"Reality is much crueler than what we show on stage"

Explicitly reenacting violence on stage has long been a trademark of the Swiss director. In an interview on NTGent's website, he explains why. "It's never about the violence itself," says Rau. "It's about its deeper meaning. By mirroring emotions in radical acts, you create a deeper understanding. As an artist, I want to create an opening to still be able to talk about what is completely incomprehensible at first sight. We all live in a reality that's much more cruel than what we show on stage."

The new performance Medea's Children, which premieres at NTGent on 18 April, is based on the Greek tragedy Medeia. The ancient text is brought to the present by linking it to a criminal case from Belgium's recent past. In that case, a mother decided to kill her children, just like Medea does in Euripides' Greek tragedy.

"Being abandoned by someone you love can be harder to cope with than a loved one dying," says Rau. "You have to say goodbye to someone who is still there but no longer wants to be with you. What Medea is experiencing, is perhaps harder than death. Killing herself and her children feels to her simultaneously like an escape and an act of revenge."

"The play creates an extra layer of meaning because the children perform the violence itself," continues Rau. "They know childhood love, but they have never felt the deep pain of being abandoned by a loved one. We talked to them extensively and they can't understand how a mother would do such a thing."

The children on stage are between 8 and 14 years of age. They are extensively supervised: two child supervisors have been appointed and are present at every rehearsal, and there is close cooperation with a psychologist. Because of the explicit violence, Medea's Children was given clear trigger warnings, which can be found on NTGent's website.