena, there’s a 400or go for broke with the half edition of this international metre outdoor track, plus the marathon! Kids can also get diving tournament. Being an rink is home to the city’s ice Olympic year, there’s gonna be hockey team, the Amstel Tijgers. involved with the 1km sponsored children’s run, raising money for hot competition as divers aim until 20 Mar, Jaap Eden IJsa good cause in the process. to make it to Rio this summer. baan, www.jaapeden.nl 20 Mar, Westerpark, Participants from Finland and AJAX www.brettenloop.nl Sweden will also join the Dutch divers.

They’re Amsterdam’s top football THE NETHERLANDS V. 14-17 Apr, Sloterparkbad, club, known around the world FRANCE www.amsterdamdivingcup.nl for their distinctive red and Sadly the Dutch football team white shirt and for their legacy of WWE LIVE WRESTLEMANIA failed to qualify for Euro 2016, Dutch and European victories.

REVENGE Upcoming home league matches taking place this summer. France on the other hand will be tourThe superstars and divas of the include NEC (13 Mar), PEC nament faves as the host nation. WWE wrestling world are tearZwolle (3 Apr) and FC Utrecht Still, this match up in Amstering their way through Europe, (17 Apr). dam should see two squads with stopping off at arena after arena, 13 Mar, 3 Apr & 17 Apr, plenty to prove. spreading their oily-muscled Amsterdam ArenA, 25 Mar, Amsterdam ArenA, glamour alongside soap opera www.amsterdamarena.nl www.amsterdamarena.nl drama. Although regulars to MOKUMSE VROUWENLOOP Britain, this is the first time the ROKJESDAGLOOP WWE crew has visited AmsterThis all-female run marks InterThe late Dutch author and coldam, bringing along big names national Women’s Day, inviting like Roman Reigns, Dean Amrunners to take part in a circuit umnist Martin Bril provided the in the west of the city, around the inspiration for this annual run- brose, Bray Wyatt and The Dudning event when he coined the ley Boyz, and setting up some Sloterplas lake. Distances range term rokjesdag (literally ‘short ring-smashing grudge matches. from 7.5km to a 400-metre dress day’) for the first day of the 15 Apr, Ziggo Dome, mother and daughter race. year on which women switch en www.ziggodome.nl 6 Mar, AAC Amsterdam, masse from winter to summer www.mokumsevrouwenloop.nl KORFBAL LEAGUE FINALS clothes. An ode to the beginning LOUIS VINKLOOP of spring, the event now invites Perhaps a new one for internafemale runners to take on a 5-, tionals, korfbal is a ball sport Organised by the AV Atos 10- or 15km course while there’s resembling netball and is particathletics association, the Louis also a 1km run for youngsters. ularly popular in the Benelux. In Vinkloop in Amsterdam Noord an arena setting today, the top four teams will play to determine the final league positions. You can also catch the final of the A-Youth league.

16 Apr, Ziggo Dome, www.korfbalfinale.nl

EVENTS

Highlight sports

HEAD OF THE RIVER AMSTEL Rowing regattas are always exciting affairs, but nothing captures the public’s imagination quite like when rowers leave behind their dedicated track venues and take to unpredictable river waters – and thousands of rowers will be doing just that over the weekend. It’s a remarkable spectacle that kicks off in the heart of Amsterdam!

19 & 20 Mar, on the Amstel, www.headoftheriver.nl

REGULAR EVENTS MELLOW MONDAY Recharge after your busy weekend with free foot and shoulder massages, free snacks, free detox scrubs, and dry and steam saunas.

Every Mon, Sauna NZ, 19:00, €19,50, under-26s €10, men only NAKED SWIMMING The Marnixbad pools contain much less chlorine than most – which is good news since you’ll be exposing your sensitive bits.

Every Tue, Marnixbad, 21:15, various prices (Z)ONDERBROEK Guys: Every Friday night and every first Saturday of the month, drop all your pretences and dance without pants at Club Church in Amsterdam.

The dress code is strictly enforced: briefs and jocks are welcome; swimming trunks, boxers, sports shorts or going commando are also permitted.

Board shorts, Bermudas or other streetwear prohibited.

