Honouring Female Circus

The Fifth Festival of New Circus, which will take place between the 26th and the 30th of November in several locations across Zagreb, is dedicated to female circus. Therefore, most participants of this attractive and colourful festival will be female performers from France, America, Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, Columbia, and Croatia.
In the context of theatre, the festival is based on the contemporary, dramaturgic application of circus techniques, such as juggling, acrobatics, and clowning. Held in Zagreb since 2005, each new edition of the Festival has been dedicated to a specific theme. This year’s “female” circus will be opened by Jeanne Mordoj, “a tamer of yolk, bamboo, and her own body”. The famous French ventriloquist will present her bizarre world to the audience at Zagreb’s Youth Theatre.

The second, large festival occasion is the “Won Woman Show” by American female clown Laura Herts, who lives in Montpellier. Her performance will critically examine the male-dominated world. Apart from the aforementioned shows, the festival will, as in previous years, present a great number of home-grown talent and quite a few “returnees”. Once again, Zagreb will be visited by Mélissa Von Vépy, an acrobat who enchanted audiences as well as critics in 2006 in the “I look up, I look down...” show.

Apart from numerous shows, during which the audiences will have an opportunity to enjoy a diverse repertoire of circus tricks, this year’s Festival of New Circus will also host numerous theoreticians from the world of theatre studies, anthropology, and circus studies, who will participate in the large conference dedicated to female circus. The festival will also feature other concurrent programs, such as a photo exhibition, circus workshops, and a circus cabaret.
More information about the festival, as well as ticket sales, can be found online at www.cirkus.hr.