KRAPP: De Duivels

In the early 17th century, the French provincial town of Loudun was shaken by a wave of hysteria as nun Jeanne des Anges was accused of diabolical possession.

The local authorities feared a demon that made the convent unsafe at night with obscene motives. They soon turned their attention to the progressive and sexually promiscuous priest Urbain Grandier. The indictment marked the beginning of one of history's most infamous witch trials. Loudun was transformed into a grand political theater that grappled with new societal questions. Was the nuns' possession truly a supernatural manifestation of evil, or a collective outcry against centuries of (sexual) oppression? Was Grandier guilty, or merely a scapegoat in a rapidly changing world?

Krapp aims to dissect this historical case and use it as raw material for a new theatrical production. "The Devils" thus takes the shape of a theatrical trial, with the audience as the people's jury. This public jury is confronted with a society in the midst of a crisis of faith, as fear and doubt seep into every crack in the old monolithic truth.

Precisely in this era of profound change — marked by scientific revolution, emerging enlightenment thought, growing atheism, and feminist emancipation — the forgotten devils resurface, stronger, more powerful, and more conservative than ever.