DE SINGEL’s Dutch-Moroccan resident artist, Khadija El Kharraz Alami, draws inspiration for her immersive theatre performance SHRINE from the work of feminist activist Silvia Federici and from Alceste in Molière’s Le Misanthrope. Alceste is the daughter of a mother who was brutally murdered by the systems in power. Alceste fights in vain for years for a fair trial, but her frustration and grief radicalise her. The injustice that has taken root in her body transforms into anger, into the power to create chaos and disrupt the economy. She becomes an inspiration to women all over the world. They find each other in their sanctuary, their ‘shrine’, where they commemorate, pray, sing, sacrifice and celebrate.

During the residency at BUDA, rehearsals will continue for the performance SHRINE, in which El Kharraz Alami shows how she can transform essayistic work into action, how she finds forms that make tangible the role of marginalised women in our societies. In SHRINE, she speculates, through critical fabulation, about a possible future in the present. By having Alceste embodied by a woman and zooming in on her perspective, she asks which erased roles of women in societies we can revive. And which buried cries will be heard.

Stichting K.E.K.A. (Khadija El Kharraz Alami)

Khadija El Kharraz Alami has developed an essayistic approach within her artistic practice. She starts with a question that moves her from within and then seeks out the necessary study material: essays, archives, films and music. She then translates these theories into practice by integrating the story – whether written by herself or taken from the repertoire – into her research. Her work requires an active attitude from the audience. Due to the immersive nature of her performances, the audience plays a role in the narrative and is immersed in other worlds. In this way, she actively seeks to increase empathy.