De zaak Shell Bureau Vergezicht

The award-winning show The Shell Case is back in the theatres in a contemporary version. In the show by Anoek Nuyens and Rebekka de Wit, we see the most important protagonists in the climate debate explain in razor-sharp pleas why they do what they do: Shell, the consumer, the government, the citizen and a young generation that is worried about their future. In five monologues, they repeatedly shift the responsibility to another party. In doing so, The Shell Case cleverly shows that the climate crisis is ultimately a crisis of responsibility.

The reason for the performance is the lawsuit that Milieudefensie filed against Shell. The stake of the case: to force Shell to radically change their business operations. Shell's defense? Not we, but the consumer must change. Nevertheless, the judge ruled that companies do indeed have a responsibility, but could not link this to a legal obligation and put the ball back in the politicians' court. And the politicians in turn point the finger at the citizen.

Nuyens and De Wit have been following the climate debate closely for years and have dug into this case. They attended shareholders' meetings of multinationals, read speeches and interviews from Shell, ploughed through agreements and policy notes from governments and systematically noted down the comments of their uncles and aunts during Christmas dinner. With all this input, they developed and wrote The Shell Case. In the updated version, they include the ruling of the appeal and the latest developments.

The Shell Case was received with praise by the press and the public in 2020, and Anoek Nuyens and Rebekka de Wit received the directing award at the Dutch Theatre Festival.