Review From: The Circus Yard ‘Little Puck’, Brighton Fringe Festival; 25th May 2025
As we enter, the 13-strong cast, clad mainly in white and red costumes and aged between 7 and 18, are sitting on the high, circular stage in the centre of the small tent, which joins to the backstage area with a catwalk. Each of the cast, from Newcastle Circus Arts’ Cirko Norda Youth Circus, tosses a ball from hand to hand. One of the youngest lads, dressed in tails, stands to confidently and clearly introduce the show and give the first of several inaccurate definitions of inertia that he asserts during the show (don’t worry, he gets it right in the end).
A neatly choreographed sequence moving balls around the cast as they move themselves, leads to two of the older company members juggling three balls each with several tricks. One gives the impression of a production line and is cleverly mirrored in movement – without the juggling – by the cast behind. A five ball juggle is followed by a big throw up of balls by the ensemble. These well-structured switches between individual and ensemble moments show the quality of the company’s work.
Our focus moves now to a young girl who blends contortion moves and poi before taking to the silks for an aerial act as the company looks on. A duo follows with movement and decent handstands on chairs to music by Penguin Café Orchestra. The ensemble now clamber around each other and build a tower of performers. Keeping the variety going, unicycling is followed by a solo aerial hoop act featuring belly rolls, splits and balances before a second girl joins for a synchronised sequence. The juggling duo returns to steal three clubs back and forth between each other then build up until they are passing six.
A moment is taken to place helium filled balloons that float a little above the stage and a girl, in the mid age range of the troupe, makes her way through them with acrobatic balances and flips before demonstrating an impressively strong and enduring handstand sequence of a considerably higher standard than I’d anticipate seeing in a youth circus show.
Showing that this circus is not constrained by clichéd props, a duo has fun with car tyres next that includes one being held at full stretch above the head. The show draws to a close with the youthful narrator walking on globes, gingerly moving from one to another with full concentration, concluding by giving the correct definition of inertia.
The younger members of the troupe are noticeably precocious and confident on stage. At times they conjure up in my mind the child acrobats that performed night after night to audiences in the Victorian music hall and circus. These modern-day children clearly enjoyed their time on stage, as, I suspect, did some if not all of the Victorian children. The performance based training program of Cirko Norda has only been going for a year and, all in all, there’s an admirable range of skills in the show and not a dull moment. Hannah Guy, the group’s initiator and leader – along with the parents and the children who co-create the show – merits lots of praise for their ambition and their achievements this far.
That today’s show has a tiny audience is unsurprising given tickets cost £18, a price that I am told was not set by the youth circus and is more than charged for some of the professional shows. It’s a real shame, for this is a show that deserves to be seen.
Performers: Andie Atkinson, James Stewart, Barnaby Selby, Loki O’Neill Daley, Daisy Dodgson, Lola Devine, Eleanor Gormley, River Kurji Stephens, Grace Taylor, Isaac Selby, Robyn Selby, Isobel Stewart, Toam Yoeli.
