Brussels’ rod puppet theatre Toone recognised as Unesco intangible cultural world heritage
From now on, as it is the last remaining puppet theatre in our capital, Toone can flaunt this honourable Unesco award. This marks a triumph for the spirit of the people of Brussels!
At the end of the 16th century, the Spanish Inquisition started to persecute and severely punish apostates in our regions. The Brussels theatre companies retreated into narrow illegal basement spaces where they channelled their hatred of the ecclesiastical court through the mouths of wooden rod-operated puppets. It left the audience members – young and old alike – clamouring for more. They could indulge their thirst for ridicule and satire without feeling inhibited. That is, until the inquisitors got wind of the spectacle they deemed immoral, cast the puppets onto the pyre, and imposed hefty fines on puppeteers or even tried to sway them to change their mind in the torture chamber. It was not until the 19th century that this popular form of entertainment had a resurgence. In its heyday, Brussels had a few dozens of ‘poechenelle basements’ that were concentrated in the Marolles, including the Toone Royal Theatre, which is the very first puppet theatre. It was created around 1830, at the same time as Belgium. Antoine Genty, also known as ‘Toone’, was the founder and would pass on his name onto an uninterrupted series of ‘Toones’ until the present day. But the business went through another rough patch. Because of the rise of silent film, and subsequently the talkies, and soccer, the theatre once again lost its public.
The Toone Royal Theatre, located at the Sacred Islet near the Grand-Place, notably the Impasse Schuddeveld, since the late sixties, takes pride in going against the grain and turns its spectacular pieces performed in a broad Brussels dialect into remarkable triumphs, including abroad. In the meantime, Nicolas Géal, also known as ‘Toone VIII’, has taken the reins. Especially those with a fondness for folklore now go to the theatre to enjoy a mix of theatre classics, popular legends, satire, and even religious and historical pieces, interpreted freely.
Is it possible that Toones IX and X are already waiting in the wings to pass on this authentic slice of Brussels culture until the end of time?