The Dog Days Are Over 2.0

BOX OFFICE OPENING – 2026_2027 SEASON

June 18 to 21: exclusively for CCB Card holders

From June 22 onwards: general public

Created by Jan Martens in 2014 and recreated in 2025 with a new cast, THE DOG DAYS ARE OVER has become one of the most emblematic works by the Belgian choreographer, following an extensive international tour with over one hundred performances. Drawing inspiration from a statement by photographer Philippe Halsman — according to which the act of jumping causes one to drop their social mask and reveals a person's true identity — the piece uses jumping as a choreographic and human device.

On stage, eight dancers face a rigorous, mathematical and extremely demanding choreography, built on continuous sequences of jumps executed in apparent uniformity. Between repetition, exhaustion and physical resistance, the bodies seek to maintain precision and synchronization, but inevitably end up revealing fragility, effort and individuality.

Through its radical form and the physical intensity imposed on the performers, the piece questions the relationship between art and entertainment, as well as the audience's gaze upon suffering and the exposure of bodies on stage. More than a decade after its premiere, the question raised by Jan Martens remains current. To what extent does the spectator consume physical effort as spectacle?

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