FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
sweden.se
PHOTO: EINAR KLING ODENCRANTS
Water on Mars is an airborne juggling act from Sweden and the US. The trio is like much of contemporary circus in Sweden: international, innovative and curious of new tricks.
CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS IN SWEDEN Over the last twenty years, experimentation and artistic research into circus art has been on the rise in Sweden. Driven by renewed audience interest, increased subventions and academic efforts, contemporary circus artists in Sweden have seized the opportunity to push the bound aries of their practice. Sweden attracts international attention as an environment that combines academic research with hands-on experimentation. With its own creation centres, schools and other support structures, contemporary circus in Sweden is open ground for both new talents and established professionals. It can be found in kindergartens and senior centres, on large stages and in academic settings. Contemporary circus first emerged as an artistic genre in the 1970s. Departing
from traditional circus as a form of spectacle and entertainment, it employed recognisable circus skills to reach a wider expressive range through the incorporation of narrative, imagery and metaphor. In Sweden, contemporary circus took its first steps during the 1980s and early 1990s when a handful of companies like
Jordcirkus, Gycklargruppen and Varieté Vauduvill incorporated circus skills into performances founded in variety, street arts, cabaret or stand-up comedy. These companies were inspired by the global movement that was reshaping circus: centuries-old traditions were being shifted into new theatrical contexts and used for their expressive power.
FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
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PHOTO: MATTIAS EDWALL
NOTABLE CIRKUS CIRKÖR SHOWS ‘The creation’ (Skapelsen) kicked it all off in August 1995. ‘From chaos comes everything’ (Ur kaos föds allt) was their first big production tour with 70 performances in Sweden and Germany during 1996. ‘Super Cirkör’ (Supercirkör) was the name of a 1998 performance under Stockholm’s Western Bridge that fea tured film projected onto an immense canvas. The event was directed by filmmaker Jonas Åkerlund. The com pany almost went bankrupt, but it was a huge audience success. ‘Trix’ gave Cirkör their definitive inter national breakthrough. With playful energy and poetic seriousness, they toured Europe and Asia for two years and did over 200 performances before returning to Stockholm for one last show in 2002. ‘Inside out’ premiered in 2008. It is one of the most visited shows of the company and one that takes the combination of speed, humour and live music to the edge. 'Wear it like a crown' by Tilde Björfors is about holding up feelings and failures with pride. It opened in 2010 and has so far been shown over 400 times. PHOTO: MATTIAS EDWALL
Louise Bjurholm in ‘Wear it like a crown’. 'Knitting Peace' by Tilde Björfors premiered in Marseille in 2013. With this production, Cirkus Cirkör continues to change the world through contemporary circus by asking the questions: Is it possible to knit peace? Can a worldwide knitting for peace movement make a difference? ‘Underart’ opened in 2014. Described as an ‘ode to a crash landing’, the performance is a universal meditation on director Olle Strandberg’s own experience of breaking his neck and becoming temporarily paralysed in a teeterboard accident.
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Matias Salmenaho in the Cirkus Cirkör performance ‘Underart’ which opened in 2014.
Trapeze to the top The most famous company to arise in Sweden is Cirkus Cirkör. Founded in 1995 by Tilde Björfors, an actress and director who encountered the circus arts while living in Paris, Cirkör came together as a collective of artists passionate about establishing a major contem porary circus company in Sweden. The members were driven and the time was right. In 1999 Cirkör received a government grant and a national commission for youth culture. In 2005 the company was granted status of regional artistic institution with accompanying contributions from state and regional sources. Today Cirkör employs around 30 staff and 200 freelancers and has an annual turnover of around SEK 40 million (USD 5.3 million). Each year the company tours Sweden and the world with performances that reach around 130,000 audience members during 260 shows, about one third outside the borders of Sweden. A Cirkör production is typically big-hearted, chaotic and colourful, with an optimistic sense of potential in the face of adversity.
A next generation In addition to spectacular performances, Cirkus Cirkör also offers training programmes that now reach almost 30,000
students every year. The programmes are designed for everyone, from children and people with disabilities to pensioners and professional artists. They also have room for about 40 students at their Circus High School. In 2002 the young performance company Young Cirkör (Ung Cirkör) started, with talented youth in the ages 8–17. In 1997 Cirkus Cirkör established the first official school for circus artists in the Nordic countries, the Circus Pilots (Cirkuspiloterna). The one-year education was in 2000 turned into a three-year programme that formed the basis of what is today the BA programme at DOCH, School of Dance and Circus (DOCH, Dans och Cirkushögskolan). Cirkus Cirkör is also a centre for artistic research, giving time and space to artists who want to explore their practice and develop new ideas. In 2008 the company opened Cirkör LAB, a residency programme to support artistic projects in their early, exploratory phases and to support cross-discipline efforts in the science of arts. Between 2008 and 2012, Tilde Björfors held a professorship with DOCH, working with researchers from a wide variety of fields on the project 'Contemporary circus as transboundary in arts and society'. n
FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
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PHOTO: EINAR KLING-ODENCRANTS/DOCH
Artists Mira Leonard and Esmeralda Nikolajeff during Closing Acts 2014, a graduate performance of the circus programme at DOCH.
