Nominees for the first International Circus Awards have been announced, with 15 nominated productions from 12 countries in consideration for 10 award categories, including a company from Australia.
The Contemporary Circus and Immersive Arts Center (CCIAC), a nonprofit organization based in New York, will present awards to winning productions on 9 October (6.00am – Saturday 10 October in Australia) during an online video awards ceremony.
The ICA was created to recognize professional circus companies, artists and producers from around the globe for their outstanding achievements.
“This awards ceremony is a unique way to see what’s happening around the world in circus as an art form today,” said said Aaron Marquise, executive director of CCIAC.
“The productions in consideration span from emerging circus companies to a new circus opera featuring original music by renowned composer Philip Glass and writing by Pulitzer Prize finalist David Henry Hwang.”
“We want to celebrate this exciting work, get it in front of more people and demonstrate the range of performance styles there are in the world of circus,” said Marquise.
The 9 October broadcast will begin with a choreographed opening number that explores the question: What is Circus?
Viewers will then watch clips of each nominated production before presenters announce the winner in a format styled after the Academy Awards.
Presenters will include Daniel Lamarre, the CEO of Cirque du Soleil, and Gypsy Snider, circus choreographer for the Tony award-winning revival of Pippin.
The broadcast was prerecorded this month, with Marquise hosting from the historic Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, world famous for its acoustics, and presenters joining remotely.
Adelaide-based company, Gravity & Other Myths has been nominated in four categories for The Pulse: Outstanding Production, Outstanding Achievement in Circography, Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy, and Outstanding Achievement in Design.
Premiering at the 2021 Adelaide Festival, The Pulse was directed by Darcy Grant, and features the work of designer Geoff Cobham and composer Ekrem Eli Phoenix to extend and amplify the signature spirit of this unique company.
What is Circus?
While many hear the word “circus” and think of animals, peanuts and “Big Top” large arenas, there is great variety in modern circus productions. “Contemporary Circus” companies, for example, don’t use animals, but focus instead on the incredible capabilities of the human body to tell stories, typically in smaller and more intimate settings.
The CCIAC chose not to define “circus” for submissions to the ICA. “The productions among our nominees may include certain elements – like acrobatics, juggling, clowning, dance and movement – that may or may not be present in traditional circus as many people know it,” said Marquise. “But if an artist or company calls their production ‘circus,’ who are we to say it’s not?”
Enriching The International Circus Community
The CCIAC received 60 submissions from 21 countries. In adjudicated categories, 34 judges from 16 countries will judge nominees based on three criteria: impact, originality and excellence.
“We established three ways to measure the work that felt fair to all communities regardless of financial and physical resources,” said Marquise.
Marquise says it is important that this awards program is international in scope because many countries and regions around the world have their own distinctive circus culture.
“We want the ICA to start conversations about the elements of these shows – the costumes, scenic designs, dramaturgy, etc. – to help circus evolve and move in new directions,” said Marquise.
The International Circus Awards will be broadcast on 9 October (6.00am – Saturday 10 October AEDT). Tickets to watch the broadcast are now available. For more information, visit: www.internationalcircusawards.com for details.
Image: The Pulse by Gravity & Other Myths – photo courtesy of Carnival Cinema
International Circus Awards Nominees:
Outstanding Production:
The Pulse – Gravity & Other Myths (Australia)
Sweat & Ink – Cirque Barcode (Canada)
SIX° – FLIP Fabrique (Canada)
Serge Fiori, Seul Ensemble – Cirque Éloize (Canada)
Passagers – Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
Out Of Order – Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
O’DD – Race Horse Company (Finland)
Moya – Zip Zap Circus & Sabine Van Rensburg, Brin Schoellkopf, Samuel Renaud (South Africa, Canada, United States)
La Galerie – Machine de Cirque (Canada)
Circus Days and Nights – Cirkus Cirkör (Sweden)
Outstanding Digital Production:
Out Of Order – Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
Moya – Zip Zap Circus & Sabine Van Rensburg, Brin Schoellkopf, Samuel Renaud (South Africa, Canada, U.S.A.)
Circus Days and Nights – Cirkus Cirkör (Sweden)
Outstanding Performance by an Artist:
Barcode company – Sweat & Ink by Cirque Barcode (Canada)
Sereno Aguilar, Sabine Van Rensburg + Cast – Passagers by Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
Rauli Dahlberg – O’DD by Race Horse Company (Finland)
Phelelani Ndakrokra – Moya by Zip Zap Circus & Sabine Van Rensburg, Brin Schoellkopf, Samuel Renaud (South Africa, Canada, U.S.A.)
Pauline Bonanni – La Galerie by Machine de Cirque (Canada)
Outstanding Achievement in Circography:
The Pulse – Gravity & Other Myths (Australia)
Sweat & Ink – Cirque Barcode (Canada)
Se prendre – LION LION (Canada)
Passagers – Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
La Galerie – Machine de Cirque (Canada)
Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy:
The Pulse – Gravity & Other Myths (Australia)
Sweat & Ink – Cirque Barcode (Canada)
Se prendre – LION LION (Canada)
RAVEN – still hungry (Germany)
Passagers – Les 7 doigts de la main (Canada)
Circus Days and Nights – Cirkus Cirkör (Sweden)
Outstanding Emerging Company:
Sweat & Ink – Cirque Barcode (Canada)
Se prendre – LION LION (Canada)
RAVEN – still hungry (Germany)
Piste, piste, piste – Portmanteau (Brazil, Finland)
La Vrille du Chat – Back Pocket (Belgium)
Outstanding Achievement in Design:
A Deer in the Headlights – Cirque Le Roux (France)
Circus Days and Nights – Cirkus Cirkör (Sweden)
Moya – Zip Zap Circus & Sabine Van Rensburg, Brin Schoellkopf, Samuel Renaud (South Africa, Canada, U.S.A.)
Passagers – 7 Fingers (Canada)
The Pulse – Gravity & Other Myths (Australia)
Other categories will include CircusTalk Critics Choice Award, Audience Choice Award and Community Impact Award.