Every Fri night & first Sat of the month, Club Church, 22:00-05:00, €10

ONE-OFF EVENTS AMSTERDAM BEAR PRIDE Bear Necessity, Furball, NZ Sauna, Eagle, Dirty Dicks and many other local businesses are taking part in this third edition of the Amsterdam Bear Pride for a long weekend of furry fun which includes pub crawls, bowling, bingo, parties, cruises and more – and of course, a ‘Mister Bear Netherlands’ election.

3-7 Mar, Various locations, www.amsterdambearpride. com

KING’S GAMES More than 1.5 million children at 7,500 schools around the nation engage in sports and exercise together as part of the King’s Games (Koningsspelen). On this special occasion, the King’s Games replace their regular lessons and kids can enjoy a special national day of celebration, games and health.

22 Apr, various locations, www. amsterdam.nl/sport

ROZE FILMDAGEN With its top-draw programming, the festival has earned an excellent reputation amongst its visitors, as well as with filmmakers and festivals abroad.

Subtitled the ‘Amsterdam LGBTQ Film Festival’, its aim is to highlight all aspects of quality LGBTQ cinema for a broad audience: feature films, documentaries and shorts, which are typically missing from regular cinematic programming.

10-20 Mar, Ketelhuis/Westergasfabriek, www.rozefilmdagen.nl

URBAN SPORTS WEEK AMSTERDAM Enjoy a wealth of urban sports throughout Amsterdam this week. There’s a 3x3 basketball contest, BMX demos, inline skating, freerunning, skateboarding sessions and much more.

28 Apr-2 May, various locations, www.urbansportsweekamsterdam.com

THE ORIGINAL BACKDOOR TEADANCE Tea with a Twist! The Backdoor teadance is back at its original location. This teadance was a popular Sunday event from 2000-2005; the club has been completely renovated and is now called Club Abe. 13 Mar, Club Abe, www.facebook.com/backdoorteadance

WASTELAND Europe’s most notorious straight / gay mixed fetish fantasy extravaganza welcomes you and fetishionistas from all over the globe. Three dance floors, six performance stages, a lounge, a relax room, a fully equipped dungeon, and a restaurant – what else can you ask for. The dress code is very strict: leather, latex, Fetish Lolita, Burlesque, Metal, Cross Dress, Schoolgirl/ boy, etc... de rigueur.

16 Apr, North Sea Venue, www.wasteland.nl KING’S NIGHT @ HOMOMONUMENT Amsterdam’s world-famous Homomonument is not just a memorial; it’s also a fabulous place to party. Join the happy crowd for the typically Dutch celebrations of King’s Night, King’s Day and Liberation Day, and come dance to great music spun by Amsterdam’s finest DJs at the Homomonument openair festival (free for all).

26-27 Apr, Homomonument ADDRESSES Amstel Fifty Four Amstel 54 www.amstelfiftyfour.nl Church Kerkstraat 52 www.clubchurch.nl Eden Amsterdam Manor Hotel Linnaeusstraat 89 www.lgbtqoosterpark.blogspot.com Engel van Amsterdam Zeedijk 21 www.engelamsterdam.nl Hotel Arena 's-Gravesandestraat 5 www.hotelarena.nl Lellebel Utrechtsestraat 4 www.lellebel.nl Marnixbad Marnixplein 1 www.hetmarnix.nl Club NYX Reguliersdwarsstraat 42 www.clubnyx.nl Paradiso Weteringschans 6-8 www.paradiso.nl Pathé de Munt Vijzelstraat 15 www.pathe.nl Prik Spuistraat 109 www.prikamsterdam.nl The Queen’s Head Zeedijk 20 www.queenshead.nl Saarein Elandsstraat 119-HS www.saarein2.nl Sameplace Nassaukade 120 www.sameplace.nl Sauna Nieuwezijds Nieuwezijds Armsteeg 95 www.saunanieuwezijds.nl Strand West Stavangerweg 900 www.garboforwomen.nl Taboo Reguliersdwarsstraat 45 www.taboobar.nl Theater Amsterdam Danzigerkade 5 www.theateramsterdam.nl The Warehouse Warmoesstraat 96 www.warehouseamsterdam.com

