Belgian dance-theatre company invites audiences on a thrilling and disorienting journey into the subconscious
Vancouver, BC — DanceHouse presents the BC premiere of Peeping Tom’s intriguing theatrical dream world Diptych: The missing door and The lost room, on stage at the Vancouver Playhouse April 24-26, 2025. Created by co-founders Gabriela Carrizo and Franck Chartier, the paired works of Diptych introduce audiences to a collection of odd and archetypal individuals in seemingly real and stable environments – a banal hallway and a ship’s cabin – only to slide into a mysterious and macabre labyrinth that defies all logic of time and space.
“We are delighted to introduce Vancouver audiences to the multiple-award-winning Belgian dance theatre company, Peeping Tom,” says Jim Smith, Artistic and Executive Director of DanceHouse. “Peeping Tom takes on a surreal and highly cinematic storytelling approach, featuring extraordinary physicality and pushing the limits of movement with astonishing performances. Diptych deftly balances darkness with moments of absurd humour as the company delves into psychological depths to explore relationships, subconscious fears, and the nature of reality itself.”
As Diptych unfolds, eight talented performers navigate a series of increasingly bizarre scenarios, where coherence fractures and reality bends. Elements of film noir and dark comedy, paired with an all-enveloping soundscape and foley effects, immerse audiences in a world of shifting perceptions where space and time remain in constant flux.
Set changes occur in full view, seamlessly becoming part of the performance, evoking the feel of live film editing and heightening the work’s eerie, otherworldly quality. With its hypnotic storytelling and jaw-dropping athleticism, Diptych dissolves the boundary between theatre and dance, drawing audiences into a dreamlike world of heightened realism where “walls not only have ears but full-blown personalities; the closets don’t have skeletons but whole bodies look in one of their mirrors and the face you see won’t be yours”(The Guardian).
Founded by Carrizo and Chartier, Peeping Tom obliterates the border between theatre and dance, roping together a hyperrealist aesthetic with real-world settings to fashion a disquieting mix of performance genres. Since its foundation in 2000 in Brussels, the company has presented its creations around the world, and has received numerous awards, including a FEDORA Van Cleef & Arpels Prize for Ballet for La Visita, an Olivier Award in the United Kingdom for 32 rue Vandenbranden, a Patrons Circle Award at the International Arts Festival in Melbourne, as well as several selections for the Belgian and Dutch Theatre Festivals.
DanceHouse will host a Pre-show Talk at 7:15pm ahead of each performance in the Upper Lobby, and a Post-show Social following Friday’s performance in the Salon.
For tickets and further information, visit: dancehouse.ca
About DanceHouse (dancehouse.ca)
DanceHouse connects Vancouver audiences, and the local arts community, to the international world of dance by presenting exceptional companies that are recognized for their excellence, innovation, and international reputation. Since 2008, DanceHouse has presented vibrant and inspiring companies from Canada and around the world. In addition to the performances on stage, DanceHouse offers a suite of engagement opportunities and a chance for the general public and local artistic community to engage with the presented artists and their work.
| LISTING INFORMATION | DanceHouse presents Peeping Tom’s Diptych: The missing door and The lost room |
| Dates: | April 24-26, 2025 at 8pm |
| Ticket Prices: | From $35 |
| Address: | Vancouver Playhouse 600 Hamilton St, Vancouver |
| Ticket Link: | dancehouse.ca or call 604.801.6225 |
| Website: | dancehouse.ca |