THE AGE OF LOVE (BE) 2024-2025
The Age of Love is a multidisciplinary performance collective that was born in the summer of 2021. Samuel Valor Reyes founded this collective in search for underrepresented diverse talents rooted in Limburg, Belgium. These diverse talents were discovered in various ways to even getting inspired by interesting bodies and identities on the streets. The Age of Love quickly became an inclusive community focused on brave spaces. The philosophy of brave spaces allowed the performers to always start from a place of empowerment. In the summer of 2022 The Age of Love debuted their performance ‘The Age of Love’, transforming their philosophy in a performative setting. ‘The Age of Love’ talks about being reborn and finding community and support in different identities coming together. It shows the possibility of finding love through our differences and similarities with the idea of ‘black or white, straight or queer: it’s all disco.
Parcitipating artists
Samuel Valor Reyes (BE)
Samuel Valor Reyes (1996, he/him – they/them) is a theatermaker graduated from Toneelacademie Maastricht/Institute of Performative Arts and a performance artist of Spanish origin. They are part of the shifting generation of artists living in-between two or more cultures with strong connections to their Andalusian roots and multicultural Limburg.
With a strong fascination for bodies and celebrating the stories and memories we carry through them, Valor Reyes tries to create electricity, disturbance and pure bliss in each movement. The artistic practice always starts from clashing or blending multidisciplinary cross-overs where imagery, shape, movement and purpose meet. Their work pushes the limits of space in relation to the performer, creating worlds that are colorful, confronting, absurd and raw. In these spaces the search for connection, queerness, identity, empowerment, spirituality, falling and jumping bodies are always highlighted.
Their philosophy is to allow the identity of the performer and their lived experiences be the backbone of the performance. Performance is a transformative space and this space belongs to all of us. In the past few years Valor Reyes has created The Age of Love, The Age of Resurrection, The Motherf*cking End of The Fatherf*cking World, Camp X-Ray, Misfitting in, Bootylicious Bodies, FASHIONCLASH Afterparty and Ravijnenvanrimpels.
Nata Mandaria (BE)
Nata Mandaria (she/her) is a socio-cultural worker and tries to include these facets in her work as a writer and performer. Originally from Limburg, she found her home in Brussels when she was eighteen. She herself likes to say that she grew up in “Little Georgia”. Her artistic practice often starts from her story as the daughter of Georgian Orthodox, first-generation immigrants and all the limitations, blessings and curses that entails. Someone once told her that everything starts with “a feeling.” She gives that feeling back to an audience through rhythmic spoken words. Nata has previously performed with her spoken word at Outside In Festival, FASHIONCLASH, Theater Aan Zee and Europalia Georgia. As a performer, she has played parts in Samuel Valor Reyes’ The Age of Love and (The Age Of) Resurrection. After a four year break, she has delved into making theatre again with her most recent work in progress ‘moederwittevrouwen / თეთრი დედა ქალები’.
Marie Peeters (BE)
Marie Peeters (she/her, 1996, Leuven), studied Art History, Musicology and Theatre Studies at the University of Ghent (2018) and Film and Theatre Studies at UAntwerpen (2019). During her studies, she did dramaturgy internships at fABULEUS for Merlijn of het barre land and at Ontroerend Goed for Loopstation.
Since graduating, she has collaborated on performances as a dramaturge for various theatre, circus and dance companies such as collectief dOFt (TWEESTRIJD, Kapottepoppenkoppen, Zozoöfzo, Dummies en FOON), Menzo Kircz (Onduidelijke Correspondenties), Hanna Mampuys/fABULEUS (Softies), Ferre Marnef/Desnor (Ponge), Ugo Dehaes/Kwaad Bloed (Simple Machines, Limp), Sofie Palmers/fABULEUS (Off the Record), Wannes Deneer/ Matter Of Sound (Speaking Characters, BALK en RrrrrRrrRrrrrrrrr), THERE THERE Company (Chaïm), Circumstances/Piet Van Dycke (EXIT en Glorious Bodies), dinsdag.org (Alice in Randomland), Callebaut en De Broeck (Ob°joie), Senne Vanderschelden, Marius Lefever en Jef Van der Burght (Silly Symphonies), Piet Van Dycke/ fABULEUS (Beyond the Edge), jong theatergezelschap TINT (Q & A) Jakobe Geens (Organiek Mechaniek) and Anouk Friedli (Dans Dans Dans, een spel in bijna tienduizend woorden).