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BEYOND

A’DAM

beyond amsterdam

‘THE VAN HOUT CHURCH IS A DREAM LOCATION FOR CHAMBER MUSIC, IT HAS SUCH AMAZING ACOUSTICS.’ SIMONE DER GIESSEN, VIOLIST WITH THE NAVARRA STRING QUARTET

Get out of town for these don’t-miss attractions beyond the city limits. text Marie-Charlotte Pezé

TULIP FESTIVAL Easter weekend isn’t so much about chocolates than flowers in the Netherlands; it’s the day the Keukenhof Gardens finally open to delight visitors with the Tulip Festival: 32 hectares of artfully landscaped gardens blooming with more than seven million bulbs – and 800 different kinds of tulips, arranged in such inspiring displays as this year’s mosaic of 100,000 flowers which depicts a giant Delft Blue tile in honour of the Golden Age, the park’s theme for 2016. During its short two months, Keukenhof organises many special events, including choir concerts, festivals, flower shows and markets, and the dazzling Flower Parade on 23 April, with floats of blooms strutting their stuff from Noordwijk to Haarlem.

24 March-16 May Stationsweg 166, Lisse www.keukenhof.nl

GETTING THERE: From Amsterdam Central or Schiphol Airport, hop on the Keukenhof Express, which departs between 4 and 12 times per hour.

Travel time: 30 minutes.

TRANSITION JAZZ FESTIVAL A new jazz festival which goes beyond traditions: it does not matter whether jazz is still true jazz, music must be an adventure and leave space for improvisation. That’s the motto of the festival, which works with North Sea Jazz. The TivoliVredenburg hosts eight and a half hours of music with 20 established and up-and-coming artists, such as Ibrahim Maalouf Red & Black Light, the Avishai Cohen Trio, the Robert Glasper Experiment and the Roy Hargrove Quintet.

26 March TivoliVredenburg Vredenburgkade 11, Utrecht www.transitionfestival.nl

GETTING THERE: Trains run from Amsterdam Central to Utrecht Central every 15 minutes; then it’s a 5 minute walk to TivoliVredenburg. Travel Time: 30 minutes.

MUSEUMNIGHT ROTTERDAM Amsterdam’s Museumnacht has a sister in Rotterdam, with 33 participating museums opening their doors from 20:00 to 01:00, and offering a slew of fun special events that go beyond snacks and concerts. The Aboriginal Museum will turn off the lights to take you through Night Sky, a magical exhibition of Alma Nungarrayi Granites’s spiritual paintings; the Goethe Institute invites six Dutch and German artists to perform their poetry; the Maritime Museum is throwing a big party with lots of activities that include dancing and getting hipster beards trimmed like old-time sailors, among many, many others.

5 March Various locations in Rotterdam www.museumnacht010.nl

GETTING THERE: Trains run frequently between Amsterdam Central and Rotterdam.

Travel time varies between 40 and 90 minutes.

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‘IF YOU HAVE BUILT CASTLES IN THE AIR, YOUR WORK NEED NOT BE LOST; THAT IS WHERE THEY SHOULD BE.’ ‘A TULIP DOESN'T STRIVE TO IMPRESS ANYONE. IT DOESN'T STRUGGLE TO BE DIFFERENT THAN A ROSE. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO. THERE'S ROOM IN THE GARDEN FOR EVERY FLOWER.’

HENRY DAVID THOREAU

MARIANNE WILLIAMSON, AUTHOR AND SPIRITUAL TEACHER

FROM MUIDERSLOT TO BOMMELSTEIN: MEDIEVAL DREAM CASTLES

WEESP CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL TEFAF MAASTRICHT TEFAF is universally regarded as the world’s leading art fair. Host to 275 of the world’s most pre-eminent galleries from all over the world, it showcases the best works of art currently on the market, from old master paintings and antique works of art, to more modern or contemporary pieces including photography, jewellery, and design. Even if you’re not in the market for a Picasso to hang above the fireplace, TEFAF is like a breathtaking and kind of surreal exhibition to simply walk through.

