TAMTAM Objektentheater

Object Theater

Theatre creators Gérard Schiphorst and Marije van der Sande, actors, founders and makers of TAMTAM objektentheater are known at international level.

Unique, creative and sublime in finding talents in daily waste. Gérard and Marije impeccably sense how they can use materials that have been thrown away for a theatre production. Waste, preferably made of natural materials, that is found on the street or on the ground. A cloth, lint, a paper bag or cup, to name a few examples. Gérard: “Every object has its talent!” This has resulted in many objects that TAMTAM collected auditioning for a show.
The preparation for a theatre production takes over one and a half year. Video recordings of rehearsals help Marije and Gérard to make the show as perfect as possible.

“The soul of your company is you”
After thirty-eight years as theatre makers, they immediately chose to create shows without speech. What is essential for a show is the right music, light and sound effects. They started out with school plays in the Netherlands, and TAMTAM has now been playing on festivals all over the world for over thirty years. The newest show ‘Roestige Spijkers & Andere Helden’ (‘Rusty Nails & Other Heroes’) has travelled to many countries in a short period of time. They always complement each other and get the best out of themselves.
“Of course we have divided the tasks. The internationalisation has created more work. We manage our own impresario. That is how we can get the most out of our time when we are travelling. The soul of your company is you!”

Universal
In order to play the shows in other cultures, they make the contents as universal as possible. The sets are also adapted to travelling. Gérard and Marije have an ‘airplane set’ of some for their shows. The working drawings for the other props are sent by email, so they can be built by the organisation in the city in question. “Light, sound and video is available anywhere.”

Playing with objects comes naturally. Communicating with images, to give words extra meaning, an endless source of possibilities. Animations, acting and imagining. The love these two theatre makers have for everything related to their job comes across very well.