WOMEN IN CIRCUS CONSORTIUM The Women in Circus Consortium (WCC) is a recurring gathering arranged by CirkusPerspektiv's Gynoïdes Project, an artistic effort that examines the question of women in circus art and seeks to produce feminist strategies in cir cus composition. WCC is supported by a number of cultural institutions including the Swedish Arts Council, DOCH and Cirkör LAB.
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ACADEMIC AND ARTISTIC RESEARCH It is now possible to get your PhD in Circus. DOCH, School of Dance and Circus in Stockholm has had a higher education pro gramme in circus since 2005. The notion of research in circus – both academic and artistic – has been on the rise in recent years. Whereas academic research examines the theoretical underpinnings of the circus, artistic research focuses on the discovery of new ideas and methods through artistic practice. Based in Stockholm, DOCH, School of Dance and Circus is the only institution in
Sweden offering higher education in the circus arts. Every two years the school admits around 18 students to its Bachelor of Arts programme. Previous circus training and a high level of technical ability is a prerequisite to be admitted into the programme. The focus at DOCH is not only on skills development but on the growth of each individual as an artist. Inside the
FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
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PHOTO: EMILIA BERGMARK JIMÉNEZ/DOCH
NORTH AND SOUTH OF SUBTOPIA Karavanen in Malmö in the south of Sweden is a centre for contemporary circus. With a floor space of 318 square metres, nine feet from floor to ceiling, a large hall and two smaller rooms, this is a perfect space for aerial acrobatics, juggling and music. Umeå Teaterförening (Umeå Theatre Association) holds a ten-day contemporary circus festival with seminars, workshops, and of course perfor mances with the ambition to make northern Sweden the next hub for contemporary circus. The Circus High School (Cirkusgymnasiet) in Gävle in central Sweden has offered students an academic way into contemporary circus since the late 1980s. The programme is divided evenly between more traditional subjects and those with an artistic touch such as acrobatics, juggling and tightrope walking. Each academic year, 16 students are selected for the programme after an admission test.
PHOTO: PETTER HELLMAN
A Subtopia seminar in 2014.
Cirkus Cirkör founder Tilde Björfors researches how to cross boundaries in circus activities.
purpose-built training facilities, students are encouraged to research a specific discipline in order to develop their own language and discover the expressive potential of their art. This approach to creating a ‘complete’ artist reflects both the spirit and the professional reality of contemporary circus: artists are more often creators than interpreters. They might work with
a director, but generally do so on material they’ve generated through their own practice and research. In 2011, DOCH opened its MA programme in New Performative Practices, and in 2013 John-Paul Zaccarini completed the circus department’s first PhD when he published the thesis ‘Circo analysis: Circus, Therapy and Psycho analysis’. n
SPACE TO CREATE – SUBTOPIA Subtopia is a bustling creative centre that provides all kinds of support to creative entrepreneurs, primarily those active in film and contemporary circus. Located on the southern outskirts of Stockholm, Subtopia is a creative centre spread over eight buildings and 15,000 square metres. Currently hosting some 60 organisations and 25 artists in residence, the complex was founded in 2002 as part of a project to regenerate the Stockholm suburbs. Subtopia supports social and creative entrepreneurship across the arts, but its main focus remains on film and contemporary circus. Amid the pastelyellow buildings and partially wooded grounds there’s outdoor space for the caravans of visiting artists, and down the road there’s a giant warehouse called The Hangar (Hangaren) that serves as a full-purpose recording studio and circus venue. There are also studio spaces that can be used by artist residents. In a typical year Subtopia is able to provide space for around 25 visiting artists and com-
panies. Residents come from all over the world, all part of the aim to keep Subtopia an international stopping point. Alongside its support to artistic creation, Subtopia also helps artists and companies with administration and production – whether they are applying for funding, setting up a company, or piecing together a touring programme. To help develop the circus in Sweden, Subtopia also actively participate in international networks and collaboration projects such as Autopistes (to strengthen touring networks between Europe and North America), FACE (an international network supporting contemporary cross-disciplinary art forms) and CircusNext (identifies and supports emerging circus creators in the European Union). Leveraging these connections in the service of artists, Subtopia acts as a springboard to the world of circus. n
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FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
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PHOTO: ALEX HINCHCLIFFE
Through passion and humour, Magmanus hopes to inspire their audiences.