11-20 March Maastricht Exhibition & Congress Centre, Forum 100, Maastricht www.tefaf.com

GETTING THERE: Trains run from Amsterdam Central to Maastricht every 15 minutes, and Bus 1 runs from the station to the Congress Centre.

Travel Time: 2 hours and 40 minutes.

Renowned musicians come from all over the world to perform in the picturesque town of Weesp, the host of the revered Weesp Chamber Music Festival, an initiative by the Navarra String Quartet to use the amazing acoustics of the renovated Van Houten Church. This third edition presents the same high-level performances as previous years, with a distinguished guest-list that includes Aleksandar Madzar (piano), Krzysztof Chorzelski (viola), Clare Presland (mezzo soprano), and many others. Activities and special concerts are also organised for the younger crowds.

11-13 March Van Houten Church, Oudegracht 69, Weesp www.weespchambermusicfestival.nl

GETTING THERE: Trains run from Amsterdam Central to Weesp every 15 minutes, and the Church is a quick 10-minute walk from Weesp station. Travel Time: 30 minutes.

This exhibit marks the start of the celebrations for the 75th birthday of beloved comic-strip character, Tom Poes. The castle in which the famous cat lives with his bear friend Oliver B. Bumble bears a striking resemblance to Muiderslot. Both are dream castles, fitting the lovely fairy-tale archetype of castles from the Middle Ages: four rounded corner towers, a gate tower, an airy square in the middle and a wide moat with sprawling waterlilies. The exhibition will be accompanied by special events including an educational theatre, a diorama contest and, on 20 March, a big Bommelstein fair for fans and collectors.

20 March-31 October Rijksmuseum Muiderslot, Herengracht 1, Muiden www.muiderslot.nl

GETTING THERE: From Amsterdam Amstel Station, take buses 320 or 322 to P+R Terrein; then follow the green signs to the castle for a 10 minute walk. Travel Time: 45 minutes.

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flowers of amsterdam

f lowers of amsterdam

The N etherlands produces 70 percent of the world’s commercial flower output. In the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, you’ll see contemporary flower power in action.

KEUKENHOF GARDENS

O

pen for just eight weeks each year (in accordance with the tulip’s national flowering season), the Keukenhof boasts a staggering seven million blooms planted across the 32-hectare park. With several indoor pavilions, it hosts more than 30 flower shows between 24 March and 16 May. More than 600 growers present their most beautiful blooms, and leading florists create truly unique displays with them.

The theme for 2016 is ‘The Golden Age’, the era when the Netherlands became rich through worldwide trade. The highlight of the theme is the flower bulb mosaic beside the Oranje Nassau Pavilion. This takes the form of a Delft Blue tile on which the trade across the seas and the rich canal-side houses of Amsterdam are depicted.

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

24 MARCH-16 MAY www.keukenhof.nl

Tip: Combine your trip with a visit to Haarlem, which is paying its own tribute to the Netherlands’s iconic bloom. During Keukenhof’s open season, the special ‘Tulpomania’ package is available at www.haarlem.nl.

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BIKING & HIKING THE BULB FIELDS

‘FLOWER CAPITAL’ ALSMEER (FULL DAY) Set the alarm because today you’ll discover the wonderful world of flowers at the FloraHolland flower auction (www.floraholland.com). The earlier you get here, the more you’ll see. Experience the hustle and bustle of the auction floor, watch traders bidding against the clock and be amazed at the quantity of beautiful blooms traded daily from more than ten countries. Take bus 172 from Amsterdam Central Station (one hour, direct connection). After your visit, take bus 172 again to the Hortensiaplein stop. From here you can walk to Westeinder Rondvaart (20 mins total), a company that operates boat tours on the Aalsmeer lakes. You’ll sail past countless islands teeming with flora and fauna (www.westeinderrondvaart. nl). Next to Westeinder Rondvaart is the Historic Garden (www.historischetuinaalsmeer.nl), which takes you through the horticultural history of Aalsmeer between 1700 and 1940.

Refuel in the centre of town, with its many cafés, restaurants and shops.

Bus 172 from Hortensiaplein will take you back to Amsterdam. Enjoy your day!

