The kitchen floor was supposed to be milled today, but the tradespeople will not turn up. It is simply too hot. The heat may be the main topic of conversation across the Netherlands, but the people behind Circus Odesa have other things on their minds. In just a few weeks, the new meeting place in the Kapel (part of the listed Kapel & Convict complex in Beatrixpark) will open its doors. The ground floor will house a café and restaurant serving Ukrainian food. People who are distanced from the labour market will be able to gain work experience there. The first floor will provide space for a wide range of activities, including yoga classes, workshops and exhibitions.
Seriously good coffee
Outside, a passer-by settles down on one of the orange folding chairs. The official opening may still be some way off, but takeaway coffee is already available. ‘Seriously good coffee’, emphasises Julius Zuijdendorp of De Regenboog Groep. The organisation is responsible for around 150 young Ukrainian refugees who have been accommodated in the neighbouring Convict building since summer 2025. ‘At the end of 2025, we started talking to the municipality about the Kapel. We wanted to create a place here where Ukrainians and other people from the surrounding area could work and meet one another.’
From priests to squatters
How do you persuade Zuidas office workers to visit a social initiative such as Circus Odesa? With that ‘seriously good coffee’, of course. ‘A quick survey showed us that people are happy to walk a little further for good coffee’, says Zuijdendorp. Even without the coffee, however, the Kapel is worth the short detour. Dating from 1957, the round building is a striking piece of architecture in Zuidas. The Kapel & Convict complex was originally used as a monastery, chapel and seminary. The last priests left in the late 1990s, after which squatters moved in. Many valuable features disappeared from the building during that period, including pulpits, marble altars and copper pipes. From 2007 until 2021, the building housed Restaurant As.
A space with a story
Zuijdendorp points to the raised niches along the side of the ground-floor space. ‘That is where the altars used to stand, but there is nothing left of them now.’ The plan is to turn the niches into small retail units. ‘Perhaps a hairdresser or a small supermarket.’ He then leads us upstairs via a broad staircase. Turn right, walk along a short corridor and there it is: an enormous circular space with a ceiling several metres high. Many visitors will be amazed that such a place exists within walking distance of the busy Zuidas district. ‘It is a space with a story’, says Zuijdendorp. ‘You walk in and immediately feel as though you are somewhere else.’
Russian photographer
The first floor can be hired for all kinds of activities. ‘It would be an original location for an away day with your colleagues, but it would also work perfectly well for a choir rehearsal’, says Zuijdendorp. The space is already being used for singing bowl sessions, yoga classes and ecstatic dance. It also recently hosted a photography exhibition by Pavel Mikhailovskii. ‘This Russian photographer, a strong opponent of the regime in his home country, now lives in the Netherlands and happened to walk past the Kapel. One of our staff members told him about Circus Odesa and what we wanted it to become. He immediately thought it would be a good place for an exhibition.’ His black-and-white photographs of buildings and objects feature many circular forms. ‘That suits this space perfectly. Sometimes things simply come together by chance.’
Only one ‘s’
The circular Circus Odesa logo is now displayed on the outside wall, prominently featuring the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag. ‘Odesa is indeed spelt with one “s”’, explains Zuijdendorp. ‘Using two would follow the Russian spelling, and that is understandably a sensitive issue.’ Circus Odesa also exists in the Ukrainian city on the Black Sea. Its beautiful historic building, dating from 1894, can accommodate around 2,300 visitors. Despite the Russian attacks on the city, it remains open to the public.
Come and visit
Outside, more park visitors have meanwhile taken a seat on the folding chairs. Zuijdendorp says they are pleased that the building is accessible again after standing empty for years. ‘Things are happening here again.’ The chairs may currently still be standing in uncut grass, but in a few weeks there will be a proper terrace. ‘There will also be a children’s play area and a pétanque court.’ Circus Odesa will open in stages. Until the end of August 2026, visitors can already come inside – and sit on the terrace – for coffee. The kitchen will open in September, followed by the official opening in October. Zuijdendorp recommends visiting now. ‘Development is moving very quickly. Something that was not there before can suddenly appear two weeks later, like the photography exhibition.’ And, of course, there is that seriously good coffee.
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