Impressive collectives adorn Festival Circolo 2023 programme

Open mouths, squeezed buttocks and squinted eyes. From 13 to 22 October 2023, Festival Circolo descends on Tilburg for emotion, daredevilry and groundbreaking performances. The largest contemporary circus festival in the Netherlands will feature more than 100 performances for ten days at the intersection of theatre, dance, performance art and acrobatics. The programme and ticket sales for Festival Circolo 2023 are now live.

After its successful move to the Spoorpark in 2022, with a large number of sold-out shows, Festival Circolo will once again pitch its tents in Tilburg's green city centre from 13 to 22 October. Visitors can discover more than 100 performances in circus tents in the Spoorpark Tilburg and halls of satellite venues Schouwburg and Concertzaal Tilburg, Hall of Fame and Theatre De Nieuwe Vorst.

The common thread in this year's Festival Circolo programme is 'together'. Festival Circolo believes in a world where together is so much more than alone. A place where the strongest shoulders carry the heaviest burdens. People catch each other when they fall and rise higher when they give each other a hand. That world exists: the circus world. Festival Circolo wants more than ever to provide a place where people come together to celebrate their differences and share stories that everyone may identify with. In addition, the festival is committed to promoting accessibility for people in poverty and with disabilities, as well as fighting loneliness.

Festival Circolo is proud to present a wide range of performances and events that embrace community spirit. From queer nights to a collective of hand runners. Some of the programme of Festival Circolo 2023:

Circus Baobab masterfully combines tradition and modernity in an explosive circus experience. In Yé, a group of 13 talented dancers and acrobats from West Africa explore major contemporary themes such as global warming, pollution and power over a rare resource: water, with youthful bravado. They package all this in a unique performance that is almost bursting at the seams with conviction, energy and humour. Expect giant human pyramids, hand-to-hand acrobatics and people being thrown 7 metres into the air.

Welcome to the paradise of the forgotten. In true Valhalla, there is no room for imperfection. That is why circus company Pardi! is building its own utopia where the logic of madness and the beauty of ugliness is celebrated. Everyone is invited to this Low Cost Paradise to get a taste of a new reality. Under the ridge of a large circus tent, this collective of acrobats, dancers and live musicians builds an immersive vortex that sets everything in motion, but especially your laughter muscles. Colourful figures fly through the air, balance on wheeled bicycles, get involved in spontaneous parties, perform magic and fire confetti cannons.

Ten acrobats share the same addiction: walking around on hands. In Le Complexe de l'Autruche (The Ostrich Complex), the company does not stick its head into the earth, but rather turns it upside down. The acrobats, who spend much of the performance upside down, thus offer a new perspective on the world. In hypnotic group choreographies, progressive inventions and dryly comic situations, Collectif d'Equilibristes strings together a performance where outsiders are celebrated and the power of the collective becomes tangible.

After the sold-out 2022 edition, the long-awaited Queer Night returns to Festival Circolo. The highly honoured audience will be treated to an all-inclusive happening with a tasting of performances to lick your fingers at. From hilarious striptease acts to drag performances and spectacular shows that sensually tease the edges. Afterwards, the party continues into the wee hours and everyone gets to shake their moves across the dance floor. Enter a dizzying universe where everything is liquid, confetti pops profusely and glamour knows no bounds.

For more information on the programme, please refer to the website. A limited number of tickets are available for each performance. Ticket sales are starting now.