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

The Dutch bulb fields, whose bulbs and blooms support a billion-euro industry, are a carpet of geometric colour blocks from midMarch through to August. From Leiden to Haarlem, bold beautiful strips of flowers set the landscape alight with colour. To explore at your own pace, a bike is by far the best option.

You can rent bikes – from Rent-a-Bike Kees van Dam – at the main entrance of the Keukenhof for 10 a day, including a cycle route.

You can also take a walk through the endless bulb fields. Follow the hexagonal signposts past green pastures and colourful bulb fields, savour the views from atop wooden stiles, and navigate the waterways on pulley-operated ferries. Free maps are available at the local Tourist Information Centres (VVV) or can be downloaded from www.bollenstreek.info.

D AIYP TR

The highlight of Lisse’s Flower Festival – and one of the most anticipated events of the Dutch calendar – is the annual Flower Parade.

Back for its 69th edition with the theme ‘Fashion’, lavishly decorated floats and cars will travel 40km along the main roads from Noordwijk to Haarlem, where they’ll conclude with an illuminated procession. Visitors flock to the roadsides and the atmosphere is deliciously convivial – and best of all, it’s free. If you miss the parade itself, head to Haarlem the next day, where the floats will be displayed on the city’s main square.

23 APRIL, STARTS 09:30 (Vuurtoren, Noordwijk) www.bloemencorso-bollenstreek.nl

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

FLOWER PARADE

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old holland

old holland

Historic windmills, picturesque former fishing villages, UNESCO-protected polder landscapes and world-famous cheese towns: old holland is the Netherlands in a nutshell.

Dutch folklore in Smalltown Harbours

S

trategically located at the edge of the former Zuiderzee, the scenic towns and villages of Edam, Volendam, Marken and Monnickendam were once about two things: fishing and trading. When the Zuiderzee was later impoldered to become the fresh-water IJsselmeer, the area changed dramatically. Fortunately, the authentic character of each of these places has been preserved. A visit here is like travelling back in time. De Simonehoeve, Alida Hoeve and Jacobs Hoeve are traditional cheese farms that keep alive the old-fashioned Dutch craft of cheese making, and where staff demonstrate their artisan skills.

Š CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

The museums of all four villages mentioned above will have fascinating exhibitions about the great flood of 1916 and its impact on the local population, exactly 100 years ago. Or journey back 100 years at Experience Volendam, a virtual-reality presentation that immerses you in the dramatic events of that day.

For more info & tips, go to www.iamsterdam.com/area

BEEMSTER POLDER Lying approximately 3.5 metres below sea level, this might seem an unlikely place to live! But in the 17th Century, the Dutch conquered the water here and transformed the inland lake De Beemster into a polder, conveniently organised in perfectly geometrical quadrants. Later, stolp farms (large, pyramid-shaped farmhouses, typical of the province of Noord-Holland) and historic villages sprung up in the landscape, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Nature lovers in need of a little R and R should visit Fort Resort Beemster. You can relax and be pampered with a clear conscience: energy consumption has been reduced to a quarter of former use. www.laagholland.com

71 REAL HOLLAND IN WATERLAND With green meadows, traditional farmhouses and two UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Waterland area offers an abundance of activities for anyone who enjoys the outdoors.

In many places you have the feeling that time has stood still. The picturesque image that many foreigners have of the Netherlands really does exist – in Waterland. The area is best explored on foot or by bike, and it’s just a short cycle ride from Amsterdam. Some wonderful routes can be found at www.cycleamsterdam.com

ZUIDERZEE MUSEUM

ALKMAAR: AS DUTCH AS IT GETS For hundreds of years, cheese has been traded in the same manner in Alkmaar. This year’s Cheese Market takes place every Friday from 25 March until 02 September. Cheese purveyors ceremoniously lay out their wares in waxy rows on Waagplein, ready for the bell to ring at 10:00, when trading starts and the Cheese Carriers Guild springs into action. The carriers transport the heavy cheeses to the weighing scales on wooden sledges, called ‘berries’; cheeses are checked for quality as dealers in white insert a hollow rod to extract a sample, then sniff and crumble the cheese to check fat and moisture content; and traders haggle over price by clapping each other’s hands. www.kaasmarkt.nl

