I’m watching Zomergasten (Summerguests) at the moment, with Annemarie Prins, who is playing Annie M.G. Schmidt in a yet to be released biographical film. They’re showing a few fragments. It’s uncanny how much their voices are alike!. D. is gasping as she’s watching, because Prins is such a great actress. Note on the programme: Zomergasten is an institution during the summer months: for six weeks, a Dutch public “personality” is interviewed for an entire evening, and shows film and tv fragments that make up his or her “ideal” evening of visual offerings. Every year, the person doing the interviews is hotly debated. This year it is writer Bas Heijne, and I haven’t made up my mind yet. Annemarie Prins is an actor and director who’s well known for her Brecht directions. Zomergasten is a monument of Dutch “old world” intellectualism.
Note on Annie Schmidt: each and every Dutch child who was born after 1955 grew up with her work. She is the undisputed master of light verse in Dutch and her children’s books and song texts are without compare. Writer Kader Abdollah, who immigrated from Iran, decided to write in Dutch after reading her work. The little tow-truck that stands in front of Amsterdam’s children’s bookshop of course belongs to Pluk (of Petteflet fame)
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This summer I missed part one and yesterday I saw only the last hour. I’m impressed with Bas Heijne, he looks more ’slow’ in a good sense than the previous hosts, yet keeps a good flow in the conversation, and it doesn’t feel ’scripted’ to me, the shows feel more like a conversation between equals. Why isn’t there one show where people have a conversation every week? Public television would win me back as a viewer..
Well, there is Het Gesprek of course (do they still broadcast) but then I have to watch Frits Barend (shudder). I thought Prins was wonderful though.