Au Coeur Volant: Ensor and Einstein Meet

On 2 August 1933, the restaurant Au Coeur Volant in De Haan served as the remarkable décor for a historic meeting between James Ensor and Albert Einstein. As a Jew and determined Pacifist, the Nobel Prize winner Einstein was fleeing the atrocity of the rise of Nazism in Germany and thus landed in the charming belle époque vacation resort of De Haan. Meanwhile, Ensor was enjoying his hard-earned status of an internationally acclaimed artist.

About what the two gentlemen exchanged ideas during the dinner, we have some insight into, but upon closer inspection, it appears that their undivided attention, however, was primarily given to the attractive woman who served them during the meal.

Actor Kurt Defranq and Professor Jean-Paul Van Bendegem re-enact this meeting, as they allow you to peer into the internal kitchen of Art and Science. Ensor and Einstein, an intimate revelation of two gentlemen "who have the talent to be old, without being mature".

The performance premiered in August 2012. You can find new play information on the website of Kurt Defranq.