Cirque en mutation: creative disruptions and extra-disciplinary explorations

Over the past 50 years, the circus has undergone profound changes, resulting in a number of decompartmentalizations. These extra-disciplinary explorations are accompanied by new protocols, new traces and new cross-disciplinary collaborations.

9:30 a.m.: coffee reception

Collaborative circus and science works: feedback, documentation of processes, impact on artistic and academic research

10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

For the past 5 years, the Maison des Jonglages has been bringing together circus artists and scientists to create collaborative works. These projects stimulate both milieus: researchers experiment with new transmission formats, while artists integrate scientific input into their creations. They also raise concrete questions: how can the processes be documented and archived in a living form (videos, photos, notebooks)? How can we assess the impact on research and analyze the artistic choices resulting from these experiments?

With : Frédérique Fogel (Anthropologist, research director at the Laboratoire d’Ethnologie et de Sociologie Comparative (LESC, CNRS / Université Paris Nanterre), Pierre Philippe-Meden – lecturer specializing in circus (history & aesthetics) at the Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry (RiRRa21), Johan Swartvagher – juggler for the Terrain collective, Roxana Küwen Arsalan – juggler
Moderator: Vincent Berhault

Dans une bulle anthropophonique sound conference by Cédric Parizot (headphones)

12 noon to 12:15 p.m.

Cédric Parizot: CNRS research director, anthropologist at the Institut de Recherche et d’Études des Mondes Arabes et Musulmans (IREMAM). For several years, he has been engaged in anthropological reflection on the meaning and interest of works of art and science.

Performance art and science by Johan Swartvagher and Pierre Philippe-Meden – Juggling criticism of the sporting body

Creation Art/Science 2024
2:15 to 2:45 p.m.

On stage, two visions clash: one criticizes the Olympic model and the high-performance body, measured in centimeters, grams and seconds; the other, shaped by running and juggling, has long secretly dreamed of the Paris Olympics. What is the outcome of the confrontation between the athletic body and the poetic body?

Digital Soul Protocol Project (Europe Creative) Derivation of circus works – digital protocols and solutions

3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

In the circus world, artistic heritage often remains informal and unclaimed. How do you take over an existing show, pass on its traces and protect its rights? Artists, researchers and cultural operators combine their experiences to examine the challenges of an assumed filiation and the implementation of protocols for reviving a work.

With : Érik Bordeleau – philosopher, fugitive planner, curator and essayist, Darragh McLoughlin – juggler, Mathieu Antajan – Co-director of the training department of the Centre National des Arts du Cirque (CNAC – Chalons), 2 other guests in progress
Moderator: Vincent Berhault

Temps Conclusif – Jérôme Villeneuve – Director of Hexagone Scène nationale (Grenoble) and Co-President of the TRAS network (Transversale des Réseaux Art Science)

5 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Jérôme Villeneuve will take stock of the day’s discussions and offer a cross-disciplinary reading, highlighting common issues, creative tensions and prospects for research, creation and production in the performing arts.

This work is supported by a French government grant managed by the Agence nationale de la recherche under the France 2030 program, reference ANR-23-PEIC-0001.