Review: Ontroerend Goed’s Thanks For Being Here – Theatre That Sees Its Audience

★★★★★

Ontroerend Goed is one of Belgium’s most inventive theatre collectives, known for transforming audiences from passive observers into active participants. From the blindfolded intimacy of Smile Off Your Face to the provocations of Audience, their work has always tested the boundaries of performance. Thanks For Being Here continues that tradition by putting spectators at the very heart of the show.

With just three roaming cameras, the ordinary becomes extraordinary. Each audience member gets fleeting moments on screen, their face magnified and celebrated. The room buzzed with anticipation whenever the cameras swept across. Laughter broke out as people spotted themselves or tried to give a little performance. A short delay in the feed made that impossible, leaving only natural, unfiltered reactions. Ontroerend Goed do not simply flatter the crowd. They hold up a mirror, asking us to reflect on what it means to be noticed and complicit in theatre-making.

Waiting for my own turn was a thrill. When the cameras zoomed in on others I hoped it might be me. The comic descriptions of our entrances had us laughing at ourselves, and when I was grouped with “people with tote bags” I delighted in the shared joke. For a moment I was not just part of the audience but part of the show itself.

The structure is built around callbacks to earlier audiences. Their voice notes, suggesting what they wanted to see on stage, are threaded throughout. Some are throwaway, some absurd, but together they create a patchwork of hopes and impossibilities. Lip-synced fragments from these suggestions add comedy and keep the piece playful.

As ever with Ontroerend Goed, the work will divide. Some may find it repetitive or indulgent. Others will revel in its generosity and wit. What is certain is that the company provokes strong responses, and that has always been their hallmark.

Though this was my first encounter with them, I left with a profound sense of warmth and appreciation. Few shows make an audience feel so seen and so essential. Thanks For Being Here is an exhilarating reminder that theatre’s most radical gesture can sometimes be its simplest: to acknowledge, fully and without irony, the people sitting in the dark.

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Show Information

Show - Thanks for being Here!

Venue - Zoo Southside

Dates - Until 24th August

Time - 13:45

Tickets Available at https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/thanks-for-being-here