Wim Ibo
About Wim Ibo
Johan Willem Ibo, born in Arnhem on 10 April 1918 and died in Amsterdam on 18 May 2000, was a Dutch cabaret performer, writer and producer, but above all a historian of cabaret. He began his career at the postal service PTT before turning to theatre, and from 1940 led his own troupe, Gezelschap Wim Ibo, though he appeared on stage relatively rarely.
In the 1940s he produced Triangel, a cabaret programme broadcast every other Sunday on VARA radio with contributors including Hetty Blok and Kees Brusse, and it was here that Simon Carmiggelt began developing as a spoken-word performer. He also produced the radio soap De familie Doorsnee, written by Annie M.G. Schmidt, and in the 1950s narrated the television series Pension Hommeles. In 1967 and 1968 he presented the four-part KRO series Namen die je nooit vergeet, profiling early figures of Dutch cabaret: Jean-Louis Pisuisse, J.H. Speenhoff, Eduard Jacobs and Louis Davids.
In 1970 he published the standard history of Dutch cabaret, En nu de moraal van dit lied, revised and expanded into two volumes in 1982 and still known as the cabaret bible. Alongside his expertise he held firmly to certain convictions, seeing Dutch cabaret as a field with a fixed hierarchy and morality, and he did not consider figures such as Toon Hermans and Louis Davids to be true cabaret performers.
He remained interested in theatre and cabaret into old age, receiving many performers at his home on the Nieuwe Herengracht in Amsterdam.
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Wim Ibo?
Johan Willem Ibo, born in Arnhem on 10 April 1918, was a Dutch cabaret performer, writer and producer, above all a historian of cabaret; he died in Amsterdam on 18 May 2000.
What book did Wim Ibo write about Dutch cabaret?
In 1970 Wim Ibo published En nu de moraal van dit lied, the standard history of Dutch cabaret, which was expanded into two volumes in 1982 and is still known as the cabaret bible.
What was Triangel?
Triangel was a cabaret programme Wim Ibo produced in the 1940s, broadcast every other Sunday on VARA radio with contributors such as Hetty Blok and Kees Brusse; Simon Carmiggelt began developing as a spoken-word performer there.
What was Gezelschap Wim Ibo?
Gezelschap Wim Ibo was the troupe Wim Ibo led from 1940, although he appeared on stage relatively rarely himself.
What was Namen die je nooit vergeet?
Namen die je nooit vergeet was a four-part KRO series presented by Wim Ibo in 1967 and 1968, profiling early figures of Dutch cabaret such as Jean-Louis Pisuisse and Eduard Jacobs.
Which radio and TV series did Wim Ibo work on?
He produced the radio soap De familie Doorsnee, written by Annie M.G. Schmidt, and in the 1950s narrated the television series Pension Hommeles.
Which performers did Wim Ibo not count as true cabaret artists?
Wim Ibo saw Dutch cabaret as a field with a fixed hierarchy and morality, and he did not consider figures such as Toon Hermans and Louis Davids to be true cabaret performers.
