A colourful dip into history: this is exactly what the Greppel Theatre Group’s tour of the Spinoza Building aspires to be. Using many forms of artistic expression, the creators sought the differences and similarities between the issues that have played out at the now 100-year-old Radboud University. Aimée de Croon, who is participating on behalf of the Op Hoop Van Zegen student theatre association, has said that the tour is primarily a quest for the university’s identity.
The start of the tour will offer guests a short introduction in one of the Spinoza Building lecture halls. Via various routes, the guests will then be taken through different kinds of scenes, from dance to theatre and from spoken word to imagery. For example, the tour will take the guests past the former animal research laboratory in the Spinoza Building. “Ethical issues in research have frequently come under discussion at the university. This will be brought to life during the tour,” says Aimée.
A history of student life
The theatre tour, which is a collaboration between the Greppel Theatre Group and several student groups, will primarily depict the history of student life. It was during their study of one hundred years of the university that the makers came across several common threads, like the invariable questions and concerns that continued to crop up in student life. “I feel that working on this play has given the past a face, and it now seems to be much closer than it was,” Aimée said.
One of the constants in student life that Aimee mentions is student wellbeing, which has been high on the agenda since the COVID-19 pandemic. “But the concern for wellbeing has never gone away. The issue of how students can connect to the group around them and how they can connect with people in clubs and associations has always existed.” During the tour, this sense of togetherness has been brought to the stage through a dance performance. “This play is a real co-creation; we’ve collaborated with a number of cultural groups and with the social clubs.”
Back in the Old Student Days. Greppel Theatre Group in association with Culture on Campus (CODC). A 45-minute theatre tour of the Spinoza Building, as a part of Radboud Art & Science. Visit the campus between Thursday 19 and Saturday 21 October 2023 and immerse yourself in the world of art and science. Together, we will celebrate Radboud University's 100th anniversary. Performance times: Thursday 8.45 pm, Friday 7.00 pm and 8.45 pm, Saturday 2.45 pm and 4.30 pm.