Everything must go
A performative installation that explores the moral frictions of late capitalism. Inside a replica of an Albert Heijn supermarket aisle, a performer voices the paradoxical thoughts of contemporary shoplifters—a stream of consciousness, based on 24 interviews with people who occasionally ‘forget’ to pay, in which activism and consumerism become inextricably entangled. Visitors remain outside the installation. They peek into the aisle through the products on the shelves or observe the performer via CCTV footage, like surveillants in a present-day panopticon.
The supermarket is revealed as the epicenter of opportunism in a disenchanted society. Why strive for virtue when the world is falling apart?
A performative installation that explores the moral frictions of late capitalism. Inside a replica of an Albert Heijn supermarket aisle, a performer voices the paradoxical thoughts of contemporary shoplifters—a stream of consciousness, based on 24 interviews with people who occasionally ‘forget’ to pay, in which activism and consumerism become inextricably entangled. Visitors remain outside the installation. They peek into the aisle through the products on the shelves or observe the performer via CCTV footage, like surveillants in a present-day panopticon.
The supermarket is revealed as the epicenter of opportunism in a disenchanted society. Why strive for virtue when the world is falling apart?
Video
Video registration with Isadora Tomasi.
Press
“An impressive allegory of modern capitalism... The meticulousness borders on perfection. The audience stands there, grinning bitterly.”
Javier López Piñón in Theaterkrant (June 8, 2024)Read the review here (in Dutch)
“A rock-solid new theatrical installation... The monologue lies somewhere between a confession and an accusation, placing the viewer in the complex dual role of understanding confessor and stern overseer.”
Dana Linssen in NRC (June 12, 2024)Read the review here (in Dutch)
“We become cynical and operate morally dubious, just like the system around us.”
Marijn van der Jagt in de Groene Amsterdammer (June 5, 2024)Read the article here (in Dutch)
“Everything must go is remarkably well put together. Dries Verhoeven addresses major moral issues through an everyday experience.”
Ianthe Mosselman in Parool (June 15, 2024)Read the review here (in Dutch)
In a disenchanted society, there are more and more people with fluid morals.
IMPAKT Festival 2024: DEAL WITH ITRead the interview here
Performance text
Credits
concept Dries Verhoeven
performance Isadora Tomasi, Rosie Sommers, Annica Muller
dramaturgy Hellan Godee, Miguel A. Melgares
sound design i.c.w. Isadora Tomasi
sound montage Peer Thielen
assistance to the director Didi Kreike
building installation Niklas van Woerden
subtitles Casper Wortmann
technical manager Roel Evenhuis
communication Esra Merkel
production Ellen van Bunnik (‘n More), Jitske Weijand