The summer season in Philly brings the opportunity for many unique art events—but none quite like the Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival.
Taking place May 23 to June 1, the occasion features 10 days full of shows, workshops and events highlighting some of the best Big Top talent in the region.
Shana Kennedy, who serves on PCCF’s Executive Committee, has been working to build contemporary circus projects in Philadelphia for many years, a release notes. She also is the Executive Director of the Circadium School of Contemporary Circus in West Mt. Airy. Circadium’s partnership with FringeArts dates back to 2018, when FringeArts started the Hand-to-Hand Circus festival, the precursor program to PCCF.
“The Hand-to-Hand Festival expanded my understanding of a festival’s role in the growth of an art form,” she explains. “I always knew that the students graduating from Circadium would need places to perform, but a festival is a way of clearly aligning the needs of emerging artists, presenters, and audiences.”
The Festival will be filled with different viewing opportunities, spanning ‘Finding Joy by The Rebellion Circus’ by Rebel Arts Movement (May 24 at 7:30 p.m.), ‘International Lover’ by Troy Lingelbach (May 25 at 6 p.m.), ‘New To You Scrap Night’ by 2nd Hand Circus (May 27 at 8:30 p.m.), ’10 Years of Big Leaps’ by Trenton Circus Squad (May 30 at 6:30 p.m.) and much more. A full schedule of performances can be found online, with locations being housed in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Workshop-wise, locals also have plenty of options to explore. Learning opportunities span a Try and Fly Workshop by Wahoo Trapeze (May 31 at 1 p.m.) and an All Levels Handstands Workshop by Acro& (May 31 at 1 p.m.) with more classes to be announced. Other events to keep an eye out for include A Mixed Bill Variety Show titled ‘Glimpses’ (May 31 at 7:30 p.m.), a contemporary cabaret dubbed the ‘Secret Circus Salon’ (May 31 at 7:30 p.m.), and much more.
“Circus artists and audience members will be coming to Philadelphia from all over the East Coast,” Kennedy added. “Festivals like this are few and far between – there are only a couple of others like it in the United States. But contemporary circus is on the rise all over the world. People are discovering the amazing possibilities of circus as an expressive art form. They’ll see a lot of that in this festival.”
One of the big events of the occasion is set to be ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’, premiering on Friday, May 30. However, recently, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) abruptly withdrew a long-anticipated $15,000 grant set to fund this year’s end-of-year production.
“This is a shocking development,” said Kennedy. “We received no prior indication that our funding was at risk. Our students have poured their hearts, bodies, and creativity into this production, and now we are left scrambling to determine how—or even whether— the show can go on. It is unclear whether we can raise the funds in time to replace what has been lost.”
More news will be released in coming weeks on the future of this particular production.
The Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival as a whole, however, is being spearheaded by Circadium School of Contemporary Circus and FringeArts, with managing support from Cannonball and additional partnerships from some popular creative organizations.
“PCCF brings national, international, and local talent in conversation with one another under one big tent, so to speak. At FringeArts, fostering these opportunities for connection, innovation, and development between Philly artists and out-of-town artists is at the core of our mission,” adds Mikaela Boone, Programming Director and Creative Producer at FringeArts.
“This new festival is really of and for the circus community, and we’re proud to be nurturing that community here in Philadelphia. I can’t wait for audiences of all ages to experience the wonder of encounters with these incredible artists.”
Tickets are on sale now at fringearts.com and by calling the FringeArts Box Office at 215-413-1318. Locals can also learn more information and connect on social media @phillycontemporarycircusfest @fringearts @circadiumschool.
