Meet the Makers: Naomi Inez Wielinga

Première GEEN VAARWEL, 2024

In this Meet the Makers conversation, Naomi Inez Wielinga will discuss her experiences in making theatre and music. In particular, we will zoom in on GEEN VAARWEL (NO GOODBYE) a music theatre production that seeks to change the conversation about femicide with a focus on honouring the experience of victims and survivors. Until recently, her foundation Muzikale Magie (Musical Magic) was primarily focused on teaching children the power of music, performing at nurseries, festivals, children’s hospitals and theatres. Since 2024, she has ventured into making music theatrical productions for adult audiences that give a voice and visibility to survivors and victims of lethal crimes.

Her debut programme GEEN VAARWEL is autobiographically inspired. Accompanied with music by Lucie de Saint Vincent, this mosaic narrative recounts her life after her mother’s murder, the impact, the healing and what you have to deal with as a surviving relative. It includes a post-performance discussion led by criminologist Gert Jan Slump.

What brought her to creating this theatrical pamphlet that centres on those left behind and on honouring the victims? How can this artistic impulse create social discourse and offer a broader perspective on lethal violence and femicide? These and other questions will be explored during this conversation.

Naomi inherited her love of music, theatre and art from her family. From the age of eight, she took piano lessons and spent a lot of time painting and drawing. Eventually, she chose to study at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy. At 22, after her mother’s murder, she decided to dust off the piano pieces from her childhood, as a source of comfort and strength. Because her self-written lyrics combined with her voice made a big impression during the “sound projection” course, she swapped her paintbrushes for a guitar, piano, singing and writing her own songs. At 27, she embarked on a year-and-a-half-long trip around the world, singing and playing on every street corner, in cafés and at festivals. Motherhood made her embark on a musical mission to teach children the power of music. As her alter ego “De Liedjestovenaar” (The Song Wizard), she introduces children to different styles and rhythms in a live ensemble with real instruments and her own compositions.

Two albums have been released and four musical theatre productions developed, including Het Toverbos (The Enchanted Forest) and musical journeys to Morocco, Burkina Faso and Brazil, among other places, in collaboration with various composers, other lyricists and musicians from all corners of the globe. In April 2023, she was awarded the first BUMA Samen Muziek Maken Prize. Besides her activities as a maker, she works as a music teacher for primary education through Muziekcentrum Zuidoost and Muziekschool Amsterdam. For more information, see https://muzikalemagie.nl/

If you wish to attend this event, please RSVP via this form.

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Meet the Makers is a series by The Creative Humanities Academy, a platform that fosters collaboration and knowledge exchange between cultural and creative professionals and academic researchers and students. Here you will find the full Meet the Makers programme and archive.