Folia has FOMO | Borrow a living book from the library
No plans yet this weekend? Overwhelmed by all the options in Amsterdam? Then check out our new bi-weekly culture column. Cultural tips from our editors between March 29 and April 12: from talking to a living book to flower drawing and musical bingo.
Music bingo show at Sexyland World | €11
Thursday 30 March | 19:00-01:00
Do you also get nostalgic jitters and flashbacks of your grandparents when it comes to bingo? Then you're in luck, because on Thursday 30 March you can spend an entire evening swinging bingo at SEXYLAND world! Presented by Joost the host and accompanied by ‘rousing music’ by DJ Je Moeder. SEXYLAND is actually an art project, club and space that provides a stage for all kinds of cultural programmes. As long as there is also something behind the programme that enriches cultural life in Amsterdam. Tickets for the music bingo show are available online.
Ambinite: soundscape for dinner at Studio/K | €27
Wednesday 5 April | 18:00-22:00
For the first time, Studio/K, which is run entirely by students, is organising soundscape dinner Ambinite. From 6pm to 10pm, you can enjoy a vegan three-course menu, accompanied by ambient music from DJs M.F. Heyman and Wilmar. With dimmed lights, music and food, Ambinite aims to create an intimate and surreal dining experience. The theme of the evening is miso — a Japanese paste made from fermented soybeans. It doesn’t get more umami than that. The menu for the evening and tickets can be found on the website.
Kaboom Animation Festival in Amsterdam | From €10
30 March to 2 April | Variable schedule
Are you a big fan of animated films or series or at least open to it? Then go to one of the screenings of the Kaboom Animation Festival from 30 March to 2 April in Amsterdam. You can enjoy short films and feature films by both Dutch and international creators during the festival. If the programme is too overwhelming, head to Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman. An animated film inspired by short stories by writer Haruki Murakami, best known for his book Norwegian Wood. Buy your tickets online.
CROSS-POLLINATIONS // Botanical drawing workshop at VOX-POP | free of charge
Tuesday 4 April | 15:00-17:00
You probably know them, the beautifully detailed drawings of flowers or plants in old textbooks or paintings. Have you always wondered how someone does or starts that? Then sign up for the botanical drawing workshop at VOX-POP on April 4. Nature and science illustrator Hanna Haring will teach you how to observe nature and then depict it with pencil and watercolour. The programme is part of the larger VOX-POP exhibition CROSS-POLLINATIONS.
Living library at OBA Bijlmerplein|free of charge
Saturday 8 April | 13:30-17:00
In the Living Library you won't read books, but people. ‘Interesting people, whom you don't readily talk to yourself,’ says the OBA on its site. Editor Irene Schoenmacker talked to Micha Meinderts (41) about being a living book.
Micha is, in fact, asexual and trans man. ‘I participate because people often have a certain image of asexuality and transgender people. I want to nuance that a bit more. In the media, the standard narrative is: you knew when you were three, the journey was tough, you were unhappy and you liked putting on clothes of the opposite sex. But there are many more different identities. I enjoy making people discover that we humans are not so different from each other.’
Meinderts himself also writes novels about asexuality. ‘It is extra special to write books and to be read as a book in the Living Library.’ What he enjoys most is teaching people something. ‘I once had a very nice conversation with a ‘reader’, who peeled off every layer of my identity with his questions. I saw that there were a hundred thousand things he had never thought about until then. So much fun. Giving people different insights, that's really what I do it for.’
For English people: there is also a ‘living dictionary’ available on the spot.
Mega Markt Kabaal at Markt Centraal | € 27,50
Saturday 8 April | 19:30-03:00
Markt Centraal, near the Food Centre Amsterdam, will host a grand festival on April 8. This edition of Marktkabaal - this is the name of the parties at Markt Centraal - is a lot bigger than usual. So prepare yourself for Mega Markt Kabaal, with three stages, five different live acts, DJs and more. Just walking in is not possible at Markt Centraal, as it is behind the gates of Food Centre Amsterdam (for food entrepreneurs only). You will therefore be picked up by a little train that drives you from the gate to the venue. That’s saved energy you can unleash on the dance floor!
