Needcompany | Bridge Stories - a sense of belonging

Bridge Stories - a sense of belonging

Vibe Stalpaert

Bridge Stories - a sense of belonging is a way to ‘bridge’ the gap and nurture connections between newcomers and locals.

Authors and Performers
Alassane Cisse, Aminullah Salarzai, Ana Oliveira, Anas Ahmad Bari, Aous Hamdan, Bouchi Ahmad, Davin Bishariza, Diallito Alhousseny, Eva De Pue, Faridullah Mahir, Galass Leye, Habiba El Aakchiou, Hanxi Wu, Ibo Mohamed Qashta, Johara Belhmane, Khairullah Noorzai, Koné Djak, Lubnan Al Wazny, Mariana Al Hanash, Omar Kasmiry, Panagiota Theofilopoulou, Rasim Aşan, Samsam Abdi Jama, Sophia Thoenes, Yasmine Ghazaleh Ainie, Yüksel Çilingir

Artistic
Concept: Cinemaximiliaan; Annabelle Van Nieuwenhuyse & Omar Kasmiry
Creation: Needcompany; Grace Ellen Barkey, Maarten Seghers, Elke Janssens & Jan Lauwers

Technique: Rune Floryn, Astrid Vansteenkiste, Jérémy Michel, Yousif Akl, Waleed Alhossary

Production: Cinemaximiliaan & Needcompany
Cinemaximiliaan: Ahmed Abu Awad, Alice Carson, Annabelle Van Nieuwenhuyse, Ashour Lafi, Leonor Galao, Luz Rommel
Needcompany: Pieter D’Hooghe, Joery Scheepers, Vibe Stalpaert
Co-production: Passa Porta, KVS, MigratieMuseumMigration
With support of: de Vlaamse Overheid, VAF, VGC, Impulsfonds, Imago Brussel, de Europese Unie

Thanks to: Anouk Vancoillie, Artem Kocharyan, Carmien Michels, Eva De Pue, Frank Brutsaert, Gharam Maddem, Haleh Chinikar, Halil Baysoy, Hamed Dehqan, Hasan Hammouda,
Issaga Bah, Jana Debaene, Jasper Walgrave, Karima Qias, Khanwise, Kristof Van Hoorde, Lieve Meeussen, Lot Lemm, Marthe Tskasa Fimi, Maxime Savoldi, Mohamad Sulaiman, Naqibullah Safi, Majdi Abu Hasira, Marjolein Schepers, Nathaniel Moore, Ngangi Mutiri, Rola Zamzameh, Rombout Willems, Shafiullah Sahil, Việt Vũ, Wafiullah, Wahidiullah Qadamkhel

Tour

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January 2026

30 Jan

Brussels ^BE

Koninklijk Vlaamse Schouwburg Premiere

Ten years ago, the Cinemaximiliaan refugee platform was established in Brussels’ Northern Quarter. It serves as a bottom-up meeting place for artists from around the world who are fleeing injustice and violence. Since the cold winter of 2023, Cinemaximiliaan issued an invitation to newcomers and those passing through – who had no choice but to sleep in and around the bridge at the Petit Château – to write down their own stories. Today, they are challenging the Brussels-based artists’ house Needcompany to collaborate with them as performers and writers in creating the theatre performance ‘Bridge Stories’, using their stories as its starting point.

“The world has changed so many times. So many times the world has changed.” - Yüksel Çilingir

This participatory collaboration highlights the transformative power of art through performance, music, video, and text. The project’s goal is to transform the Babylonian multitude of voices at the turbulent heart of Europe into a full-length performance that explores themes of togetherness. This is the strength of Cinemaximiliaan: taking time to understand by treating people seriously. ‘Bridge Stories, a sense of belonging’ is an ambiguous celebration that seeks to ‘bridge’ divides and allows life stories to intertwine. Perhaps that is the most fitting definition of what connects us: art as an ambiguous celebration.

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