© MAARTEN SCHETS

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

During the 1600s, wood was sawn, and sails and ropes were made in the mills of the Zaan region. The strategic location, on the water and in close proximity to Amsterdam, saw the area flourish during the Golden Age. The 11km waterfront of the River Zaan connects approximately 75 vintage industrial buildings, including windmills and the vast Industrial Wall at Wormer. The city of Zaandam itself is a lovely place to pass a few hours, too. www.zaanstreek.nl/visitors

© CRIS TOALA OLIVARES

INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE AT THE ZAAN

At the Zuiderzee Museum, you will find everything about life around and on the former Zuiderzee. Take a stroll through the fishing village, along the town canal, round the church and then along the dyke to the harbour. There are lots of things to see, and just as many things to do, too. This year marks a century since the Zuiderzee region was hit by a major flood for the last time. From 26 March, it will look as if part of the Outdoor Museum is flooded after a dyke breach. Enter the stricken area to see with your own eyes what it was like, with all the havoc and stench.

Walk along the jetties past the houses hit by the flood and talk to the occupants about the impact of such a disaster. www.zuiderzeemuseum.nl

ZAANSE SCHANS With its traditional houses, windmills, warehouses and workshops, this historic village offers a preserved glimpse of what it was like to live in the industrial heart of the Netherlands in the 18th and 19th Centuries. Many of the village’s characteristic houses are now museums, restaurants or workshops – like Henri Willig’s cheese farm, the Catharina Hoeve – while others are still private residences. Some of the remaining Zaanse Schans windmills are also open to the public. Don’t forget to buy some mementos to take home at Kooijman Souvenirs & Clogs. Fancy an enormous Dutch pancake, 29cm in diameter? You can enjoy one in Restaurant De Kraai, located in an authentic 18th-century grain barn. It has a typical, old-fashioned Dutch charm, with a characteristic tiled fireplace.

VISITOR INFORMATION

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mar & apr 2016

VISITOR INFORMATION

Find u s @ iamst erda .com m

I amsterdam Visitor Centres are your one-stop shops for everything you need to know about the city.

I AMSTERDAM STORE Discover the best of Amsterdam here. Real Amsterdam products and the best tips on everything you want to know about Amsterdam. Come and take a look!

IJ-Hall (inside Central Station) Open Mon-Wed 08:00-19:00, Thur-Sat 08:00-20:00, Sun 09:00-18:00 www.iamsterdam.com/store #iamsterdamstore

I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRES For information and to book excursions, visit one of the I amsterdam Visitor Centres in Amsterdam: Tel: +31 (0)20 702 6000 (Mon-Fri 09:00-17:00) info@iamsterdam.com www.iamsterdam.com http://twitter.com/Iamsterdam

LAST MINUTE TICKETS Enjoy discounted theatre tickets on the day of performance.

Check the Last Minute Ticket Shop and buy tickets at: www.lastminuteticketshop.nl

I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRE STATIONSPLEIN (across from Central Station) Open daily (check opening times on: iamsterdam.com/ visitorcentres) I AMSTERDAM VISITOR CENTRE SCHIPHOL AIRPORT Arrivals 2 at Schiphol Plaza Open daily 07:00-22:00

THE AMSTERDAM & REGION TRAVEL TICKET SPECIAL OFFER FOR I AMSTERDAM CITY CARD HOLDERS! Purchase the Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket for a special price of €10. Combine the 24-hour public bus pass with the I amsterdam City Card and make good use of both products! This offer is availabe at the I amsterdam Visitor Centres at Stationsplein and Schiphol Airport & at the I amsterdam Store.

This ticket entitles you to unlimited travel in Amsterdam and the surrounding region – day and night – on bus, tram and metro for 24 hours. In spring there are great tourist attractions in the region, the world-famous flower garden Keukenhof (open from 24 March until 16 May 2016), the flower parade Noordwijk-Haarlem on 23 April or a visit to FloraHolland, the flower auction in Aalsmeer. The Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket costs just €13.50 and can be purchased from the I amsterdam Visitor Centres or from GVB, EBS and Connexxion ticket points.