CIRCUS ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE
SUBCASE
A few institutions in Sweden offer artist-in-residence oppor tunities to individuals, companies or groups working with contemporary circus.
Since 2009, Subtopia has produced and hosted Subcase, an annual showcase for Nordic circus artists. For four days, international participants can indulge in full-length performances, presentations of works in progress, pitches for new concepts, seminars and an exhibition space for contemporary Nordic circus. In 2014, 140 artistic programmers, professionals and journalists from 23 countries participated. PHOTO: PETTER HELLMAN
Angela Wand at Subcase 2014.
Residents can choose to do research, artists like animals at a zoo. In 2013 fine-tune their acts or in other ways they were artist in residence at Sub work to improve on or prepare for their topia first for research purposes and performances. later that same year for rehearsals. Subtopia typically hosts around 25 • Magmanus Company was founded artists and companies per year, from a in Sweden in 2009 by the French- few days of rehearsal to months of reNorwegian duo Manu Tiger and Magnus search. Cirkör LAB offers both long-term Bjøru. They were artists in residence at and short-term residencies year-round. Cirkör LAB in 2011 and again in early A few local theatres throughout the 2013 during which time they fine-tuned country also make room for new develop their expressions and methodology. ments in circus. Here are a few note • Angela Wand is an American artist livworthy residents: ing in Stockholm. She was resident • Johan Wellton is a street, theatre and at Subtopia in 2014 to help research circus performer with more than a her upcoming solo show which she decade of experience. In his youth, describes as ‘a culmination of comedy Wellton attended the Circus High and circus to border on the absurd School in Gävle in the north of and find balance in the humane’. Sweden, the first such programme • Sara Runsten is a multi-disciplinary in the Nordic countries. He was a artist that incorporates circus, dance, resident at Subtopia in 2012. photo, music and scenography into • Animal Religion uses acrobatics, ritual her shows. She was artist in residence dance, animal masks and absurd imageat Cirkör LAB during the fall 2014. Sara ry to create wild, illogical performances. also holds workshops for leaders and The audience is invited to observe the groups called ‘The Art of Trust’. n
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FACTS ABOUT SWEDEN | CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
sweden.se
PHOTO: SUBTOPIA
Manegen offers free daily training in contemporary circus to its members at the Cirkör House outside of Stockholm.
FORUMS FOR RESEARCH In December 2015, DOCH hosts the second edition of Circus Artistic Research Development (CARD), a conference inviting artists, directors and researchers from around the world to come together for three days of conversations, lectures, seminars and performances on the topic of artistic development in circus. The first edition of CARD was held in 2010. CARD is a part of a research forum at DOCH called Close Encounters. This project brings together art, education and science to help arrive at new insights and knowledge. DOCH also arranges smaller conferences, and has research groups that meet regularly on varying topics connected to dance and circus.
THE ART OF ORGANISING Manegen is the national organisation for circus, street perfor mance and variety in Sweden. Founded in 2008 and since 2009 with support from the Swedish Arts Council, their mission is to enhance the conditions for professionals; to create better working conditions and facilitate the professional development of members; and to advocate for a stronger position for circus in the cultural sphere. Manegen also provides free daily training for its members. It is estimated that there are around 45–50 companies working in contemporary circus, street arts and variety in Sweden. However, while these practi tioners may be based in Sweden, circus artists travel widely for work since their performances rarely rely on verbal lan-
guage. A circus artist who is based in one country can easily spend half their time working and creating outside of it. It is therefore difficult to say that Swedish circus has its own style or that there is a national aesthetic. Since experimentation is also at the heart of the art form, a unified style would be difficult to define. Sweden is just one juncture in an international flow of art and ideas. However, through the establishment of a strong artistic infrastructure, Sweden is perceived as a major producer of contemporary circus and as an environment that welcomes experimentation and research. Its artistic and cultural borders are open. n
USEFUL LINKS www.cirkor.se
Cirkus Cirkör
www.doch.se
DOCH, School of Dance and Circus
www.manegen.org Manegen www.subtopia.se
Subtopia
Copyright: Published by the Swedish Institute. December 2014. All content is protected by Swedish copyright law. The text may be reproduced, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast in any media with reference to sweden.se. However, no photographs or illustrations may be used. The Swedish Institute (SI) is a public agency that promotes interest and confidence in Sweden around the world. SI seeks to establish co-operation and lasting relations with other countries through strategic communication and exchange in the fields of culture, education, science and business. Further information about Sweden: sweden.se, the Swedish embassy or consulate in your country, or the Swedish Institute, Box 7434, SE-103 91 Stockholm, Sweden. Phone: +46 8 453 78 00; e-mail: si@si.se www.si.se www.swedenbookshop.com www.swedenabroad.com