Ola Mafaalani is a theater and opera director known for her imaginative productions. She is often referred to as ‘the empress of fantasy’ due to her creative and innovative approach to theater. In January 2021, she joined the Female Economy in Amsterdam as an artistic leader, alongside Adelheid Roosen. In addition to her leadership role, Mafaalani also continues to direct operas and theatre. Furthermore, it is accurate that Ola Mafaalani has a passion for coaching women, and she has been involved in mentoring and supporting women in the various industries.
Between 2009 and 2016, she served as the general director of the North Netherlands Theatre (Noord Nederlands Toneel or NNT), a prominent Dutch theater company. During her tenure at NNT, she made significant contributions to the theater scene in the Netherlands.
Ola Mafaalani (born 1968) is a theater director. In January 2021, she joined A Female Economy in Amsterdam as an artistic leader, alongside Adelheid Roosen. In addition to that role, she also directs operas, theatre and serves as a coach for women. From 2009 to the end of 2016, she held the position of artistic and general director of the Noord Nederlands Toneel (has been renamed to NITE) in Groningen, Netherlands. During her tenure, her company played a leading role in the arts in the Netherlands and served as an example of how art can become of great importance in a city. Remarkably, she succeeded in introducing theater to people who had never considered attending a performance before, with 30% newcomers in the main stage audience, and in her final production, “Borgen,” half of the audience visited the theater for the first time.
In 2016, she received the prestigious ‘proscenium prize’ for her groundbreaking work, bringing life itself into theater and art into society.
Mafaalani also innovated a new genre: live binge-watching. She adapted the series “Borgen” for the theater, a production lasting 9 hours. It became a theater hit with full houses and was selected for the theater festival in 2016. A documentary about Ola Mafaalani made during the binge-watching theater series “Borgen” was directed by Carin Goeijers in 2016.
<a href=”http://www.npo.nl/het-uur-van-de-wolf/05-05-2016/VPWON_1257918″>Watch documentary</a>
At this moment, she is working on “Women in Bath (Vrouwen in bad),” another outstanding concept. She has invited 40 women to join her and her actors in illuminated transparent baths for 5 weeks, with a 3-hour ritual each week. The first edition was held last year, and due to its significant success, the second sequence was held in the beginning of 2023. Other series will be announced soon.
During the pandemic in 2021, she created a new art form with “The Seven Deadly Sins” at the National Opera House in Amsterdam. It was a live-stream, live-opera film where a handheld camera followed the scene with mainly close-up shots, providing an intense feeling of the singers and actresses to the audience. This was groundbreaking during a time when opera houses were closed, and she and her wonderful team found a new way to perform for the public without making compromises.
Mafaalani was born in Syria and moved with her family to Germany at the age of 4. In Bochum, she studied film and television (Anglistic, Politics, and German). She continued her studies in theater in Amsterdam and has been living in the Netherlands since 1992. In 1995, she pursued post-graduate education at DasArts, created by her dear mentor Ritsaert ten Cate. From 2002 until 2009, she served as the house director of Toneelgroep Amsterdam (now ITA, International Theatre Amsterdam) and directed productions in Europe and the US.
Mafaalani’s outspokenness has occasionally stirred controversy. When she opened the Dutch Theater Festival in Amsterdam in 2015, she shared her concerns about the lack of engagement with human rights both inside and outside the theater. To illustrate her point, she shared the stage with a hundred refugees.
Her focus is on awakening female senses to illuminate souls in theater, emphasizing the importance of senses and extending a sincere invitation to a joyful world.
Mission
Mafaalani’s theatre reminds sight back of who we are. The truly important things in life need to adjust to an overwhelming mass of information and the drastic changes taking place quicker than ever yet before in history. Ola Mafaalani’s work wants to stop the clock for an hour or two, to address one of the most fundamental questions that confronts us in life: what are you doing on this planet today, and what impact did your life have had when you leave this mortal coil. For the duration of the performance, theatre provides trust. Confirms our audience’s purpose and gives proof that change IS life and that growth is its own reward. Infuses uncertainty with loving curiosity. Curiosity for unforeseen possibilities people encompass.
Social Engineering
The story of one single person is the story of mankind
This term that Noam Chomsky serves as the connecting thread of Ola Mafaalani’s repertoire: Tinkering with consciousness. One small step at a time. The idea of making adjustments or modifications to one’s state of awareness by manufacturing a ‘It just changed’ view creates a fresh feeling. The theatre has provided insight into human behaviour for 2500 years. This entails 2500 years of pure experience. Mafaalani’s work combines a love of the classics – both tragedy and comedy – with its own unique and ready passion, set squarely in personal story’s of people who live now. This draws her work to the theatres, but also has driven her out in the streets to unleash our creativity. High visibility in the public arena reminds people of the value of life and the place where it really shines: when we connect. In doing so, Mafaalani seeks to collaborate with other party’s within art en in all disciplines of society. Dancers, with actors and spiritual leaders, repertoire with visual art, actors with politicians, blind people with seeing people, TV-newsreaders with aerialist’s. Her love is to give a central place to people who the society excludes. For the duration of the performance, an equal place. And always with rich fantasy.
In her repertory, light pieces are provided a bite, while the serious ones are given a twist. And always with a wide open heart.
