Beatrice de Graaf

Trump is radically transforming America with his MAGA movement and rewriting the democratic rules of the game. And backers like JD Vance are eager to see the same thing happen to us in Europe. Here, meanwhile, radical right-wing politicians-from Wilders to Orban-are dreaming aloud of unfettered power. As democracy crumbles worldwide and powerful leaders like Netanyahu and Putin bend the world to their will, ghosts of the past loom.

In the theatre evening Chaos in the Western World historian Beatrice de Graaf convincingly shows how the present both oppressively resembles and reassuringly differs from earlier times. With knowledge of the past, how can we recognize latent dangers to the democratic rule of law, or put our fears into perspective?

Using original connections and sharp analyses, Beatrice takes you through the tipping points of democracy. From the dark 1930s to the early 19th century, Beatrice teaches you to look differently at the present through the past. Chaos in the Western World is a history lesson for anyone who wants to know how to protect democracy in our own time.

Beatrice de Graaf is a historian and Faculty Professor of Humanities at Utrecht University.

Chaos in the Western World is a theatre production by The Hague College, made possible by Historical Newspaper.