Jetse Batelaan

With such evocative titles as A tree is applauded only when it’s been turned into sawdust, Performance in which hopefully nothing happens and A cowboy with his hands up probably isn’t cheering, Batelaan has built a startling oeuvre of performances. Most have a philosophical and absurdly comic layer, appealing to both adults and young audiences. 

Batelaan graduated from the Academie voor Theater en Dans in Amsterdam in 2003 with a degree in directing. He started his career at the Gasthuis Theater in Amsterdam and staged his first youth theatre performance for Theatergroep MAX. From 2009 to 2012, he worked as a director at the Ro Theater.  

Batelaan has also caused a stir abroad and has staged performances at the New Island Festival in New York, Parc de la Villette in Paris and the Wiener Festwochen in Vienna. He received several awards for his work, including the Silver Lion at the Venice Biennale in 2019 and the ITI award in 2020.