Cultural Compass: A dark reimagining of Romeo + Juliet, Polish perspective and Art Deco

Every Sunday, Belga English picks its favourite events from the cultural agenda. This week: violence and passion in Opera Ballet Vlaanderen's new Romeo and Juliet, Eastern Europe’s evolving identities at Bozar and architectural treasures as Brussels celebrates 100 years of Art Deco.

Opera Ballet Vlaanderen’s Romeo + Juliet, 15 March-15 June, ​ Opera Ghent, Opera Antwerp, Opera Lille

Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau brings a bold, contemporary vision to Sergei Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, stripping the story of its traditional narrative and setting it in a dark world where violence and destruction are inescapable.

“You cannot make contemporary art if you turn your back on life,” Morau says, highlighting the raw intensity of his interpretation.

^{© OPERA BALLET VLAANDEREN}

This piece remains one of the most celebrated ballet scores of the 20th century. Originally, Prokofiev considered an altered ending in which Romeo arrives in time to find Juliet alive, justifying the idea by saying, “Living people can dance, the dying cannot.” However, the final version retains the tragic fate of its protagonists, putting the horror and destruction fuelled by the family feud centre stage.

"When you talk about Romeo and Juliet, everyone imagines a love story. In our version, you will see much less love and much more violence"

This production, guided by Morau’s unique choreographic style - often unnatural, distorted and almost amorphous - focuses less on love and more on the violence deeply embedded in both Shakespeare’s text and Prokofiev’s music.

“When you talk about Romeo and Juliet, everyone imagines a love story. In our version, you will see much less love and much more violence,” he says. Here, Romeo and Juliet exist only as metaphors, represented by two children whose innocence embodies love itself.

The young lovers’ passion, while pure and intense, is constantly sabotaged by their families, society and life itself. “Their love drives them mad with desire,” Morau says. “They are young enough to love without inhibitions but too young to die. Yet Juliet dies like a heroine, with complete conviction - almost a form of harakiri. It is not a silent poison or slow decline, but a raw act.”

Familiar Strangers, 14 March-29 June, Bozar, Brussels

This contemporary art exhibition reflects on Eastern Europe’s evolving identities, challenging the myth of cultural homogeneity. It explores diaspora life, feminist resistance, migration and the enduring impact of serfdom, highlighting tensions between self and other, local and global, East and West.

Each gallery showcases a different artist, forming a constellation of more than 30 works - paintings, sculptures, films, installations and textiles. These pieces tell the stories of “familiar strangers”: the Roma minority, the Vietnamese diaspora, Belorussian and Ukrainian artists in Warsaw and the Polish-Jewish coexistence.

Part of Focus on Poland, the exhibition accompanies talks, films and concerts celebrating Poland’s EU presidency at Bozar.

BANAD Festival, weekends of 15-30 March, Brussels

For its ninth edition, the BANAD Festival marks the centenary of Art Deco with an opportunity to explore Brussels' architectural treasure, many of which are rarely open to the public. Over three weekends visitors can discover the city through more than 60 interiors, walking and cycling tours, expert lectures and family activities.

^{© EXPLORE BRUSSELS}

This year’s edition shines a spotlight on Art Deco, with 60 per cent of the featured locations dedicated to this bold and elegant style, alongside Art Nouveau and Modernist gems. Expect to see iconic works by Victor Horta, Jean-Baptiste Dewin and Joseph Diongre.

Highlights include newly accessible sites like the Averbouch, Van Eycken and Slagmolder houses, the former Electrorail headquarters and the Orthodox Synagogue of Anderlecht. Festival favourites such as the Solvay and Tassel hotels, Villa Empain and the Résidence Palace are also on the programme.

(MOH)

^​_{#FlandersNewsService | Romeo + Juliet, with scenography by Max Glaenzel ​ © PHOTO OPERA BALLET VLAANDEREN}

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