I have always had a love for the stage, even when I didn’t know exactly what to do on it. When I went out at club iT, I always stood on the block dressed in colourful creations, so that I could experience and enhance the atmosphere of the whole.

When I came to study Hermetic philosophy and Western Esotericism in Amsterdam, I soon started working at Nomads, the Arabic sister of the infamous Supperclub. With fluttering scarves and eyes dipped in all colours of glitter, I served the guests.
After a few months I danced with the belly dancers and I was scouted by the entertainment director of Supperclub Zjef van Bezouw.
‘You have stage presence’, he told me. I was paired with a number of interesting artists, such as vibraphonist Jan van Eerd with his Trigger Act, my great inspiration Sanjay Ganpat and designer Benchellal with his gigantic theatrical dress with visuals.
A whole new world opened up for me.

In the years that followed, I became Creative Director of the Supperclub and was able to create atmospheres and concepts that took the guests on a grand adventure.
That is what performances do in a nutshell. Both I and the guest are in another world for a while, where much more is possible than in everyday life. That is also how my interest in theatrical characters began: then I was Leeloo from the Fifth Element film who gets up from her deep sleep, a film star with the biggest dress in the world or a melancholic film noir seductress who sees her lover in everyone. Playing with the audience is something I learned at Supperclub. Carefully exploring the boundaries of the guests, and seeing if I can take them along.

In 2008, three colleagues told me that I looked like Amy Winehouse. Who was that? I listened to her music. She certainly had an interesting voice. During an Andy Warhol Factory Night with an open stage, I transformed myself into Amy Winehouse and sang the song Rehab. It was an instant success. In those days I still rolled a bottle of champagne out of a fridge, something I stopped doing a few years later when it became clear how big Amy’s drama was.

People immediately started booking me everywhere and before I knew it I was the winner of the television program My Name Is … on RTL4.
I think it’s absolutely great to rock a party. Being Amy Winehouse gives me carte blanche: Amy can do anything. And at the end of my show everyone feels that same freedom. The party really gets going then.

The most beautiful thing I can convey is to give the guests a feeling that they matter: I walk up to them, look them deep in the eyes, through their pain or uncertainty, sing for them alone for a moment. They take this moment of connection home with them.

When Lady Gaga appeared on the world stage I saw myself. For years I had been walking around in gigantic dresses made of bubble wrap, purple paint and gaffa tape with headpieces made of hubcaps and tropical flowers. Previously, no one could place that: at my best, I was a living work of art, the new Mathilde Willink. When Lady Gaga became famous, extravagance got a new impulse: it was suddenly really cool again.

My impersonations of Amy and Gaga have taken me all over the world: the Formula 1 parties in Shanghai and Sochi, the Dutch embassies in Senegal, Istanbul and Mexico City, the polo finals in Delhi, a performance for Willem and Maxima, and for the queen of pop: Madonna. Of course, it is an honor when the guests believe that you are the real one. Super exciting too. Yes, I believe that in addition to my looks, I can convey the essence of these stars well, with a touch of myself.

Six years ago, I also wanted something like myself, as Merante Tamar. On the Azart Ship of Fools, I met my beloved Krien Jozeph with crackling fireworks. When I discovered that he is not only a Heart Coherent trauma coach, art director and DJ of the best, most beautiful music, we combined our talents: Origins: Krien & Merante was born. In Origins, all our interests and passions come together: special music, mythology, philosophy, psychology, theatrical imagery, storytelling. Together we create poetic dinners, performances and concepts for private events at people’s homes, as well as corporate events, weddings, retreats and galleries. We love to immerse the guests in an exciting atmosphere, a journey for the senses, in search of the Miraculous.

For example, we developed a performance for the Stutterheim family in which I emerged from a gigantic ‘cosmic’ Egg and the 13 special guests each received a personal experience from me. We performed in New York, Bali and Tulum, where we brought a theatrical ceremony around the Indian elixir of life Amrita to life. In a fairytale performance during a bridal party I came out of a fancy giant flower, in which I wrote and performed a musical story for the bride and groom based on their own meeting.

Our latest performance creation is a huge balloon of 2 meters in diameter in which I stand up to my waist. We project fantastic visuals on the balloon, while I tell a beautiful story, of Love, a short biography, or the origin of creation. Because of the layering in images, the balloon performance seems like an illusion, a dream. Until it pops, a grand apotheosis.

During the pandemic we found ourselves in Mexico. While all travellers fled to their home countries, we decided to stay. For months we swam in timelessness in the water of the Pacific Ocean and discovered a new layer of freedom! We even bought a small estate in this natural paradise and called it Origins Aragón. Now we are building an eco-villa for high-end performance dinners, coaching retreats and syntropic agriculture. A spectacular place, overlooking the sea!

We also gave birth to a beautiful daughter in an old Mexican hacienda: her name is Æa, after a pre-Babylonian water god. We immediately renamed our estate to the Garden of Æa. This oasis of performance and transformation is one of the places where we feel at home. But we love to travel and spend at least 6 months a year in and around Amsterdam, to gain inspiration and perform in the gems that Europe has to offer!