Femke Van der Steen - JUDIT ZKT.

Femke Van der Steen (°1999) is a Belgian actress, theatre-maker, and writer. In 2022, she graduated with a Master’s degree in Drama from LUCA School of Arts. Within her artistic practice, she explores how theatre, as a form of shamanism, can offer healing within the Anthropocene.

Her highly acclaimed graduation performance Mater (2022) was published by De Nieuwe Toneelbibliotheek and won the Translation Prize at the 2023 Toneelschrijfprijs. At the end of 2023, she wrote and directed the sequel, There Never Was a Box (winner of the Eigen Kweek project). In addition, she is part of the visual theatre collective OVERHERE—which won the Boze Wolf Prize for emerging talent—and is the co-founder of the Brusselsbased improvisation platform Off Tracks at Ultima Vez.

As an actress, she is well-known for her leading role in the hit teen series wtFOCK and her role in the feature film Het Smelt (The Melting). On stage, her performances include work with Het nieuwstedelijk (Kiss ’n’ Ride) and Lisaboa Houbrechts (Antigone).

Mater was selected for Shakespeare is dead in 2024.