Information about the Dutch production

Will they fight for freedom, country and the Queen? Go on studying as if nothing’s changed? Or go over to the enemy side?

Until the day that German troops invaded the Netherlands in May 1940, Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema and his friends lead ordinary, untroubled lives as students at the University of Leiden. Suddenly, these callow young men are confronted with choices that will change them forever. Friendship, love, everything they’ve ever counted on will be put to the test. Will they fight for freedom, country, and the Queen? Go on studying as if nothing’s changed? Or go over to the enemy side?

Soldier of Orange is based on the true story of one of the greatest Dutch resistance war fighters, Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema. After escaping to England at the start of the war, he smuggled radio transmitters into the Netherlands and piloted an RAF plane on bombing runs over Germany. He became aide-de-camp to Queen Wilhelmina and was awarded the highest Dutch military honor for his work in the resistance. In 1970, Hazelhoff Roelfzema published a novel about his adventures. In 1976, the book was made into a successful film by Paul Verhoeven. Soldier of Orange is based on Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema’s own version of the story.

Soldier of Orange premiered on October 30, 2010 with the former Queen of the Netherlands Beatrix in attendance. The theatre, where the Dutch production Soldier of Orange plays is a plane hangar at the former Valkenburg Airport in the Netherlands. The audience experiences the show in ‘SceneAround’, a theatrical performance solution specially developed for this production. The audience is seated on a 360-degree rotating auditorium that turns from set to set, accompanied by 180-degree projections, to create an unforgettable theatre experience. Since 2015 the production has broken all Dutch theatre records. Soldier of Orange played more than 2,800 sold-out performances to a total audience of over 3,2 million.

To purchase tickets for the Dutch production in Katwijk near Leiden, click here.

The first English production of Soldier of Orange will open in London in the purpose built  Royal Docks Theatre. For more information please click here.