In the middle of a studio floor, marked with tape into audience safe zones, Alexander Weibel Weibel is playing violin as we enter the space for Breaking Point.
Mates blogger: Katharine Kavanagh
Katharine Kavanagh is one of over 45 theatre bloggers who are part of the MyTheatreMates collective. This page features Katharine's posts on MyTheatreMates. Take a look at our full list of theatre bloggers and our aggregated feed of all our Mates' posts. We’re always looking for new theatre bloggers. Could that be you? Learn about how to join us.
Katharine is a circus writer based in the Midlands, a handy travel hub for getting out and about to new and smaller-scale work. From a background as a performer, theatre-maker and circus volunteer, Katharine took part in the EU-funded 'Unpack the Arts' circus residency, set up The Circus Diaries website, and now dedicates herself to sharing the intricacies of circus art with the world.
She says: "Circus is an area of performing arts where few people have the vocabulary and understanding to write balanced critical appraisal. This tends to result in wishy-washy 'reviews' that all sound the same and say very little about the relative quality of the show.
"As the circus arts grow in popularity and engagement across the UK, it's important for critical voices to reflect this to increasingly discerning audiences. That's where I come in."
The latest from Katharine on MyTheatreMates
‘Poetry, cynicism & the right amount of innuendo’: HEAD – Jacksons Lane
Head is a mixture of poetry, cynicism and the right amount of innuendo and crude humour to keep you entertained, created and performed by John-Paul Zaccarini.
‘Not yet cooked to perfection’: RELENTLESS UNSTOPPABLE HUMAN MACHINE – Roundhouse
It’s a significant feat for a young company of this scale to succeed at making new work in the UK funding climate and, if Relentless Unstoppable Human Machine is not yet cooked to perfection, it does show the company’s ongoing dedication to technical innovation and individuality.
‘Strangely life-affirming’: Fram & Dunt – Roundhouse
Fram and Dunt, directed by Ellie Dubois for Collectif paints the fragility and unpredictably of life and death in a refreshing, light-hearted and strangely life-affirming manner.
How circus training has expanded in the UK
Disappearing with a travelling troupe used to be the only way to learn the tricks of the circus trade if you weren’t born into an established circus family. Over the last 50 years, however, that has been changing with an ever-increasing number of clubs, schools and training centres appearing around the world.
CIRCUS DIARIES: What to look out for in April 2018?
Another jam-packed month for all you circus nuts – how many events are you going to get to?
‘Talking good circus’: Long live the Circassian
Circassians reading this: it’s up to us. Let’s not feel embarrassed to use our title, let’s embrace and enjoy it. Public perception of what we do will never change if we don’t change our own.
CIRCUS DIARIES – March’s Circus Scoop
Turns out it’s exactly 12 months since we posted our first Circus Scoop guide to what’s on where in UK circus, so that means March is a double birthday! Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun.
CIRCUS DIARIES – February’s Circus Scoop
Our monthly guide to what you can catch and where in the wonderful world of UK circus is out now on our YouTube channel. Go ahead and hit subscribe if you haven’t already!
CIRCUS DIARIES: ‘Vu’ by Sacékripa
A low coffee table sits before us, its woodgrain perpendicular to that of the boarded stage, laid with a glass mug diagonally sandwiched between an upright sugar cuboid in one corner and a bowl of fluffy pink and white marshmallows in the other.
CIRCUS DIARIES: ‘Vu’ by Sacékripa
A low coffee table sits before us, its woodgrain perpendicular to that of the boarded stage, laid with a glass mug diagonally sandwiched between an upright sugar cuboid in one corner and a bowl of fluffy pink and white marshmallows in the other.
‘Fantasy world of fabulous simplicity’: TESSERACT – Jacksons Lane (London International Mime Festival)
This was the UK premiere of Tesseract, which won Nacho Flores a CircusNext laureate in 2013-2014, but I hope to see a tour outside the capital follow to showcase more widely the potential for contemporary circus creation.
‘Acrobatics are impressive’: EVOL: EMOTIVE CIRCUS ARTS – Bath
For regular dance or circus visitors, the current version of EvoL is still a Fringe-level offering but, with continued ambition, scrutiny and professional support, Hannah Finn’s vision could EvoLve (sorry, couldn’t resist) into something more satisfying.
‘Subtly showcases women’s subterranean strengths’: BECOMING SHADES – Vault Festival #Vault2018
Donning black gauze masks for our mouth and nose, we are led into the underworld poetry of Becoming Shades, at The Vaults, a moving dream of Persephone’s journey into Hades from the creative team of Chivaree Circus and Upstage Creative.
‘A good introduction to Cirque’s signature style’: OVO – Royal Albert Hall
Cirque du Soleil have brought another of their spectacular shows to the Royal Albert Hall as they do every January, and this one is going to extend their stay by touring to several venues around the UK as the year goes on. Great news for those who live too far to have seen the Canadian entertainment giants in London, but I do wish they’d picked a stronger show to share than Ovo.
SANTA MADERA by Cie MPTA – London International Mime Festival
Compagnie MPTA are a regularly returning company to the London International Mime Festival with their forward-thinking and beautifully presented contemporary circus.
CIRCUS DIARIES: January 2018 circus news
Happy New Year! And a Happy Birthday to circus as the 250th anniversary celebrations begin!
CIRCUS DIARIES: There’s circus for everyone
To draw a circus map of Britain today, we can no longer just look to the fields and hard-standings where tenting companies pitch, but must also peek behind the walls of theatre buildings and training spaces, and into other open spaces of festivals and street performance.
THE CIRCUS DIARIES: December’s Circus Scoop
‘Tis the season to be jolly… so what could be more jolly than a trip to see some circus? Here’s our video round up, with some holly on top!
‘A rollicking good night out’: LA SOIREE – West End
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the sensuous experience of watching a circus show, and how reviews – coming generally from a theatrical tradition – usually privilege the conceptual meaning of a production over the sensational meanings written through our physiological responses. This is an attempt not to do that!