Zeit für Zirkus: La Nuit du Cirque in Germany

ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS is the German edition of the international circus festival La Nuit Du Cirque.
Since 2020, Germany has been part of the worldwide biggest festival for contemporary circus.

For one weekend in November, contemporary circus is celebrated in all its facets all over the world. The vitality and diversity of this popular, sophisticated art is made visible in a wide variety of events, its intercultural and cross-generational dimension can be experienced and the involvement of circus in social and ecological discourses becomes clear. La Nuit Du Cirque was launched in 2019 by the French network Territoires Du Cirque .

What is contemporary circus?

Contemporary circus is an up-and-coming branch of the performing arts that is currently developing rapidly in Germany. The genre is diverse, interdisciplinary and surprising. This young interpretation of circus does not see tricks as an end in themselves but uses artistry as a tool of expression to convey content. The circus techniques (acrobatics, object manipulation, balance, aerial artistry, clowning etc.) are interwoven via choreographic or theatrical dramaturgies and sometimes address political issues, sometimes abstract aesthetic questions. They are experimental, socio-critical or entertaining - or all of the above at once. At the heart of the pieces are constant research and the exploration of their own form. Contemporary circus re-evaluates object control, audience participation, performance venues as well as gender roles and body images. The venues include not only theater stages, but also museums, empty factory buildings and public spaces. The focus is on the architecture itself: spaces can also be used vertically and made tangible for the audience through means of throwing, partner acrobatics, aerial artistry or juggling.

Thanks to its strong visual language, contemporary circus has the potential to reach visitors in culturally marginalized areas and those with fewer ties to more conventional cultural offerings. “The art of the in-between”, as theater scholar and dramaturge Franziska Trapp once called contemporary circus, conveys tradition and innovation, reality and fiction, art and entertainment, human and more-than-human, risk and safety, courage and trust, ideology and criticism, body and discourse - in a word: DIVERSITY!

What are the aims of the festival?  

ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS is an essential tool for raising the visibility and anchoring of the emerging art form of contemporary circus in the German cultural landscape. Compared to dance and theatre pieces, contemporary circus is underrepresented in Germany's cultural scene. A primary reason for this is a lack of knowledge and insufficient visibility of circus pieces. However, capacity utilization rates of more than 80% at the few contemporary circus events and festivals demonstrate strong audience interest. The annual festival ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS is growing the network of stages and venues passionate about contemporary circus. Since the first edition in 2020, which featured seven venues in seven German cities, the number of participating venues has steadily increased: in 2021, there were 16 venues in 13 cities, in 2022, there were 27 venues, in 2023, already 31 venues, and in 2024, the festival broadcast across Germany at 44 venues in 20 cities. The festival weekend of ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS serves as a door opener for the venues to program contemporary circus pieces for the first time, as the festival framework also gives smaller venues nationwide visibility and a chance to reach new audiences.

Who is behind Zeit für Zirkus?

The driving force behind the development is the Bundesverband Zeitgenössischer Zirkus e.V. (BUZZ), which coordinates the festival alternately or in conjunction with the Berlin association Forum Neuer Zirkus e.V.. As an umbrella organization, BUZZ represents professional circus artists to the public and politicians and works towards a nationwide visibility and anchoring of the art form within the promotion and presentation structures. ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS enables circus encounters with audiences throughout Germany, as well as promoting long-term national and international collaborations and partnerships. In addition, artistic developments in terms of content are made comprehensible and negotiated in an international discourse. BUZZ is also the organizer of a regular digital organizers' forum, which brings together those responsible for programming who either already program contemporary circus productions or would like to program them in the future. The forum provides an opportunity to exchange specialist knowledge, promotes collaboration and prepares the pooling of resources. It helps and advises on getting started with programming circus pieces and is an essential part of the festival ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS. The organizers' forum takes place online every two months. If you are interested, please contact Martha Kaiser martha.kaiser@bu-zz.de.

ZEIT FÜR ZIRKUS will next take place from November 14 - 16, 2025.

Zeit für Zirkus on your stage

Our goal is to attract more venues to contemporary circus. We are happy to support you with information, recommendations and networking. If you are interested in showing contemporary circus at your venue, we would be happy to hear from you via: info@zeitfuerzirkus.de

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