Belgian theatre company Ontroerend Goed again strikes gold with their profoundly moving and participatory performance, Funeral. Under the direction of Alexander Devriendt, this ritual, far from religious or macabre, offers a cathartic experience to its audience by reminding us that loss, just like absence, memory, or forgetfulness, is not only an inseparable part of life but also of ourselves and our identity.
Funeral is not merely a funeral ceremony or a celebration of death; it’s a contemplation on life’s fragility and nature itself, a life that comprises small things, events, encounters, words, objects, and sensations, all destined in some way, inevitably, to come to an end. Ontroerend Goed’s performers encourage us to remember how all these things and events become a part of us forever, inviting us to commemorate them together. The audience is invited to participate in this collective ritual, to entrust the names of people, not necessarily deceased, but whose absence we feel, to the company members who, like pagan priests, guide us on the path of remembrance and acceptance.
The ritual becomes a moment of introspection, a meditation on the value of memory and forgetfulness. Through a mesmerizing interplay of lights and shadows, overlapping voices, tears, and cathartic release, we’re urged to reconnect with forgotten aspects of our lives, invoke them even, and celebrate their memory. The innovative direction by Alexander Devriendt employs few simple natural elements; it effortlessly transports us as if we were schoolchildren on a field trip, on a liminal journey illuminated by candlelight, a journey within ourselves of which we become increasingly aware.
Funeral opens a door within us, a door we might have preferred to keep shut, yet it inevitably brings us back to life, to the present moment, to the beauty of those around us who have shared our grief, and to memories that, bitter as they may be, remind us of the joy they carried. As we leave, feeling more vulnerable and burdened than when we arrived, we are offered a cup of tea or coffee. Once outside, we realise that we have taken part in something truly unique, not just artistically, but profoundly human.
