Theater

How many kisses do you need to give, and to receive — to feel loved? We once heard that to be happy you need to be kissed at least 12 times a day. And we heard it from a very reliable source: a character in a romantic comedy. What?!

The beauty of a kiss is that it’s not always sexual. What’s it like to kiss a friend, a dog, an (ex-)lover, a brother, a dead person? Some kisses are so different from each other, it feels strange to even call them by the same word, let alone count them together. Or, what about the kisses that really shouldn’t have happened? Do they count too? With a lot of humour, physical comedy, deeply personal stories, and throwing each other on the floor wrestling style (!), we are going to figure out how many kisses we actually need. 

Irina Koriazova and Sanne van Dijk met in 2022 when they were studying at the Mezrab Storytelling School. For 5 intense months, they developed their understanding of the craft alongside each other. They constantly trust the other to be the critical mirror of each other’s work. They believe in storytelling as an art form because it creates space for being incredibly vulnerable on stage: sharing your genuine feelings and intimate thoughts. In 2023, Sanne and Irina both created their first solo storytelling shows: VLOED and In Boxes respectively. Both shows were very personal, touching on subjects on femininity, innocence, establishing your borders and finding your voice. In 12 Kisses Before Midnight they dive deeper into these themes — together. 

Credits: 
Irina Koriazova – maker
Sanne van Dijk – maker, puppeteer
Titus Tiel Groenestege – creative advisor
Cat Smit – creative advisor
Can Bora – movement coach