Moving Identities: The Age of Love (BE)
As part of the residency program “Moving Identities”, the performers of the Belgian collective “The Age of Love” are researching from the perspective of second-generation immigrants, also known as “de schakelgeneratie” (the changing generation).
The Age of Love is a multidisciplinary performance collective that was born in the summer of 2021 by Samuel Valor Reyes, with a focus on underrepresented, diverse artist perspectives rooted in Limburg, Belgium. The Age of Love quickly became an inclusive community focused on brave spaces. The philosophy of brave spaces allowed the performers to always start from a place of empowerment. In the summer of 2022 The Age of Love debuted their performance ‘The Age of Love’, transforming their philosophy in a performative setting. ‘The Age of Love’ talks about being reborn and finding community and support in different identities coming together. It shows the possibility of finding love through our differences and similarities. The collective’s artistic practice is influenced by spoken word, pole dance, waacking, live music and performance and provides a platform for cultural identities and languages such as Spanish, Georgian, Turkish, Armenian, Indian, Moroccan, Brazilian, Belgian and Russian, among others. In their work, they address themes related to identity, human touch, hate, oppression, activism, queerness, intersectionality, beauty, spirituality, acceptance and, of course, love.
In an Open Studio on 14.11., they present their research and their work-in-progress.
The Age of Love wurde als Künstler*innengruppe aus Belgien für das Moving Identities Residency Programm 2024-2025 ausgewählt. Mehr zu Moving Identities
Samuel Valor Reyes (he/him – they/them) is a theatermaker graduated from Toneelacademie Maastricht/Institute of Performative Arts and a performance artist of Spanish origin. They are part of the shifting generation of artists living in-between two or more cultures with strong connections to their Andalusian roots and multicultural Limburg. Valor Reyes is fascinated by bodies and celebrating the stories and memories we carry through them. The artistic practice always starts from clashing or blending multidisciplinary cross-overs where imagery, shape, movement and purpose meet. In the past few years Valor Reyes has created The Age of Love, The Age of Resurrection, The Motherf*cking End of The Fatherf*cking World, Camp X-Ray, Misfitting in, Bootylicious Bodies, FASHIONCLASH Afterparty and Ravijnenvanrimpels.
Nata Mandaria (she/her) is a socio-cultural worker and tries to include these facets in her work as a writer and performer. Originally from Limburg, she found her home in Brussels when she was eighteen. She herself likes to say that she grew up in “Little Georgia”. Her artistic practice often starts from her story as the daughter of Georgian Orthodox, first-generation immigrants and all the limitations, blessings and curses that entails. Someone once told her that everything starts with “a feeling.” She gives that feeling back to an audience through rhythmic spoken words. Nata has previously performed with her spoken word at Outside In Festival, FASHIONCLASH, Theater Aan Zee and Europalia Georgia. As a performer, she has played parts in Samuel Valor Reyes’ The Age of Love and (The Age Of) Resurrection. After a four year break, she has delved into making theatre again with her most recent work in progress ‘moederwittevrouwen / თეთრი დედა ქალები’.
Marie Peters (she/her) studied Art History, Musicology and Theatre Studies at the University of Ghent (2018) and Film and Theatre Studies at UAntwerpen (2019). Since graduating, she works as a dramaturge for various theatre, circus and dance companies such as collectief dOFt, Menzo Kircz , fABULEUS, Ferre Marnef/Desnor, Ugo Dehaes/Kwaad Bloed, Sofie Palmers, Wannes Deneer/ Matter Of Sound, THERE THERE Company. Her text ‘Our paradise … wouldn’t it be the others? The objeu in Indeterminate Correspondences of Menzo Kircz’ was published in Documenta Spring 2023 (S:PAM, Ghent University, volume 40). Marie has been part of the artistic team of fABULEUS since 2023.
The artist Minh Duc Pham accompanies the residency of The Age of Love as a host artist. He supports the residency process through feedback, networking and practice sharing. Minh Duc Pham graduated in exhibition design and scenography from the Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design in 2019 and studied performance and design theory as a guest student at the Berlin University of the Arts. He works in the fields of visual and performing arts and deals with the topic of identity between gender, race and class. He has been involved in productions such as ‘Die Große Klassenrevue’ (2023) at HAU 1, ‘Home Away From Home’ (2021) at HELLERAU and Cloud Gate Theatre Taipei, ‘Be Part Of’ (2022) at Gessnerallee in Zurich and ‘Semiotiken der Drecksarbeit’ (2022) at Mousonturm Frankfurt. His works have also been exhibited at the Museum der Bildenden Künste in Leipzig, the Stadtmuseum Dresden, the Bundeskunsthalle Bonn and Haus der Kulturen der Welt.
