CircusFest 2018 Theatre & Performing Arts

CircusFest is London’s biennial international festival of contemporary circus taking place at the Roundhouse and selected partner venues.

Founded in 2009, CircusFest is London’s biennial international festival of contemporary circus taking place at the Roundhouse as well as selected partner venues around London. Circus has come a long way since Philip Astley created the first variety show and this year’s CircusFest shows how this art form is always innovating and evolving.

The diverse and exciting full programme for CircusFest 2018 is as follows:

Relentless Unstoppable Human Machine (RUHM) by Pirates of the Carabina (3 – 15 April, Roundhouse Main Space)
This is the world premiere of a brand-new mechanically-ingenious family-friendly circus show. Adventure into a world of mechanical chaos, where everything has a mind of its own and connections appear in unexpected ways.

The Bekkrell Effect by Groupe Bekkrell (19 - 22 April, Roundhouse Main Space)
This UK premiere by French company Groupe Bekrell is an exciting chance to experience the richness of European circus. Combining innovative rigging and exceptional circus artists, The Bekkrell Effect swings between acrobatics and poetry, falling and flying, in a performance as energetic as a nuclear reaction.

Fram & Dunt by Collectif and then… (3 – 5 April, Roundhouse Sackler Space)
A story about Fram aka daughter aka hair hung artist Francesca Hyde who asked Dunt aka dad aka 60-year-old Joe Hyde to run away with her to the circus, despite him having no previous circus experience. Her secret mission, to get him to quit his job and bring him to the stage that he has always dreamed of.

Breaking Point by Weibel Weibel Co. (6 – 8 April, Roundhouse Sackler Space)
Mainly through slack rope, Alexander Weibel Weibel explores ideas of tension and how far things can be pushed before the inevitable happens.

Throwdown by Roundhouse Street Circus Collective (12 – 14 April, Roundhouse Sackler Space)
Throwdown is an energetic-in-your-face-encounter, bursting with the individual style and personality of 20 young circus artists and hip hop dancers. The Roundhouse Street Circus Collective brings together bold young circus artists and street dancers with a drive to train, collaborate, produce and present their own work.

Even When I Fall by Sky Neal & Kate McLarnon (15 April, Roundhouse Sackler Space)
Even When I Fall traces the journey of trafficking survivors over 6 years as they confront the families that sold them, seek acceptance within their own country and begin to build a future. They struggle against the odds and without education, but inadvertently these girls were left with a secret weapon by their captors - their breathtaking skills as circus artists.

No Show by Ellie Dubois (18 – 22 April, Roundhouse Main Space)
After taking Edinburgh Fringe 2017 by storm and winning a prestigious Herald Angel Award, No Show explores what you expect when you go to the circus. It joyously and heartbreakingly reveals what lies hidden beneath the showmanship.

Zoetrope by Remy Archer (3 – 22 April, Roundhouse Main Space)
While working as a filmmaker at social circuses in Palestine and Ethiopia, Remy Archer was inspired by the incredible talent, artistry and social impact of what he saw. Zoetrope is a 360 film installation that weaves together some of these stories into a visceral tapestry that plunges audiences into scenes that would otherwise be inaccessible.

Staged by Circumference (4 – 7 April, Jacksons Lane)
Join experimental circus collective Circumference for their latest theatrical spectacle Staged. Featuring three performers on an aerial platform as precarious as our perceptions – a single action changes everything, but everything is not always what it seems.

SARAB (Mirage) by Palestinian Circus Company (13 – 15 April 2018, Jacksons Lane)
2015 Total Theatre Award winners return with a new show about the unexpected, something that turns out to be only a mirage. Dragged to an uncertain end, with an unknown destiny, they finally arrive – but have they reach their goal? And what did they want?

Friday Late: Circus – Past, Present & Future (27 April, Victoria and Albert Museum)
This is a collaboration between Roundhouse CircusFest – the home for contemporary circus - and the Victoria and Albert Museum – who hold a large number of objects that reveal the history of circus.

Head by John-Paul Zaccarini (9 April, Jacksons Lane)
Now a Professor in Circus, John-Paul is back and delighted to give them Head. As brainy as he is buff, a bimbo philosopher, he presents a middle-aged, one man circus lecture pretending to be a performance.

Hyena by Alula Cyr (12 – 13 April, The Albany)
The first all-female Cyr troupe, Alula’s debut Hyena explodes onto the UK circus scene in a whirlwind of women, wheels, acrobatics, dance and song.

Knot by Nikki and JD (17 - 18 April, The Place)
The Knot is the invisible string that connects two people. Using acrobatics, movement and storytelling to expose the hopes we hold for the ideal lover, Knot is the story of two hearts making sense of perfection.

Yablochkov Candle by Ilona Jantti & Aino Venna (19 – 21 April, Jacksons Lane)
Enter the velvet world of cabaret in 1920s Vienna for an evening of poetic jazz and aerial performance, infused with the smoky tones of French chansons and old school rock ‘n’ roll.

Natalie Inside Out by Natalie Reckert and Mark Morreau (8 April, Jacksons Lane)
This playful collaboration between virtuoso hand balancer Natalie Reckert and digital artist Mark Morreau explores the inner workings and fragmentation of the acrobatic body through digital technology and video projection.

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