— Brel · Barbara · Aznavour and others — a theatrical & musical performance
Cartes Postales
The show that tells the story first, then sings. Brel, Barbara, Aznavour and other artists — every song becomes a postcard: a place, a story, someone it was written for.
Photo: Marco Rutten (@marcophotoworld) · Verhalenhuis Haarlem
— An evening in two movements
I
The lights dim
A voice speaks to you, in your language. It tells of a harbour, a hotel room, a letter never sent — the exact place the song comes from.
II
Then the song arrives
In French, as it was written. You no longer need the words: you already know who it speaks to. All that remains is the voice, the guitar, and you.
— What audiences take home
You don't need to speak French to feel Brel.
“I just wanted to say what a wonderfully beautiful and moving evening it was. What a highlight in your programme! Rich, beautiful voices, lovely guitar playing. A magnificent evening! I'd gladly come back for it, even though we live in France now!”
— Audience member, Verhalenhuis Haarlem
27 June 2026
« Voir un ami pleurer » — Jacques Brel · the first card, listen now
The approach
Interpreting them differently.
These songs — we've all heard them. We think we know them. My approach is to give these songs their context back — by bringing to them who I am today, with my silences and my life.
From loves that tip over to cities we leave behind, to the words we no longer dare speak — these classics become a living conversation between then and now, between author and interpreter, between the stage and you.
Photo: Marco Rutten (@marcophotoworld) · Verhalenhuis Haarlem
— The show is being built
June 2026
June 2026: the show premières at the Verhalenhuis in Haarlem. The concept is proven on stage: the story first, the song second.
Today
Today: the show exists in its intimate form — voice and guitar. What comes next requires means we don't yet have.
This autumn
This autumn: a Voordekunst campaign will fund that next step — the arrangements of the orchestral version and its musicians, the writing of the narrations, the documentary research on each song, and a narrator for the tour.
