Face of Flanders: Jan Goossens
Under Jan Goossens’ leadership, the Royal Flemish Theatre has become a major player on Brussels’ cultural scene
Artistic director is awarded this year’s Citizenship Prize
Goossens, 42, was born in Antwerp. He studied philosophy and Germanic languages at the University of Leuven, where, he said, he “bloomed” and first developed the love for theatre which would later determine the course of his life.
At the age of only 21, Goossens was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which was treated with a mixture of radio- and chemotherapy. After five years, he was declared in remission, but the treatment had provoked a chronic leukaemia.
In the absence of a suitable bone-marrow donor, his leukaemia was treated with interferon proteins, a controversial treatment, but one that worked: Several years later, he was free of the leukaemia as well.
By that time, he was already artistic director of the KVS, having been appointed at the tender age of 29. Whatever his health may have had in store for him, his professional path was as if strewn with rose-petals. In 1993, he was picked up by Gérard Mortier, former head of De Munt opera, to be his deputy at the Salzburg Festival. From 1996 to 1998, he worked for opera director Peter Sellars. He also gained experience working with choreographer Wim Vandekeybus and Frie Leysen, who now directs the Vienna Festival.
Under Goossens’ leadership, KVS has been transformed – not only materially with the opening of the renovated theatre in 2005 – but also culturally and spiritually. To the displeasure of some members of the cultural elite, Goossens refuses to see his theatre as a Flemish enclave in a foreign city but instead set out to make it a major player on the cosmopolitan cultural scene.
His conviction extends all the way to Belgium’s former colony of the Congo, where he and KVS have established deep ties with artists, musicians and stage performers, which includes the founding of an annual festival in Kinshasa and regular exchanges.
“He was exemplary in how he made his commitment in a way that inspires and encourages others,” said Mark Elchardus, chair of the P&V Foundation, “and sparks the desire to take one’s place in the world as a fully committed citizen.”
Photo credit: Stephan Vanfleteren/KVS
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