Company New Heroes provided the artistic concept and dramaturgy for the 10th edition of TEDxAmsterdam. This year’s theme was The Big X. The X, as a symbol for ten, for the city of Amsterdam (XXX), but also for the great unknown. We filled the Amsterdam International Theater with X-shaped puzzle pieces, on which everyone who was participating could sign their contribution to the future. In addition, we organized the largest brainstorm in Amsterdam.
The future is a big puzzel. But the question is who has the answers?
We all have.
We are all part of the future.
We all are a piece in the big puzzle.
Everyone that came to TEDx received a physical puzzle piece. Visitors, speakers, storytellers, performers, everyone. On their piece they drew their contribution to the future. Everyone connected his or her piece of the puzzle to another piece of someone else. In different foyers and to the main stage. This created huge puzzle sculptures. And, as the program developed, the set on the main stage grew and grew. At the end all the puzzle pieces came together during a great endshow. After that show the audience could take a puzzle piece home.
The Big X Brainstorm
New Heroes did not only create an inspiring opening and endshow in which the puzzleconcept was present. For this edition of TEDx we did something that has never been done before in the history of TEDx. We held the biggest brainstorm of Amsterdam about the future of the city: The Big X Brainstorm. We invited a huge group of speakers around five very actual themes happening in society today: Healthcare, Technology, Culture, Humanity and Environment.
Drawing on their personal expertise these TEDxTrigger Speakers told a triggering story they needed to share. But, they also needed input of the audience because everyone is part of the future; we’re all a piece in the puzzle. Therefore they have brought a puzzle piece as well with 1 concrete question on it and asked the visitors to come up with an answer and visualize this on a puzzle piece as well and connect this to his/her piece.
As a result the visitors hereby created a self made exhibition about the future of the city made out of five core sculptures addressing the five core themes. In addition two professional drawers walked around during the brainstorm sessions and made 5 great drawings, of each theme one, to be presented at the end of the day by the top 5 TEDxTrigger Speakers and available for the press.