Jan 12, 2024 at 12:51 PM Update: 36 minutes ago
Standing on the stage of the Royal Theater Carré six hundred times: Herman van Veen is the very first to reach this milestone. The Amsterdam theater is now “a home” for the 78-year-old performing artist: “I have the key to the front door.”
Singing, writing, acting, composing, directing, presenting, playing the violin, painting: Herman van Veen can do it all. The artist, born in 1945, is known for his performances with a mix of music, poetry, cabaret, dance and visual elements.
Van Veen was only twenty years old when he made his theater debut with the solo performance Harlequin. He still remembers well the very first time in Carré. “That was on May 5, 1971,” he tells NU.nl. “There were about four hundred people in the room. Mainly family, neighbors, friends, fellow students and a handful of press.”
Since then he has traveled around the world with thousands of performances. From Belgium, Germany and France to South Africa, Canada and the United States: Van Veen is held in high esteem.
After that first time in Carré, dozens of programs followed, including The hall is there (1986), Everything in the wind (1996) Dutch in Carré (2008) in Brand new (2014). The entertainer will reach a unique milestone on Friday: his six hundredth time on the stage of the Royal Theater Carré Amsterdam. This time with The show.
Herman van Veen during one of his performances, which are characterized by a mix of music, poetry, cabaret, dance and visual elements. Photo: Anne Hamers
‘Suddenly I am in Carré for the six hundredth time’
The fact that he has now reached a milestone in Carré is something the performing artist is “proud” of. “After all, that six-hundredth also says something about the quality of the offering over the years.” Yet time seems to have flown for Van Veen. “It took me about fifty years, but I didn’t notice it. Suddenly it happened.”
The Amsterdam theater, which runs like a common thread through his career, now has a special meaning for Van Veen. “Carré is the only place in the world where we play and play so intensively and for so long in a row. After the five hundredth performance in Carré, I received the key to the front door. So I now have a home.”
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Van Veen hopes to remain on the podium for a long time
Van Veen, who is known to the general public for songs such as To the side, Magic, Suzanne in Do you remember, has an impressive oeuvre. He has published approximately one hundred and eighty albums, as many books, two dozen plays and many paintings. The entertainer does have his personal favorites.
“I think especially when it comes to my books Mothers success. Of the albums I find to date Signals (1984), The changers (1985) in Anne (1986) the most successful and of course, as always, the youngest.”
With the latter, Van Veen is referring to the album released in October Bird’s-eye view 3. Sespecially for his milestone, the album is released in a limited edition of six hundred copies pressed on transparent yellow vinyl.
Van Veen says he is looking forward to his performance on Friday. When it comes to his wishes or dreams for the future, he is very brief: “May all this last as long as possible.”
2024-01-12 11:51:00
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