Marie has been part of the artistic team of fABULEUS since 2023.
Taken residency at
Kunstplaats Vonk
Kunstplaats Vonk is a studio and residency space for visual and performance arts in Hasselt and Genk, Belgium. At their 3 buildings they support artists with artistic feedback, an international network, presentation opportunities, studio-space and a financial contribution (for the residencies).
HELLERAU – European Center for the Arts
HELLERAU acts as an interdisciplinary and international centre for dance, performance, music, theatre and media arts. It offers spaces for productions, festivals, concerts performances, exhibitions and discourse, cooperates with various regional cultural partners and is firmly connected internationally. An important part of HELLERAU is a residency program, which offers opportunities for artistic research, networks, production and encounters throughout the whole year.
Davvi – Centre for Performing Arts
Davvi – Centre for Performing Arts is a hub and a gathering point in Northern Norway for the professional independent Performing Arts community. The organization is a laboratory for new ideas, artistic research, and an open space where different cultures are cared for. We challenge hegemonic thinking and support cross-sectorial artistic working and thinking. We are staff of 11 curios people, we are placed in Hammerfest, Tromsø and Bodø and we are a space that offers residency, laboratories and producer services.
Who is The Age of Love?
We are The Age of Love, a multi-disciplinary performance collective born somewhere in the summer of 2021. The Age of Love focuses on telling stories of underrepresented people mostly rooted in Limburg, Belgium. Always bringing in the perspective of empowerment by creating brave spaces: “I can change through exchanging with others, without losing or diluting my sense of self.” This clash of exchange is seen in the different elements brought together: pole-dancing, spoken-word, sitar, different cultures and many more.
The Age of Love creates stories highlighting the differences between us all, but hoping our will and similarities transcend those differences. The Age of Love carries the idea of ‘black or white, straight or queer; it’s all disco.’ We see each performance as a love letter written by our bodies.
Photo credit: Saverio Sammartino
What is your aim with Moving Identities?
To give voice to the layered and often unspoken experiences of those who live on the borders of identity, belonging and heritage. Mostly from the perspective of the second-generation immigrations who we also call “the bridge generation.” Bridging between two or more cultures, identities and lived experiences.
Photo credit: Saverio Sammartino
Which method(s) will you use to achieve this aim?
Through listening and having conversations with first- and second-generation immigrants. These interactions which include listening and dialogue are a way of resistance against silence and forgetting. By diving into our own history we transform this history in a collective space where different identities can move and discover themselves.
Photo credit: Saverio Sammartino
How does your current project relate to your previous/other works? Is it similar or different?
This project is a piece of a mosaic that will probably never have a complete end. This way of working, challenging systematic discrimination and oppression and telling stories how you can be reborn out of these systems will always be a part of the work. This urge to find reconciliation in a very polarizing society comes back all the time, only now we’re very much focused on the perspectives through the lens of second-generation immigrants.
Photo credit: Saverio Sammartino
What are you most excited about in this programme ahead of you?
To have the opportunity to research in our own hometown, which also represents the stories of immigration in many ways. To bring this experience abroad and exchange stories in other countries and research how they can influence each other. We see the world around us from a starting place, but the world is inextricable. Though place is crucial: the encounters, the conflicts, the harmony, the symbiosis, the love and the combination of cultures.
Photo credit: Saverio Sammartino
