360° CIRCUS & DANCE | DAY I | Circus Dance Festival

Duration: 55 min.
Location: 360° Aerial Stage
Age: All ages
Tickets: 8/12€

In the center, the performance; the audience all around. The circle is one of the most original forms of social gathering — familiar in the circus as the ring or circus arena. The 360° open-air stage of the CircusDanceFestival is a contemporary interpretation of this principle.

Here, young international artists present their latest short pieces. The 360° Circus & Dance program comprises a total of twelve works, which will be shown over three days. The 360° open air format is the annual highlight and the beating heart of the festival.

Contemporary circus meets its counterpart in dance. But there is also room for works that move in between or on the fringes of this genre. Spectacular meets quiet tones, humor meets avant-garde. In short: anything is possible if it is 360°. And that is only possible with you, dear audience.

Concept and performance Compagne Cirk oblique – Marie Mercadal und Sophie Lombard

Artists

A person disappears, seemingly headfirst with their legs in the air, into an armchair.

Shu-Huan Chang (TW/BE)

Sous le sourire

On stage: an armchair and a powerful performer. What lies behind the smile? “Sous le sourire” is a energetically shattering of stereotypical role models by the Belgium-based artist Shu-Huan Chang. Old beliefs and internalized patterns that dictate how we should be and feel are thrown overboard. The transformation begins, and from the shards of traditional femininity grows a radically clownish figure— exuberant, touching and unpredictable.

Concept and performance Shu-Huan Chang

Liza Van Brakel with Roel Vermeer (NL)

Inside out

“Inside Out” is a playful encounter between juggling and live music. In an improvised dialogue, sound and movement inspire each other. Jacket, club and guitar—three elements come together to create a unique stage conversation full of surprises. Dutch artist Liza Van Brakel writes an ode to presence, playfulness and the beauty of simplicity.

Concept and performance Liza Van Brakel | Musician Roel Vermeer

Against a black background, a softly lit acrobat balances on poles

Johanna Gorzellik (DE)

Still dwelling - short version

“Still Dwelling” is an intense handstand solo about staying in uncomfortable situations. Berlin-based artist Johanna Gorzellik explores perseverance, arrival and gentle persistence. Suspension and stillness are her specialties. In doing so, she slowly but surely deconstructs her own movement vocabulary. And so, in combination with objects and time, a fragile but temporary home is created. For it is there, where things wobble, that comfort lies—and the quiet strength to settle into uncertainty.

Concept and performance Johanna Gorzellik

^{Foto: Turlach O Broin}

The performers joyfully ride across a stage in the park together in the same wheelchair, surrounded by the audience

Compagne Cirk oblique (FR)

And I throw myself in your arms

Together. In the rush of speed, they pause—and then rush off again. They seek support, balance and trust, lose themselves and find each other again. Marie Mercadal and Sophie Lombard combine acrobatics and theater in an electrifying duet between circus and contemporary dance. It is a fragile connection in which every moment can tip over. At this interface, where balance is precarious and a fall lurks at every moment, they dance to their own rhythm.