Thanks for Being Here

Edinburgh Festivals Magazine

Thanks For Being Here by Ontroerend Goed aims to dissolve the boundary between audience and cast. It could be classed as an experiment or a new type of experience. It isn’t about audience participation but rather an acceptance of the part they play in the show.

This was a packed venue so therefore an appealing concept. It is one that you don’t want to say too much about or give away what might happen because that is part of what makes it interesting. A large stage, largely unused gives way to a curtain and video and sound clips.

The real performers subtly blend with the performance. The show did not create unease but perhaps more slight confusion and questioning. It certainly created ripples of laughter at times and explosions of laughter at others. With no attempt to induce uncomfortableness.

Thanks For Being Here is like a mirror on human behaviour. It examines the differences between us and how much we choose to be involved. Even before the show begins and after the show ends your input is valid. Again this is your choice. Nothing is overstated.

Overall, perhaps it lingers a little long in parts. The pace seems deliberately unrushed as though very much living in the moment and zooming in on the performance of the audience as a whole. It’s a creative idea that could be different every time.