"Animals no longer have a place in the contemporary circus" according to Biac's co-director

For years it’s the same refrain, unchanging, the same image that has been registered as frozen in memory. A nasal voice spat from the loudspeakers announces the installation in a supermarket parking lot or near a vacant lot of a red and yellow tent teeming with acrobats, clowns and roaring lions. A very reductive image of the circus, according to Raquel Rache de Andrade. On the occasion of the opening this Thursday of the international biennial of circus arts (BIAC) in Marseille, the co-director of the event returns to 20 minutes on his vision of the nineteenth-century circus, far from clichés and conventions.

Would you say that the image of the circus today corresponds to reality?

No, there’s another circus. The contemporary circus turns forty. It’s a very young life. And this is another image that corresponds more to performances that create words, a dramaturgy. This is the future of the circus: a circus that wants to explore all the questions that are being asked and are being asked of the world, and of the spectators. The circus today is not just there to entertain. It is also there to challenge. There are shows that mix philosophy and circus for example. Furthermore, today, when we go to see the contemporary circus, we don’t know what we will see. We don’t have a sequence of numbers like in Epinal’s image we can have of the circus. We leave the show with questions to ponder.

How do you explain this recent change?

I explain it with the circus schools which, about forty years ago, opened up to the public, and no longer just to circus families. There was an encounter with society in a very closed world, in itself. Over the years, there has been a mix in the lineup of circus performers. There have been minglings with theatre, dance, digital, visual arts, all the plastic arts.

What place do animals have in this circus of the future?

Animals no longer have a place in the contemporary circus. Let the wild animals be left in their wilds. Above all there is work with pets. The horse still remains a strong bond. Sometimes there are a dog or two, chickens, a pig or a pig. This is mostly to illustrate the point. And these animals may be on the scene with humans, but with a totally different approach today. It is not: “I tame the animal.” It is: “I share the stage with him”. There is an emotional connection. At the end it shows our daily life. Likewise, there will be future circuses with several tents, perhaps vegetated.

How come ?

The circus will have to evolve in relation to the theme of energy. We have to come up with ideas. Art and culture can be vectors of transformation and awareness on the topic of global warming. We are working on the possibilities. There have already been successful attempts to install awnings with a double canvas. This way, the marquee keeps warm or cool for longer and the circus uses less energy.

How does this new edition of the Biennale illustrate your vision of the circus of tomorrow?

This is the first edition in which we put a female artist in the spotlight. There is a real question about this place of women in the contemporary circus. It’s a very masculine environment. Even today, only 30% of shows are conducted by women. There is something that I myself experienced as a circus performer. When you have a child, it’s easy to experience homelessness. After the second, how to rehearse, tour and educate? It’s easy until elementary school. But when you get to college, it becomes very complex. Also, from the second child, many of my colleagues stopped the circus. Having a family life, rehearsing six hours a day and getting badly hurt, at some point, is no longer possible. As a result, many of these colleagues sacrifice themselves and change jobs. During the Biac, a round table on motherhood is also organized to get out of this area of ​​silence and to move forward.

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