Circa

Ten acrobats and a live string quartet celebrate the gripping, revelatory music of one of the 20th century’s greatest composers, Dmitri Shostakovich.

With a bold and sophisticated approach to cirque, Australian-based Circa is joined by the Debussy String Quartet for Opus, a red-hot fusion of acrobatics and lyrical movement set to three Shostakovich quartets. Rapidly alternating stillness and eruptive movement are intersected by extreme physicality and exquisitely detailed and nuanced choreographies of flying, balancing, and landing. A groundbreaking work of intense power, Opus is a melding of music and bodies at the highest level. 

About Circa

Circa Contemporary Circus is one of the world's leading performance companies. Since 2004 from its base in Brisbane, Australia, Circa has toured the world — performing in more than 45 countries to nearly 2 million people. Circa's works have been greeted with standing ovations, rave reviews, and sold-out houses across six continents.

Circa is at the forefront of the new wave of contemporary Australian circus, pioneering how extreme physicality can create powerful and moving performances. It continues to push the boundaries of the art form, blurring the lines between movement, dance, theatre, and circus. Compelled by the question "what is possible in circus?," Circa is leading the way with a diverse range of thrilling creations that "redraw the limits to which circus can aspire" (The Age).

Under the direction of circus visionary Yaron Lifschitz, Circa features an ensemble of exceptional, multi-skilled circus artists and has been a regular fixture at leading festivals and venues in New York, London, Berlin, and Montreal with seasons at Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Barbican Centre, Les Nuits de Fourvière, and Chamäleon Theatre, as well as major Australian Festivals.

About Debussy String Quartet

Since its creation in 1990, the Debussy String Quartet has enlivened the chamber music world with its stylish and stimulating performances and built a reputation graced with international acclaim through its many recordings and live performances.

Based in Lyon and honored as the winner of the Evian International String Quartet Competition, the quartet performs about 120 concerts a year all around the world. The quartet’s recording schedule has included the release of more than 25 albums in 25 years, with works ranging from French music to Weber or Shostakovich with the complete string quartets recorded by Arion. 

Circa first performed at the Moss Arts Center in 2018. This is the first performance at the center by the Debussy String Quartet.

This performance is supported in part by gifts from Dr. Mark and Connie Froggatt and Clem and Georgia Carter.

A Nuits de Fourvière production / Département du Rhône, co-produced with Les Théâtres de la ville de Luxembourg, GREC Festival of Barcelona, Le Cirque-Théâtre d’Elbeuf, Dusseldorf Festival, Barbican Theatre, and CACCV Espace Jean Legendre-Compiegne. This project has been assisted by the Australian Government’s Major Festivals Initiative, managed by the Australia Council its arts funding and advisory body, in association with the Confederation of Australian International Arts Festivals, Brisbane Festival, Perth International Arts Festival, and Melbourne Festival.

Circa acknowledges the assistance of the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body, and the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.

Quatuor Debussy acknowledge the support of the French Ministry of Arts, Région Rhône-Alpes, City of Lyon, and SPEDIDAM.

Photos by Justin Nicholas