A world on the brink of change. A place where the familiar tilts and choices impose themselves, inevitable, but not without consequences. where the last birds stand is a physical, poignant performance about farewell, transformation and the loss that comes with progress.

where the last birds stand is inspired by a painting by Carel Willink and a sculptural installation by Stéphanie Roland, from the collection of Museum Arnhem. The oppressive atmosphere in Willink's work “The Marabous” is formed by threatening skies and stranded marabous. Rolands vision of the future, in which the landscape is slowly swallowed by the sea, adds a layer in which hope, threat and loss come together.

In an intense duet, two performers explore how bodies relate to each other in a world that threatens to perish. They fold in and around each other, balancing between resistance and surrender, bearing each other's weight and resistance. A game between letting go and holding on, protecting and fleeing. Do they continue to wait for salvation, or do they leave, not knowing what awaits them? Movement is used to represent what is so difficult to put into words: grief, connection, and the painful realization that something precious is about to be lost. Where the Last Birds Stand is an ode to the world not yet flooded and to the struggle to bear that loss.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)