The Hungarian contemporary circus company Recirquel’s new production Paradisum reflects on questions that directly determine the fate of each and every one of us. The performance explores the new possibilities of cirque danse, a genre created by artistic director Bence Vági and the company in the course of several years. It combines modern dance, theatre and circus arts, in search of an ethereal language of movement expressing the concerns of humanity.

© Bálint Hirling

Paradisum is a pure yet sinister hope for rebirth, looking anxiously into the future. Can it preserve the purity of soul and mind of a human being free from sin? Can it find happiness in the security of the rites of communal existence? “Destruction inevitably heralds the emergence of something new,” director/choreographer Bence Vági says. “There have always been species on our planet that were born, spent some time here, and then went extinct. Regeneration always followed. What will the new paradise be like?”

The roots of the idea behind Paradisum can be found in both nature itself, untouched by human hands, and in the myth analyses of the American writer and religious historian Joseph Campbell. “His books offer advice on everything from the stressful questions of growing up to facing inner fears. For our part, we used his universal images that are valid regardless of civilization,” Vági says.

© Bálint Hirling

The custodians of the rebirth following the apocalypse are the amazing performers of Recirquel. Demissie Efraim will perform as a dancer and drummer, Yevhen Havrylenko with the aerial straps, Kateryna Larina in a handstand number, Andrii Maslov with a ladder-juggling act, while Ádám Fehér performs on the swinging pole and Eszter Seguí-Fábián and Ivett Ignácz do an aerial hoop number. The show’s complex musical world, drawing from many eras and styles and complemented by Gábor Terjék’s sound effects, is the work of composer Edina Szirtes. Vági collaborated with Emese Kasza on the visuals: the airy, light, material similar to black lace creates a magical environment on stage thanks to Attila Lenzsér’s lighting design.

Today, Recirquel is one of Hungary’s most successful cultural brands and widely travelling artistic ensembles. Since its foundation, the company has won acclaim from audiences all around the world.