Theater adaptation of The Damned by Visconti in Carré

In the summer of 2022, Ivo van Hove and ITA brought his version of Visconti’s The Damned to the Bostheater in Amsterdam. This overwhelming and cinematic theatrical experience was the first large-scale production of the ITA ensemble in the open air. This season, The Damned moves indoors, in the Carré hall.

This theater adaptation based on a film script by Italian filmmaker Luchino Visconti shows how a family of wealthy German industrialists is fatally corrupted in its collaboration with the Nazi party that has come to power. Family patriarch Baron Joachim resists and is liquidated. The battle for succession leads to an escalation of intrigue and manipulation, betrayal and murder. Les Damnés was received with superlatives.

The Guardian called it a “chilling prophetic masterstroke”. The New York Times called it “a rich and relentless production.” Le Monde wrote: “Ivo van Hove once again finds a mythical and epic dimension, as he allows his actors to play the drama in the most organic and human way possible.”

The Damned, Friday 29 September to Monday 2 October 2023, Royal Theater Carré, Amstel 115-125