Contemporary Circus Fest trades out lions and clowns for different kind of drama, laughs

If you want to see lions go to the Zoo because when we re talking about the city s first annual Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival they won t be there no matter how much you roar People in Philadelphia as in a multitude of cities largely still think of circus in a traditional way tents and lions and tigers and people in spangled bikinis being shot out of cannons That s the very traditional meaning of circus revealed Shana Kennedy one of the chief organizers of the festival with acts showcased in four-plus locations between May and June But contemporary circus a well-established art form around the world and particularly in Montreal is a relatively new and growing part of the Philly art scene You can think of it this way Traditional circus relies on physical prowess where the athleticism of the performers whether they are swinging from trapezes or balancing on a high wire is the point of the act You ooh you aah you clap and then onto the next stunt Contemporary circus is much more theatrical much more expressive much more relevant It can be abstract It can be political explained Kennedy who heads the Circadium School of Contemporary Circus Housed in a former Catholic church in Mount Airy it s the nation s first school to offer an accredited degreed undertaking in the circus arts In contemporary circus the performers athleticism works in operation to a type of dramatic idea So for example in Cycles circus artist and acrobat Zack Herzig takes us through a battle with an eating disorder by performing shape-shifting inside a Cyr wheel a body-sized aluminum ring which the performer stands inside and executes acrobatic moves Herzig is a Circadium graduate Cycles is a performance by Zack Herzig Courtesy of the Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival In I Paint Dreams Chi Akano uses a trapeze and a pole to reveal the embodied nature of trauma weaving in first-person accounts from her father s experiences in the Nigerian Civil War The show is paired with a poignant offering from the Fringe The Tire Swing A Circus Opera It s not all serious and daunting Thom Wall from Germantown and his performing partner Benjamin Domask-Ruh of Minneapolis incorporate vaudeville into their juggling act An Evening With Benjamin Thom and Thom Benjamin We re juggling with household objects bottles plates announced Wall who makes money juggling on cruise ships I m balancing wine glasses on the edge of a knife I hold in my teeth We re building a chandelier with forks and corks It s Calderesque It falls apart and we have to re-create it very expeditiously Finding Gratification by The Rebellion Circus Rebel Arts Movement involves acrobatics and stunning visuals in celebration of Black and queer individuals Thom Wall from Germantown and his performing partner Benjamin Domask-Ruh of Minneapolis incorporate vaudeville into their juggling act Courtesy of Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival Upsurge story Artists from Philadelphia and around the world will perform in the festival which is being organized by Circadium and FringeArts Several of the acts were part of the Fringe s lineup last fall Cannonball which runs a festival during the Fringe season is handling all the logistics as the Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival s managing partner The bigger story in general is how amazing the rise of Philadelphia s circus society has been over the last decade explained Ben Grinberg Cannonball s co-founder A festival celebrating it is overdue In addition to the shows Grinberg says Philadelphians can expect to see buskers performing their acts on the Race Street and Cherry Street piers There will also be workshops Wall for example is running one on circus history and a second session for people who direct circus performances On the physical side attendees can perfect their handstands at a workshop at Acro in Northern Liberties And Wazoo Trapeze in East Mount Airy offers its Try and Fly workshop The Trenton Circus Squad is among the performers this year Courtesy of the Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival Although there are scattered performances in various locations around the city the bulk of the Philly performances will take place at the Christ Church Neighborhood House the Fringe Arts Building and the Cherry Street Pier But there s also a Camden angle with a big tent set up at Cooper s Poynt Park directly north of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge on the Jersey side Shows there will be run by the Trenton Circus Squad which uses circus arts as a catalyst for youth maturation and region building Other artists will also perform there Wall who owns Modern Vaudeville Press a small Germantown-based publishing house specializing in circus books commented the festival will give people a chance to experience first-hand the state of American contemporary circus A lot of these acts are with performers you would see at Penn Live Arts Wall disclosed This is a great opportunity to see the big names all in one spot in Philadelphia FYI Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival May -June Information is available through both the FringeArts and Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival websites Tickets are available at FringeArts com and by calling the FringeArts Box Office at - - The post Contemporary Circus Fest trades out lions and clowns for different kind of drama laughs appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY