There are many people who call themselves artists, but few apply that honorary title as much as it does to Ellen ten Damme. She is an artist par excellence, who lives with full dedication for the stage, her art and her audience. And only the name artist does her justice, because any other qualification would do her justice. She is a singer, actress, acrobat, dancer, musician, writer and composer and she is all of those at the same time. Her astonishing versatility comes from the fact that she believes so much in her art and enjoys it with such vibrant energy that she would never allow herself to make it easy.
On September 17 she will be on stage at Bridge to Liberation. And we are proud of that!
ARTIST
Ellen ten Damme (1967) grew up far from the spotlights, smoke machines and television cameras in Roden, Drenthe. But the world would hear from her, that was clear then. She was a musical and sporting prodigy. As a gymnast she belonged to the top in the Netherlands. She played classical violin and had her own pop band. She went to the Athenaeum, studied Dutch literature in Groningen for a few years, did some preliminary training at the conservatory and finally graduated from the Academy for Kleinkunst in Amsterdam. She was just twenty when she released her first single.
Ellen ten Damme achieved national fame as a singer and actress. She starred in various feature films such as De Kleine Blonde Dood, No trains no planes and The Tears of Maria Marchita. For the latter role she was nominated for a Golden Calf. On television she played roles in the series Pleidooi and in Jiskefet. With her role in the advertisement for Zwitserleven Gevoel, she became a sex symbol of a generation. In Germany she had success with films and soundtracks for Conamara, Tatort, Die Musterknaben, and in America with soundtracks for Caspar the Friendly Ghost, Sweet Valley High, and Power Rangers. She played roles in the theater and wrote columns for De Volkskrant.
MOST OF ALL, A MUSICIAN
But at heart she has always remained a musician above all. She writes her own songs, plays the violin, piano and guitar and is perhaps one of the best singers of her generation, with her smooth and intense voice that seems to suit any genre, from rock 'n' roll to opera, and which can take on any color, from raw energy to tranquil lyricism. She played at Noorderslag, Pinkpop and Lowlands, but also with the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw, the Konrad Kosselleck Big Band and the Metropole Orchestra.
One of her greatest qualities as a singer is her theatricality. Few are able to present music and lyrics as compellingly as she does. Another aspect of her theatricality is her ability to conquer the stage. She is a stage animal with incredible intensity. Sensitive, daring, funny and limitless. She loves the audience so deeply that she eats it up. She uses an endless arsenal of theatrical resources, including masquerades and costume parties, handstands and cartwheels, wigs and provocative dresses, cabaret, variety shows and acrobatics. She has a preference for unconventional artists such as Marlène Dietrich, Nina Hagen and Kate Bush.
