#3 Bonanza

Berlin is a theater group founded in 2003 by artists Bart Baele and Yves Degryse with Caroline Rochlitz. Through their characteristic blend of documentary and interdisciplinary practices, Berlin engages with various media to address a specific research question that drives its work. Berlin’s inaugural series Holocene (the current geological era) began with the performances Jerusalem, Iqaluit, Bonanza, and Moscow. A few years later a new cycle followed, Horror Vacui (The Fear of Emptiness), of which Tagfish and Land’s End are the first two episodes. Berlin is currently working on new performances in both cycles, with plans to conclude Holocene in Berlin through a fictional documentary.  #3 Bonanza is a cinematic portrait of a desolate mining town, the smallest in Colorado (USA) – a microcosm of the world, the residents claim.



Once upon a time there was a little town,

with five friendly houses,

the Rocky Mountains lying at their feet.

Snow covers the streets in wintertime,

the Kerber Creek runs through the village

and if you look long enough

you can even see the elves.

Concept: Berlin (Bart Baele, Yves Degryse, Caroline Rochlitz) | Photography: Bart Baele / Nico Leunen. Sound recording: Tom De With. Editing: Bart Baele. Soundtrack and mixing: Peter Van Laerhoven. Graphics: Gerjo Van Dam. Scale model: Koen De Ceuleneer. Software development: Frank Lanssens. Electronics: Dadaelectronics. Production: Berlin. Co production: STUK (Leuven), KVS (Brussels), Vooruit (Gent); with the support of Vlaams Audiovisuel Fonds, Flanders Image, Stad Antwerpen.