51 A group of multidisciplinary performers present a musical adaptation of Michael Matthews’ triptych that is full of humour, horror and beauty. The unorthodox American theatre-maker and performer Michael Matthews (1958-1996) came to the Netherlands in his twenties, where he became a sensation in the avant-garde scene. He was a virtuoso at combining pop, underground and classical culture in his performances. In his final years, through a rich theatrical oeuvre, he reflected on his illness and approaching death. For The Monster Trilogy, Matthews took three iconic nineteenth-century gothic figures as his starting point: Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula and Mr Hyde. He presented them as overblown modern-day expressions of the loneliness, rejection and endless longing for connection that he himself knew all too well. Vivid music theatre Dutch National Opera, Toneelschuur Producties and RIGHTABOUTNOW INC. are joining forces for a music theatre production based on this work by Matthews. British composer Cassie Kinoshi, who also enjoys international success as an alto saxophonist, likes to work on the intersection of disciplines. Her compositions are socially engaged and emotionally direct, focusing on themes such as identity, community and social justice. Together with director Nita Kersten and dramaturg and writer Maarten van Hinte, Kinoshi adapts Matthews’ trilogy into vivid music theatre. An ensemble of singers, actors and musicians express the complex natures of the ‘monster figures’. They weave together opera, jazz, soul, spoken word and the typical synthesizer sounds of the eighties and nineties. After premiering in Studio Boekman during the Opera Forward Festival, the production will go on tour through the Netherlands. Premiere 20/3/2027 Subsequent performances: 21*, 21** March 2027 | Curtain-up: 20:30 / *13:00 / **16:30 | Ticket sales start on: 27 August 2026 | Prices: TBA | Location: Studio Boekman, Dutch National Opera & Ballet. For tour dates, see page 123 World premiere New production Libretto: Maarten van Hinte, based on Michael Matthews’ trilogy of the same name Performed in English Stage direction Nita Kersten Dramaturgy Maarten van Hinte and Wout van Tongeren Co-production with Toneelschuur Producties and RIGHTABOUTNOW INC. Production partner “Energetic and full of life and hope” UK Jazz News on Cassie Kinoshi’s Heart The Monster Trilogy Cassie Kinoshi (1993)
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODY1MjQ=