The Junction Festival Celebrates The Art of The Circus in Ireland, 7/2 - 7/11

Junction Festival 2010 is celebrating the art of the circus, its traditions, its excitement and its potential, with a selection of circus shows both traditional and contemporary, Irish and International. The festival will run from July 2nd - 11th.

The circus has been touring Ireland since the very earliest travelling circuses, devised by Peter Astley in the late 1700s traveled from Cork to Dublin with a show Astley claimed offered, "an integrated entertainment experience". Ireland's oldest indigenous circus is Fossett, which was started in 1888 by Mallow born George Lowe who after a time with Buffallo Bill Cody touring the US, returned to his native land to establish a troupe that would in time become the Fossett Brothers Circus. In recent years there has been an explosion of interest in circus with circus schools now established in Belfast, Cork and Galway. The early graduates from these schools have been setting up production companies to produce circus theatre shows which are beginning to make an impact both in Ireland and abroad.

From Montreal, the hot bed of contemporary circus, comes 'The Rock ‘n' Roll Circus' with madcap antics and unbelievable acrobatics from the emerging talents of 'Les Parfaits Inconnus.' Matching the Canadians for wit and circus skills is Ireland's foremost contemporary circus troupe, 'Tumble Circus,' who have moved from their more familiar terrain in the street to the theatre creating an autobiographical tale of love, heartbreak and the getting on with it!

The art of the clown in contemporary circus theatre is explored by Catalonian company 'Ponten Pie' with their highly unusual and brilliant production 'Copacabana' in which three unemployed clowns set out to cook and serve the unsuspecting public a five course meal. Like the Ponten Pie, Ireland's 'Cirque de Legume' use the techniques of Jacque LeCoq to great effect and the comedy hidden deep within the vegetable!

The fine Dutch tradition of comic bands is represented by the enigmatic masterly musicianship of 'Wereldband' who celebrate music from around the world with extraordinary skill both with their instruments and the use of classical slapstick.

Capitalizing on the rich and diverse concentration of Circus practitioners present during the CJF, the festival will host 'A CircusSymposium.' During this afternoon-long event, the circus community and the public will have the opportunity to discuss contemporary circus in today's society, using case studies and expertise in the areas of practice, performance and touring. One of the key presentations to be delivered during the afternoon will be about Taking Risks - Successfully. This presentation by Ali Williams of NoFit State Circus will be particularly relevant to arts practitioners given the current economic climate, providing case studies and equal measures of reality and inspiration. The event will have guest speakers from Belfast, UK and Canada with contributions from key members of the Irish contemporary and traditional circus communities.

The climax of the weeklong celebration of circus will be the Charivari Spectacle and Torch Lit Procession. This innovative event is a co-production between CJF, parade specialists Luxe and aerial dance company Fidget Feet. The event will take the form of a proscenium event commencing with an aerial spectacle, then passing a series of circus sideshows,

Full programme details can be found at www.junctionfestival.com. Booking online or at 052-61-29339

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