The chair, the wig and the sheep

The chair, the wig and the sheep universe (work in progress)

A live comic book about a class struggle.

video by Tibor Dieters

The chair, the wig and the sheep is a new universe I will build from 2024. The seed of this project was planted during a residency with Toneelgroep Maastricht and VIA ZUID (TalentLab 2022). There I made a first version of a crossover between a graphic novel, theater performance and installation. As if you were walking through the pages of a comic book.

A world full of fashionable armpit hairstyles, giant pool tables, a Butler revolution and rich people being transformed into pieces of furniture.

A rectangular, glassless window reveiling a scared looking woman, her mouth taped against a chair. Above the chair a hand is holding up a painting of a row of sheep.

picture by Laura Knipsael

Four colored drawings on a grey paper in comic book style. A woman reading a book on a sofa, a woman taped to a chair, a butler carrying a tray of fruit and a woman wearing a red suit with integrated extremly high heels, sitting in the air.

During the residency, I alternated between creating scenes on the theater floor and drawing. These two processes influenced each other. In time, I also plan on releasing a graphic novel of my drawings, telling the story just from a different perspective. Here you can see the sketches I made during the residency.

Two rectangular, glassless windows reveiling a row of three performers wearing white and green costumes and blonde wigs. The one on the left is holding up a painting of a row of sheep.

picture by Ivory van Appeven

Four colored drawings on a grey paper in comic book style. On the first 7 identical looking people dressing in white and green with blond hair, of which the first is holding up a painting of a sheep. On the second a woman with long brown hair seeted in the air. On the third a face of smiling woman whose mouth is taped. The fourth, a smoking woman who has become a sofa.

The silhouet of two people look at a smoking performer behind a glassless window.

picture by Ivory van Appeven

Four colored drawings on a grey paper in comic book style. On the first one planks of a floor are opening up to reveil a black hole. On the second, skinny legs in gigantic shoes, standing on a with fruit scattered poole tabble. The third: a smiling woman with tall blonde hair and very long armpit hair, in front of a poole table. Fourth: a tiny woman in distress, her legs each in gigantic boots on top of a with fruit scattered poole table.

A glassless window reveiling a coat hanger with a brown and beige costume and heels, and a brown long wig resting on a mannequin's head..

picture by Ivory van Appeven

Four colored drawings on a grey paper in comic book style. The first: a woman in a model pose, her hair consisting of bananas and her armpit hair of grapes. Second: bare feet on a wooden floor standing next to a poole table. Third: a woman using a gigantic lit cigarette to play pool, ignoring a tiny woman on the poole table is in distress. Fourth: the same feet now wearing big boots while standing next to a poole table.

A colored, rich family picture taped on the wall. Except for the butler, the faces of each relative a crossed through.

picture by Laura Knipsael

Concept, direction, scenography and sketches: Rosa Vrij | Performers: Lieke van der Vegt, Jeroen Bik, Marleen Hendrickx, Bo Oudendijk, Luca Neumann and Steff Geelen | Text: Steff Geelen | Production assistant and styling: Julia Aumann | Shown during Fashionclash | Created during Talentlab, residency of Toneelgroep Maastricht and VIA ZUID

HUIS I

The tip of my head itches