‘This Is Not A Circus’ still requires some searching for a hybrid for the ‘new circus’

Artists are still searching for the boundaries of what circus can be, for combinations with other art forms. That experiment is educational, but sometimes it turns out that circus should not go in that direction. If a production loses the spectacle and wonder that is inherent to the circus, it also loses its appeal to a wider audience, says Cahit Metin, one of the organizers of the circus theater festival This Is Not A Circuswhich was shown in Amsterdam for the third time this weekend.

It is a striking comment for someone who has set up a festival where the search for the ‘new circus’ is central: should ‘attractiveness to a broader audience’ be the leading factor for an art form? And doesn’t the attachment to the traditional characteristics of circus stand in the way of true innovation?

Clowning

These questions are pertinent on the opening evening of the festival. In his ‘State Of The Circus’ speech, circus artist Hendrik van Maele seeks the middle ground between innovation and tradition in terms of both form and content: by cleverly deploying the absurdity of clowning, he underlines his argument for alienation in the circus. In the text he challenges the circus community not to lose sight of the roots of the genre, but also to regularly ‘look in the mirror’ so as not to stand still.

That balance proves difficult to strike at the festival. In the opening performance Concrete from the young collective Knot On Hands we see three bodies that continually enter into new forms with each other. The performance is divided into three chapters: first the performers roll over each other, then they turn in circles around each other and finally they lift each other up to walk against the wall.

This certainly produces beautiful images, which are linked together in an impressive way. At the same time remains Concrete into a series of tricks, making both structure and tempo predictable in no time. As a result, the makers remain too stuck in circus logic and do not utilize the potential of the theatre. They have not asked themselves enough what they want to communicate with their work, in addition to their own virtuosity and ingenuity.

Disarming comedian

The second performance of the evening has the opposite problem. In his work-in-progress presentation Barefoot Maker and performer Harvey Cobb tries to combine circus with stand-up comedy. It is a witty premise that has not yet fully come to fruition. Cobb is a disarming comedian, who is at his best when he interacts with the audience, or when he picks up his ukulele to sing darkly comedic songs about love, sex and loneliness.

But the circus element is still very meager. Cobb mainly uses clown acts: a recurring joke in which he farts into a microphone in time to the music, a deliberately failed juggling act. However, it is still too disconnected from the rest of the performance; the comedy and the clowning do not communicate with each other. That’s how it stays up This Is Not A Circus for the time being, we are looking for a hybrid form that can stand on its own two feet.