RESUME

Jos van Kan finished his study in 1987 at the Academie voor Expressie in Utrecht. After this study he worked some years as assistant-director with Dora van der Groen, Ivo van Hove, Lidwien Roothaan and Johan Simons. He followed, as a volunteer, rehearsals of Pierre Audi (De Nederlandse Opera) and William Forsythe (Ballet Frankfurt). He made his debut as a theatre director at Fact in Rotterdam in 1989. He staged around 70 theatre plays, music-theatre shows and opera's.

He started staging plays in The Netherlands at Het Zuidelijk Toneel in Eindhoven ("Night"-H.Pinter, "Kwartet"-H.Muller, "Compagny"-S.Becket), Artemis in Den Bosch ("De zomer van Aviya"-P.Mol, "Vertel Medea Vertel"-P.Mol and "Het verhaal van paard Parel"-E. de Volder) and Carrousel in Amsterdam ("Suddenly last summer"-T.Williams).

In 1992 he was invited to a masterclass of the German theatre director Manfred Karge at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Maastricht. Since this masterclass he works regularly in Germany where he staged plays and music-theatre shows: Staatstheater Schwerin ("The Maids"-J.Genet, "Bachea"-Euripides and "Masterclass"-T.Macnally), Schauburg Munchen ( "Springawakenings"- F.Wedekind), Bad Herschfelder Festspiele ("Der junge Rabe"-F.K.Waechter), Schauspiel Essen ("Ab Heute heisst du Sara"-I.Deutschkron and "Elling"-I.Ambjornsen).

Music and music-theatre became more important in his work. From 1995 till 2003 Jos van Kan was the artistic-leader of Theatergroep Maccus in Delft. He transformed this theatre company into a music-theatre company. At Theatergroep Maccus he adapted classical plays and created new music-theatre. He directed an a-capella musical and a chamber-opera by the composer Marlijn Helder and also a baroque-opera, "King Arthur" by Purcell (in collaboration with L.Coltof). This show was the opening of the Holland Festival 1999 in Amsterdam. Jos van Kan adapted "Op hoop van zegen" by Herman Heijermans, a show that was nominated for the Hans Snoeck award.

Since their first collaboration in 1995 Jos van Kan still works together with the composer, conductor and poet Micha Hamel. For Theatergroep Maccus they created a variety of music-theatre shows. For instance a show for two singing actors and a special for this show build Dutch street-organ ("Foppe en Douwe"-P.Mol), a chamber opera for four singers and the carillion of the New Church on the Market in Delft ("Hannes"-B.Kommerij) and an oratorium for eight actresses and three female pianists on the Spuiplein in The Hague ("The Piano Panorama").

During working at Theatergroep Maccus Jos van Kan also staged shows at other companies. E.g. "Fietsen", a chamber-opera written by Astrid Kruisselbrink at Het Paleis in Antwerp, Belgium. And the baroque-opera, "Argenore", by W.von Bayreuth at the Hans Otto Theater in Potsdam, Germany. "Argenore" was invited in 2002 to the Barok Festspiele in Bayreuth.

In 2003, Jos van Kan became a freelancer again. He got a grant from the F.A.P.K. to study opera-styles on three continents; he visited the New York City Opera (U.S.A.) in 2004, the Lan Yang Taiwanese Opera Company (Taiwan) and Teatro di San Carlo (Napoli, Italy) in 2005.

He directed "Histoire du Soldat" by I.Stavinsky at Oostpool in Arnhem, a co-production with Het Gelders Orkest and Introdans. At Theatergroep Wederzijds in Amsterdam he directed "Keteltje" by Cor Bruijn and Wiske Sterringa in a nature reserve and "H.E.A.R.T." by Tjeerd Bisschof. This show specially made for civil servants, was performed by Theatergroep Wederzijds at Ministries and City Halls.

He initiated and staged in Taipei "The Second Goodbye" a chamber-opera composed by Marlijn Helder at the Taiyuan Puppet Theatre Company. A show in collaboration with Ulrike Quade. After the opening night in 2007 at The National Theatre and Concert Hall in Taipei this show traveled to festivals in Beijing and Shanghai. In the same year he directed "Below Zero" at the Visual Theatre Festival in Singapore, another collaboartion with Ulrike Quade. Earlier Jos van Kan was adviser-director for her shows "Dead orange walk" in 2003 and "Two old ladies"in 2004.

Jos van Kan staged two concerts at Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam: "De keuze van de actrice: Ariane Schluter" in 2006 and "Ogen Dicht" in 2008.

In 2007 he staged "The story of the maid Zerline" by H.Broch at Orkater in Amsterdam. The actress Ariane Schluter was nominated for her part of Zerline for the Theo d'Or (award for the best theatre actress of the year). The music for this show was composed by Micha Hamel.

In the same year he staged "Vloed" by Herman van de Wijdeven at the Zeeland Nazomer Festival in the open air, at the filled up old sluices in Hansweert. At De Wetten van Kepler in Den Bosch Jos van Kan staged three other works of Herman van de Wijdeven: "Witlox"(2003), "Biest" (2005) and "Zolang het sneeuwt"( 2008). At De Wetten van Kepler he also staged the theatre worldpremiere of "Brokeback Mountain" by Annie Proulx (2007), and "Winterkoorts" by Tjeerd Bisschof (2008). For all the shows at De Wetten van Kepler, Wiebe Gotink composed the music.

In 2008 he directed in collaboration with the Korean composer Seung-Ah Oh at Slagwerkgroep Den Haag "Words and Beyond: Hwang Jin-Yi". And in the same year he staged at Stichting Octopus "Black Feather Rising", a new chamber opera by the Indian composer Param Vir. In 2010 he staged "The Maids" by Jean Genet at PPS in Battambang, Cambodia, a play accompanied by Khmer musicians. And in the same year "Down South", written by Tjeerd Bosschof, a music-theatre show in the open air at Tryater in Leeuwarden.

After "Cloaca" by Maria Goos (2006) and "The Importance of Being Ernest" from Oscar Wilde (2008), Jos van Kan staged in 2010 for the third time a play at Theater Osnabrück in Germany, "Cash" a comedy written by Michael Cooney.

Jos van Kan works together with the Ives Ensemble in Amsterdam since 1997. He directed works of the composers M.Feldman ("Words and Music"), G.Barry ("Things hat gain"), and S.Sciarrino ("Infinito Nero" and "Natura morta"). In 2010 he staged two works of the composer Richard Rijnvos at the Ives Ensemble. "Die Kammersängerin", a chamber opera that was also invited to the Holland Festival 2011 and to the Musik 21 Festival 2011, in Hannover, Germany. And "Mappamondo", a co-production with De Zaterdag Matinee, performed in Het Concertgebouw Amsterdam.

TEACHER and COACH

Beside his work as a stage director Jos van Kan also works as a teacher and a coach. He taught at The Royal Conservatory in The Hague, the Conservatory in Rotterdam, the Conservatory in Arnhem and Zwolle, Fontys Hogeschool in Eindhoven and the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht. In 2009 he staged "Kwartetten" by Elmer Schonberger, a collaboration of the Conservatory Maastricht and the Academy of Dramatic Arts Maastricht. In 2011 he staged a circus show in the Oude Luxor Theater in Rotterdam, a collaboration of Circus Arts Codarts and World Music Codarts in Rotterdam.

Jos van Kan also coaches and advises theaterdirectors. E.g. Shanti Straub with "Balast" at the OverIJ Festival and Melih Gencboyaci with "Lost and Found" at Frascati Productions. Both in 2010, Amsterdam.