Selections and prizes
2017
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
She was appointed a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in January. In the Netherlands, only 46 people are invited to join
2016
Proscenium Price
Ola Mafaalani was the youngest artist in the Netherlands to receive an award for her oeuvre, the 'proscenium prize,' recognizing her "groundbreaking work that brings life itself into theater and art into society"
2016
Borgen
Netherlands Theaterfestival 2016 (selection)
Belgium Theaterfestival 2016 (selection)
2015
Nomination
Gansfort Cultuurprijs 2015
2013
Fellini
Netherlands Theatrefestival 2014 (selection)
Kontakt Festival 2014 Torun, Polen (selection)
2010
Elf Minuten (eleven minutes)
Netherlands Theatrefestival 2010 (selection)
2001
Macbeth
Netherlands Theatrefestival 2001 (selection)
2001
Ten Liefde
Theatre festival Maubeuge 2001, France (selection)
2000
Directors award
Erik Vos directors award
CV
2023
Vrouwen in Bad / Women in Bath
Female Economy
2022
KABAREH CHEIKHATS
Female Economy
Festival Julidans
Amsterdam
2022
Opera, Benjamin Britten: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Opera Zuid
2022
Vrouwen in Bad / Women in Bath
Female Economy
2021
Kurt Weill: The Seven Deadly Sins
Dutch National Opera & Ballet
Unique live online film experience
2021-now
Artistic leader of Female Economy in duo with Adelheid Roosen
A Female Economy is a wonderful art group that collaboratively creates high-art projects with non-artists and their stories. Its focus is on bridging differences of ethnicity, color, age, and status through art, fostering genuine understanding and seeing one another
2009 -2016
General director of Noord Nederlands Toneel
NNT (Now NITE) is one of the four major companies in the Netherlands
2016
Borgen
An adaptation of the Danish hitserie 'Borgen'
in own company NNT(Now NITE)
2015
Staat van het theater/state of the theatre
Opens the theatre festival in the main theatre of Amsterdam with hundred refugees.
2014
De laatkomer
Theatre adaptation of Dimitri Verhulst's book 'De laatkomer' in our own company NNT (Now NITE)
2013
Fellini
A performance about the life and work of the maestro in our own company NNT (Now NITE)
2012
Misdaad en Straf (Crime and punishment)
Dostojevski
in our own company NNT(Now NITE)
2011
Hamlet
William Shakespeare
in our own company NNT(Now NITE)
2010
Medea
Euripides
invited to Winterthur, Switzerland
2010
Tereisias
The story of a blind man who could see in our own company NNT (Now NITE)
2009
Medea
Euripides
in our own company NNT(Now NITE)
2009
La Divina Commedia
Dante Alighieri
in our own company NNT(Now NITE)
2009
Eleven minutes/Elf minuten
Paulo Coelho
in our own company NNT(Now NITE)
2009 -2016
General director of Noord Nederlands Toneel
NNT (Now NITE) is one of the four major companies in the Netherlands
2008
Frankenstein
Shelley
at d’Electrique
2006
Himmel über Berlin/Wings of Desire
Wim Wenders, Peter Handke
Co-production of Toneelgroep Amsterdam (now International Theatre Amsterdam) and American Repertory Theatre, Boston, Cambridge, MA.
Two versions with different emphases, both bilingual (English and Dutch)
2005
A Clockwork Orange
Anthony Burgess
at d’Electrique & Multi-punkband The Ex)
2005
VPRO television: The day of civilisation.
VPRO TV program about civilization based on the ideas of Norbert Elias
2004
Romeo en Juliet
William Shakespeare
Actors are pitted against Argentinian tango dancers at Toneelgroep Amsterdam (now International Theatre Amsterdam)
2004
Othello
William Shakespeare was invited to Winterthur, Switzerland
2003
Le Bal
based on a senario by Ettore Scola
at Schauspielhaus Köln
Germany
2002
Othello
William Shakespeare
performed at Schauspielhaus Köln, Germany, consistently played to full houses and remained in the repertoire for 2 years
2002
The Merchant of Venice (De Koopman van Venetië)
William Shakespeare
at Toneelgroep Amsterdam (now International Theatre Amsterdam)
2001
Macbeth
William Shakespeare
at Koninklijke Vlaamse Schouwburg (KVS), Brussels, Belgium
2000
Ajax
Sophokles
was Ola Mafaalani's first large-scale theatre production, a co-production between Theater aan het Spui and productiehuis Fact
1998
Key West/Westkaai
B.M. Koltes
at Fact, a site-specific project in Rotterdam
Small stage productions
2015
Mijn Tweede
at NNT. A solo with Marcel Hensema
2013 -2016
Mijn Ede
at NNT. About Ede Staal, the legend of the North of Holland, a solo performance featuring Marcel Hensema. It was performed in every village and in Carré Amsterdam and became a hit
2013
Mama
A suitcase performance against child abuse, performed for professionals in social services and politicians
2005
Extase
Suver Nuver
2004
People in Shit Hotels
Renée Polesch, on location at the Hotel American in Amsterdam's Leidseplein, as part of the Transition Festival
2002
A well fucked up play
Festival De Parade
1999
The Sorry Saint
about life and work of outsider artist Henry Darger
at Fact Rotterdam
1999 -2001
Ten Liefde/To love
Ko van den Bosch
A modern version of Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' became a theater hit at Theater Bellevue
1999
Reservoir Dogs
Quentin Tarantino
at theatreschool Maastricht
1998
Schwitters material
Combines the poem "The Onion" with "Ursonate" by Kurt Schwitters
at Nes-Theaters Amsterdam
1998
Mama Courage
Inspired by Bertold Brecht play Mother Courage
1997
A Battleoper
Inspired by lyrics and music of Tom Waits.
at Grand Theatre Groningen
Noorderzon festival
1996
Leersmoel (Lederfresse)
Helmut Krausser
at Grand Theatre Groningen
1995 -1997
Hairy Machines/Harige machines
S.I. Witkiewicz.
at Grand Theatre and international tour Germany and Poland
