The Invisible Circus is a theatre and circus troupe based in Bristol in the United Kingdom. Set up in the 1990s, the group collaborates with Artspace Lifespace to make site-specific performances.
The Invisible Circus is a theatre and circus troupe which began performing in 1996 and which is based in the UK since 2002. [1] [2] The circus has performed at events such as Glastonbury Festival 2008. [3] It shares a director with Artspace Lifespace, a sister cooperative which seeks out derelict spaces and converts them into temporary cultural spaces venues. [4] [5] In 2007, the two groups ran a series of performances events called Revelations at the Pro-Cathedral of the Holy Apostles in Clifton, Bristol, winning the Venue magazine's Top Banana award in January 2008. [6] In early 2008 they took over the Bridewell police station in the centre of Bristol. [7]
The circus performed their cabaret shows Carny-Ville and Combustion Club at the Bridewell. [8] [9] [10] [11] It has also organised events at Ashton Court and a club under the railway station. [12] [13]
Doug Francisco, director of the Invisible Circus, formed the Red Rebel Brigade as street theatre in the 1990s and converted the concept into silent, red-robed figures in support of Extinction Rebellion in the late 2010s. [14] [15] The performances inspired other groups to repeat the street theatre at protests in Berlin, Canberra, New York and Tel Aviv. [16]
Artspace Lifespace and The Invisible Circus won funding from Bristol City Council’s 2018 to 2022 Cultural Investment Programme. [17] The Invisible Circus received an emergency grant of £65,000 in 2020 from the Culture Recovery Fund. [18]