RULETM
Emke Idema
theatrical game
original versions: Dutch, English
duration: 75 minutes
audience: minimum 20, maximum 75
“Intelligent and extremely gripping socio-political game that should be played by everybody.”
**** Cutting Edge
SYNOPSIS
RULETM is a socio-political game that is played by the audience. World problems become tangible: RULE™
brings up for discussion known political issues but also scratches your own personal boundaries.
When do you let a stranger into your house? What do you do when friends who are staying at your
house cross or break your house rules? And how do you act when you are responsible for the eviction of
a family?
RULE™ is a playground of ideas, a miniature society, a playful and theatrical experience in which the
ideas of the majority count.
Emke Idema has created a playful and dramatic platform around the social problem of migration and
illegality. She uses the game format to literally move the audience. The “spectator” is assigned an active
political role. The game focuses on our attitude to strangers and border ethics, on how people behave as
individuals in a group and on how the individual and the group operate within a system of rules
governing inclusion and exclusion.
EMKE IDEMA
In her work, Emke Idema (1980) focuses on designing ‘social, political and philosophical laboratories’ in
which she studies and lays bare social and political mechanisms, patterns and behaviour in our society. In
2012, she created the ”theatrical life-sized board game” STRANGER, which focuses on intuition and first
impressions. RULETM is a continuation and elaboration of that format.
Emke Idema studied Literature at the University of Groningen, and then attended Performance at the
Toneelacademie in Maastricht and took part in the international Master of Theatre DasArts study
programme in Amsterdam. She has toured and worked in many theatres and in public spaces. Amongst
other things, she worked at Oerol Festival (Terschelling), Frascati Theatre (Amsterdam), Nextfestival
(Belgium), Cratere Surfaces (Ales, France), Stockton International Riverside Festival (UK) and Ageas
Salisbury International Arts Festival (UK).
In 2013, her RULETM concept won the Dioraphte Encouragement Award.
1
CREDITS
Concept & Realisation & Hostess Emke Idema | Dramaturgy Nienke Scholts | Scenography Joris van
Oosterwijk | Artistic Coaching Dirk Verstockt | Production Manager Nadin Topal and José Schuringa |
Production Stichting Stranger | Coproduction Frascati Productions and Grand Theatre Groningen |
Funding DasArts, Stichting Dioraphte, Amsterdam Fonds for the Arts, Fonds Podiumkunsten, SNS REAAL
Fonds, Stichting DOEN, VSB-Fonds
REVIEWS OF EMKE IDEMA’S WORK
RULETM (2014)
“Intelligent and extremely gripping socio-political game that should be played by everybody.” … “In a
fascinating way, Idema subjects the players to the specific area of tension between ethical principles and
the practical application of those principles. She also manages to use simple but well thought-out game
elements to add numerous layers to the group dynamic and the decision-making process.” – **** Joelie
Stork, Cutting Edge
“Thanks to the superb scenario with which the game is controlled using Idema’s computerised voice, you
not only have to make your own choices, you also see the choices made by your fellow-players. Do you
dare to think and act differently or do you conform?” – **** Simon van de Berg, Parool
“Idema not only raises familiar political subjects but also confronts us with very personal boundaries.” …
“Idema has developed a format to minimise the distance separating us from complex social themes. In
that sense, today’s party politics could learn a lot from Idema’s theatre.” – **** Moos van den Broek,
Theaterkrant
Joe Kelleher (Professor at Roehampton University London) on Emke Idema's work:
“It is (always) complex without being complicated, and that is a precious quality. Perhaps it is through
what she understands of language and what she credits her audience, her collaborators, to be capable
of, that she enables understanding in others: the sort of understanding that is ever entertaining,
although the sort of entertainment that is never without its complexities.”
2