June Circus Festival Round Up
Each month Circus Talk will scour the globe to report on the hundreds of circus-based festivals and conferences that occur worldwide and provide a roundup highlighting the month’s best, most interesting and most exciting events. June is a busy month for circus around the globe, when the weather tends to favor street artists and the public is treated to the joy of the spectacle.
On the Streets and in The Theaters
What: Periplo Movimiento Internacional de Circo
Where: Guadalajara, Mexico
When: June 3rd-10th
The 5th annual Periplo Festival boasts four shows (including an opening gala and closing cabaret) as well as offering five intensive workshops on specific circus techniques and master classes and lectures. Headliners include clown Rob Torres (USA) performing Room to Play, Fabián Krestel (pole/ juggling / Germany), Julia Padilla (hand balancing and contortion / México) juggler Thom Wall with his show On the Topic of Juggling (USA) and Alksandra Savina (hula hoop / Ukraine) as well as Mexico’s own La Tropa Suculenta performing Vaiven.
Fabián Krestel will be performing and leading a seminar at Periplo Festival.
What: La Strada
Where: Bremen, Germany
When: June 15-18
This international festival of street arts hits all of the markers for fun. In its 20th year, its main focus is on free and accessible circus arts in the open air, including juggling, clowning and acrobatics. There is also a a gala indoor event. Headlining artists will be announced in early June.
What: Mirabilia
Where: Fossano, Italy
When: June 27-July 2nd
Italy celebrates the International Circus and Performing Arts Festival Mirabilia with a mix of circus, street arts and dance. It’s the first Italian festival to host a meeting of CircoStrada, the European network of circus and street arts. During this important showcase professionals from 16 plus nations will gather to program a year of touring shows. There are workshops and seminars for circus professionals and programmers. Headliners include The Three Chefs with the Last Dinner, company Cueda (Ireland), Stefan Sing (Germany), juggler Hisashi Watanabe (Japan), De Fracto (France) and Circo Zoè (Italy).
Academics
What: Upside Down Circus and Space
Where: Münster, Germany
When: June 28-30
An international, academic conference is held every two years in Münster that embraces the ongoing mission to connect the practicing world of circus with the academic realms. This year the heady and broad theme is space and how circus uses it. “This conference examines the question of space in the context of traditional, new, and contemporary circus through the lens of semiotics. Fields such as Liminal Spaces, Theories of Place and Space, Borders and Border Crossing, Performing in and Mapping Space, and Transnational Spaces may also be considered.” Keynote speakers include Prof. Dr. Paul Bouissac of Toronto, Prof. Dr. Louis-Patrick Leroux of Montréal, Prof. Dr. Philippe Goudard of Montpellier, Prof. Dr. Peta Tait of Melbourne and Pascal Jacob of Paris. Open to the public, there is a full program of speakers sharing their papers on topics of interest to any serious circus afficianado, performer or academic.
A July Sneak Peek
Check in early next month to get the specifics on what festivals and conventions are happening at the height of summer. If you can’t wait until then to make your reservations, here’s a taste:
Check out the European Juggling Convention (EJC) in Lublin, Poland. We’re happy to say we’ll have a correspondent on the ground reporting for that event!
Visit Canada for Montreal’s 375th birthday celebration and to attend the ever popular Montréal Complètement Cirque.
Check out the Tilt Aerial Festival in England. Head to the midwest this year to take part in the 70th Annual International Jugglers Association Festival (IJA)in the USA, or visit Croatia for the International Acrobatics Convention.
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