Due to its success, the performance 3: The Garden by NBprojects from 2011 can be seen again in theaters in the Netherlands. Nicole Beutler and her team have adapted the performance so that it now fits in the main hall, instead of the small hall. On the floor of the stage we see a square grass mat with three short fake trees on both sides. A normally dressed young man tells us animatedly about the moment when there was nothing and the big bang and lists things, places and people who are or have been on earth. Meanwhile, five others appear. The group dance that follows consists of a constant change from one symmetrical shape to another, much like a human kaleidoscope. The flowing movements prove that the dancers, now stripped down to their underwear, are well attuned to each other. Although they continue with these movements for quite a long time at the beginning, the music, which becomes softer and then stronger again, and the light, which goes from the entire room to a single bright spotlight on the stage, ensure that it does not become boring, but rather has a hypnotic effect.
Strong tension The symmetrical group dance is the guiding principle in the performance, but is interrupted several times. For example, when the performers make a rhythm with instruments hidden in the fake trees and pronounce the text “You will find me, if you want me, in the garden, unless it’s pouring down with rain”, or when they draw patterns on top of each other with different colors of paint. Each interruption seems to have the effect of a change in the symmetrical group dance, from flowing to thrusting movements and from linear forward to circular facing each other. By combining the subtle light and music changes with the major interruptions, the performers hold the attention in an inventive and humorous way. Futuristic ideas Towards the end of the performance, one of the performers talks about futuristic things, people and places in an animated way, such as that we humans will be naked and will no longer need food. The circle is complete: from the beginning of the earth, through all the adjustments we humans have made to nature, to an image of the future. The performance ends very satisfactorily with the performers who assume an asymmetrical, harmonious group pose naked. Strengthening effect of the large hall It is striking that this performance also works very well in a large hall. The greater distance between performers and audience actually contributes to the hypnotic effect, because it is easier to look at the whole. 3: The Garden is, even more so in the main hall, a strong performance that has hypnotic moments, but also a lot of variety and humour.