Jackie Lien Wildemeersch & Theater Malpertuis

The virtuoso British cellist Jacqueline du Pré, nicknamed Smiley, travels around the world with a passion for life. Her captivating, intuitive playing style and incomparable virtuosity touch the hearts of many. She has a remarkable sense of humour and lives life very intensely.

Suddenly Jackie senses that something was wrong, but the doctors just tell her to rest. At the age of 28, she is diagnosed with MS. She ends up in a wheelchair, unable to play the cello ever again. Her condition deteriorates mercilessly ultimately causing her death in 1987 at the age of 42.

When actress and theatre-maker Lien Wildemeersch first heard a recording of Jacqueline du Pré some 14 years ago, she was overwhelmed. When she began to delve into the life and work of 'Jackie', her fascination only increased. She recognised herself in many facets of Jackie's identity and began navigating through life with Jackie as her compass.

Now, so many years later, Wildemeersch wants to share the intense bond she formed with Jackie - beyond the boundaries of death - with an audience. It is a bond that floats on the importance of comfort and humour, an immeasurable love of music, and an unconditional lust for life. 

It will not be a biography of Jacqueline du Pré, but rather an encounter between Lien and Jackie, a search for what connects us as human beings and what we can bear in the sometimes hideous unpredictability of life.  

Wildemeersch is also part of the cast of the NTGent production Yellow, directed by Luk Perceval. Previously she played in numerous NTGent performances such as Opening Night, Platonov  and 4.48 Psychosis. JACKIE is her first own performance.