THEN AND NOW

then & now

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DOORS OF PERCEPTION

Tracing the city’s history, one image at a time. text Erik Schmitz

KING ACID Every year about 300 visitors come to the massive De Bazel building – which hosts the City Archives – not to gain knowledge, but to add unknown historical information and insights by donating their personal documents, photographs and drawings: an amazing and bewildering range of historical documents, handed over from generation to generation, dating from late medieval times right up to our age.

Dutch writer and translator Peter ten Hoopen (born 1944) donated his ‘King Acid’ portfolio, which documents the use of LSD, starting around 1963 when he came to Amsterdam as a young student, and ending around 1985. It shows his meandering path in search of inner knowledge, his contacts with Dutch beat-poet Simon Vinkenoog, accounts of LSD trips and his attempts to gain the proper chemicals, thus providing a lively testimony of a part of the counterculture that was at the heart of the Swinging Sixties. Future visitors who pass the doors of the City Archives will be able to tune in with this past, yet strangely familiar world, to gain new insights and perceptions.

9 March-15 June Amsterdam City Archives www.stadsarchief.amsterdam.nl

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ON THE WAY

OUT

We asked people leaving Schiphol Airport for their Amsterdam advice.

text & photos Marie-Charlotte Pezé

on the way out

SOHEIR EL SHAZLY AND HESHAM SEMEDAH, 30 AND 34, STAY-ATHOME-MUM, AND OIL AND GAS COMPANY OWNER FROM EGYPT ‘Go to the Harbour club! It’s a bit out of the way but the Eastern Docklands is a really special neighbourhood with its views on the water, and the music, the atmosphere, the food – everything was wonderful, it’s a definite must-see.’

NATASHA JONES, 23, LIFEGUARD, AND JAYDE MOORE, 19, STUDENT FROM BIRMINGHAM ‘The Red Light Secrets museum is very interesting. It tells you lots about the district, and about the ‘oldest profession in the world’, which seems to be done completely differently here. There’s a lot to learn.’

EDSON LOPEZ, 38, COOK FROM VENEZUELA ‘I really loved Madame Tussauds.

The statues are really well made, and it’s simply a lot of fun to see all these famous people so well sculpted.’

GROUP OF LAW STUDENTS FROM IRELAND DCU, AGED BETWEEN 18 AND 21 ‘Our favourite thing in Amsterdam? The lager! There’s a lot of microbreweries and pubs and cafés which serve great beer. And the atmosphere is always chill!’

NUNO ALMEIDA, 23, AND LINDA CARMINA, 21, HOTEL WORKERS FROM PORTUGAL ‘Our favourite neighbourhood was the Red Light District. Everything feels so liberal and open, and there is no confusion or violence. It feels very clean and safe and of course it’s lovely with all the bridges and old houses.’

editor-in-chief Bart van Oosterhout art director & basic design Loes Koomen designer Zlatka Siljdedic deputy editor Marie-Charlotte Pezé proofreader Julia Gorodecky contributors Lauren Comiteau, Karin Engelbrecht, Leda Georgiades, Catalina Iorga, Elisah Jacobs, Jayne Robinson, Bregtje Schudel, Erik Schmitz, Mark Smith, Kim van der Meulen, Monique Wijbrands/Saltystock listings EdenFrost (Tamar Bosschaart, Steven McCarron & Sarah Gehrke), Christiaan de Wit cover illustration Leendert Masselink/Saltystock

March - May — Language no problem — For a complete overview: operaballet.nl

Dutch National Opera and Dutch National Ballet present

Dutch National Ballet presents

BEST OF BALANCHINE

ROMÉO & JULIETTE Hector Berlioz Sasha Waltz — A famous love drama

George Balanchine — Legendary masterpieces 25 March – 10 April

15 April – 1 May

Dutch National Opera presents

OPERA FORWARD FESTIVAL —

CHOVANSJTSJINA ONLY THE SOUND REMAINS IL MATRIMONIO SEGRETO BLANK OUT — New opera’s, art, talks, performances, food & DJ’s 15 – 25 March

František Kupka, Gallien’s Girl (detail), 1909-1910, Národní Galerie, Prague c/o Pictoright Amsterdam 2016

Book online. Skip the line. vangoghmuseum.com/easyvirtue

Van Gogh engages you.