Big Bears Cry Too

Big Bears Cry Too is a performance that deals with the vulnerability that people experience in this large and incomprehensible universe. A series of objects literally fly onto the stage, each with something to say about individuality in the world. There is a large – a too large – plastic heart that can only be restricted by letting a small amount of air out. Then there is a massive pill that is supposed to make you happier, but the actual result is that you no longer recognize yourself. And then there is a bear that falls victim to its own excessive cuteness. We end up in a universe of coloured rain and never-ending symbols.

Springville, Dragging the Bone, Mystery Magnet, Fruits of Labor – each one an intriguing title of an equally intriguing show that was successfully unleashed upon the world in the last 15 years by artist and dramatist Miet Warlop. This production, Big Bears Cry Too, marks her first production for an audience of six years and older.

 
Press

“It was to be expected that a born artist such as Miet Warlop would not make any concessions – not even for a theatre full of over-sixes. As a consequence, Big Bears Cry Too, Warlop’s first production for children, provides the little spectators with an initiation into her whimsical world with all its fascinating creatures. And perhaps even into the grating truth that lies behind the images. (…) You can see it in the adults’ faces: “How will we ever be able to explain this?” It is precisely in this dauntless challenge that we find the boldness this children’s performance displays. Come on, fathers, mothers and teachers, start explaining: about this unpredictable life with all its fears and in all its weird and wonderful beauty.”
Evelyne Coussens – De Morgen – 25 April 2018

 
De Morgen – 25 April 2018
Volkskrant – 6 August 2018