Desperado

The Brussels-based theatre company, composed of Cédric Coomans, Youri Dirkx and Peter Vandenbempt, has a nose for less well known but interesting plays. They adapt them, making their own mark, into intelligent and funny shows with a sharp edge.
Tristero

Created in Brussels in 2011, Rien de Spécial brings together Hervé Piron, Marie Lecomte, and Alice Hubball. In 2018, they are joined by performer Eno Krojanker. Together, they write, perform, and direct shows that blend social themes with sharp, irreverent humour.

tristero.be/fr/projects/desperado

After graduating from the Liège School of Acting (ESACT), Cédric Coomans co-founded the collective La Station, with whom he created, among other works, the production _PARC_ (presented at the Théâtre des Doms for the OFF 2021). He also collaborates with Dries Gijsels and the Ontroerend Goed company (_£¥€$_, Avignon Festival 2019), as well as on his own projects with various collaborators. He is also part of the artistic direction of Tristero.

Youri Dirkx trained in drama at De Kleine Akademie in Brussels. He mainly performs with Tristero, where he is also part of the artistic direction. He has worked with visual artists including Dora García, Aurélien Froment, and Jozef Wouters. In film, he has collaborated with Xavier Seron and the duo Ann Sirot & Raphaël Balboni. He also runs theatre workshops and teaches at RITCS (Royal Institute for Theatre, Cinema & Sound) in Brussels.

Hervé Piron is an actor, writer, director, and the co-artistic director of the company Rien de Spécial, with whom he creates a wide range of shows since 2011. Interested in collaborative projects, he has worked with the collectives Transquinquennal and Tristero.

In 2019, he received the Maeterlinck Critics’ Prize for Best Actor. As a performer, he has worked with Antoine Laubin, Alexis Julémont, Denis Laujol, Jasmina Douieb, Anne Thuot, and Virginie Thirion, among others. He also has a career in film, with recent appearances in films by Raphaël Balboni and Ann Sirot, Xavier Seron, Laurent Micheli, Vanja d’Alcantara, Mehdi Pierret, Ludovic Bernard and Michael Bier.

Peter Vandenbempt holds a degree in Germanic philology and theatre studies from Leuven. He is a co-founder of the TRISTERO theatre company and has also worked with Kassys, Transquinquennal, Jérôme Bel and students from LUCA-Drama (Leuven) and RITCS (Brussels).

Ton Kas and Willem de Wolf are a Dutch comedy duo who created around twenty shows between 1985 and 2004, including Desperado, a key work in their career. They then went on to separate paths: Ton Kas built a career in film and television, while Willem de Wolf joined the artistic core of Compagnie De Hoe (De Koe) in 2010.

Performances Cédric Coomans, Youri Dirkx, Hervé Piron, Peter Vandenbempt
Text Ton Kas, Willem de Wolf
Set design & costumes Marie Szersnovicz
Light design Margareta W. Andersen
Outside eye Pierre Sartenaer
Direction and french adaptation Tristero & Rien de Spécial asbl
Distribution Habemus Papam – Rosine Louviaux & Cora-Line Lefèvre
Photography Liza Vandenbempt & Mirjam Devriendt

Coproduction Théâtre Varia, Théâtre de L’Ancre, La Coop asbl, Shelter
Prod, taxshelter.be, ING and du tax-shelter du gouvernement fédéral belge.
With the support of Ministère de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles – service du Théâtre, de Vlaamse Overheid and the Commission communautaire française (COCOF)