Raw, insightful and brutally honest, Tom Ratcliffe’s play Circa returns to London following its premiere at The Vaults Festival in 2016.
‘You can glimpse the seeds of a less ambitious but arguably better play’: CIRCA – Old Red Lion Theatre
Return of Tom Ratcliffe’s play Circa about gay life in today’s Britain: but it’s better at generalisation than at being specific.
‘Feels curiously dated’: CIRCA – Old Red Lion Theatre
I was a big fan of Tom Ratcliffe’s VELVET at the VAULT Festival and so was intrigued to catch this production of his debut play Circa at the Old Red Lion Theatre.
Love London Love Culture’s Theatre Picks for March
Here is LLLC’s guide to some of the best theatre productions opening in the capital in March.
‘It’s a play about life, connection & what it means to be human’: Tom Ratcliffe’s debut play Circa heads to the Old Red Lion Theatre
Writer Tom Ratcliffe spoke to LLLC’s Emma Clarendon about his debut play Circa at the Old Red Lion Theatre.
‘Some top-class acrobatic mischief’: WOLFGANG’S MAGICAL MUSICAL CIRCUS – Barbican Centre
Circa might be best known in the UK for its sophisticated grown-up circus but, this year, the legendary Aussie company has brought one of their dedicated children’s shows – Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus – over to our shores.
‘Explores our very nature through movement & music’: Circa’s Humans in Toronto
This is not the first time that Circa, the touring, Brisbane-based group led by artistic director Yaron Lifschitz, has staged a show here in Toronto, but it is my first time experiencing one of the company’s productions.
‘A strong addition to the Circa canon’: PEEPSHOW – Underbelly Festival
Peepshow is more adult, a shade darker than other productions that I’ve seen before but without losing the overall Circa feel. Atmospheric and exciting, with all the technical prowess expected, this feels like a strong addition to the Circa canon.
‘Mesmerising hour of movement, theatre & circus’: PEEPSHOW – Underbelly Festival
Overall Peepshow is a thoroughly entertaining, often spectacular piece, just subversive enough and featuring a truly impressive cast of performers, who just leave you just enough time at the end to pick your jaw up off the floor on your way out.
‘A great show that thrills and entertains’: PEEPSHOW – Underbelly Festival
There’s a reason Circa is known as the rockstars of the circus world; the company certainly knows how to put on a great show that thrills and entertains.
‘Cheeky, playful & mesmerising’: CIRCA’S PEEPSHOW – Underbelly Festival ★★★
There is no denying that Circa’s Peepshow is a playful and cheeky show that captures the performers’ talents well – but does it all become slightly tired?
INTERVIEW: Spotlight On… David Trappes from Circa’s Peepshow
Performer David Trappes spoke to Love London Love Culture’s Emma Clarendon about appearing in Circa’s Peepshow playing as part of the Underbelly Festival.
CIRCUS DIARIES: Three reviews
Watch our vlog reviews of: Circa in a graveyard, with students from the National Centre of Circus Arts; Jay Millers Circus in a country fair, with a series of circus model makers.
CIRCUS DIARIES at #edfirnge: Closer by Circa
In 2013, Circa won a Total Theatre ‘Significant Contribution’ Award at Edinburgh Fringe, for pushing the boundaries of what 21st Century circus can look like. Their offering this year, Closer, takes some of the material from last year’s Close Up, and repackages it into a fine example of classic Circa that, whilst not expanding into new territories, showcases what the company do best.
CLOSER – Udderbelly
Five performers gleefully throw themselves around the stage inside Southbank’s upside down purple cow. Displays of tumbling, trapeze and acrobatics abound, but what makes Australian company Circa’s show different from other circus isn’t their physical skill. Closer is full of unadulterated joy and celebration of human intimacy. Personality is on show as much as circus skills are, and Closer is a powerful reminder to share our emotions with those around us because it feels great to connect with others.
CIRCUS DIARIES: The Return by Circa
Australian company Circa arrive back on UK shores with a wash of scenes that paint a tense journey of migrancy, and the pressures that can bring to human relationships. The six acrobats (Nathan Boyle, Daniel O’Brien, Nicole Faubert, Bridie Hooper, Brittannie Portelli, Duncan West) are joined by classical musicians who play themes from Monteverdi’s opera Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria, which also appear in colder, reworked digital adaptations.
CLOSE UP – Edinburgh Fringe
Underbelly George Square, Edinburgh Festival Fringe; 10th August 2015 The Close Up perspective we get in Circa‘s latest World Premiere is not, as might be expected, from any unusual proximity to the artists (for that, try Ellie DuBois’ Ringside), but from an exposure to the practical aspects of a circus lifestyle behind the glamour. In contrast to the […]
My Edinburgh Diary: From Love Birds to solo shows, politics, circus, stand-up and more
Food poisoning, the infamous “festival flu” or some other strain of (literally) gut-wrenching misery? Whatever it was, I became quite violently ill on the train journey home from Edinburgh yesterday. When we arrived at King’s Cross station in London, my partner Peter had to half-carry me into a taxi to take me home, where I […]