{"id":18155,"date":"2026-05-04T10:26:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T08:26:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.quattrox4.com\/?page_id=18155"},"modified":"2026-05-04T10:37:30","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T08:37:30","slug":"open-letters-to-the-circus","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.quattrox4.com\/en\/open-letters-to-the-circus\/","title":{"rendered":"OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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[ITA<\/a> | ENG<\/a>]<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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LETTERE APERTE AL CIRCO<\/span><\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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SYNOPSIS<\/h4>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Written in 2015, the <\/span>OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS<\/b> marked a turning point in contemporary circus and remains one of the most widely read and debated texts among circus makers around the world. In a sharp and vibrant exchange, Bauke Lievens and Sebastian Kann rethink the boundaries of performance, arguing for circus as an intentionally hybrid field of knowledge – one where <\/span>experimental approaches to critical thinking are already at play and can never be reduced to a single essence<\/b>. It is a space where <\/span>embodied practices<\/span><\/i> meet, intersect, and collide within shifting horizons and constantly evolving definitions. At once an invitation to artistic responsibility and a dialogue on the nature of artistic practice, <\/span>10 years later<\/b> the OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS come to the Italian audiences to raise profound questions that resonate beyond circus itself, addressing dance, theatre, and the wider landscape of contemporary creation. By calling for a renewed understanding of <\/span>why<\/span><\/i> we practice what we practice, and by dismantling the founding myths of circus, the text ultimately asks a crucial question of those working today: <\/span>who gets to build the future?<\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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A TRANSLATORS\u2019 NOTE<\/h4>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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\u201cTranslating this text has been a creative act <\/b>requiring a strong command of contemporary language in the field of circus and performing arts. To translate means to make accessible <\/span>the meaning that certain terms embody when they \u2018travel\u2019 from dance<\/b>, theatre, or performance art into circus, from academic research into practice, from circus as a sequence of forms, acts, and tricks to circus as an art of creation, as a form of thinking and writing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Just as the OPEN LETTERS originate from a dialogue among multiple voices, we translators – coming from different backgrounds and modes of practice – engaged in dialogue and mutual listening within a collective translation process.<\/span><\/p>

Circus brings us together <\/b>as a field of professional research and finds us active across multiple areas – practice, teaching, creation, research, critical reflection: this plurality of approaches has expanded our capacity to structure an in-depth discourse on the text to be translated. With a vocabulary enriched by diverse experiences, we have sought to make the contents of the texts accessible to the circus community, using this exercise as an <\/span>opportunity to critically question our own practices in light <\/b>of the profound issues they raise.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS<\/p>

Original text and afterword to the Italian edition: Bauke Lievens, Sebastian Kann
Translation: Teresa Noronha Feio, Maristella Tesio, Gaia Vimercati
Preface: E. Zanzu
Publishing house: Editoria & Spettacolo
Editorial curator: Silvia Mei\u00a0
Project coordinator: Gaia Vimercati
With the support of Quattrox4 Circo ETS and Cordata FOR in the framework of FNSV 2022-2024 – Italian Ministry of Culture<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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[ITA | ENG] LETTERE APERTE AL CIRCO OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS SYNOPSIS Written in 2015, the OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS marked a turning point in contemporary circus and remains one of the most widely read and debated texts among circus makers around the world. In a sharp and vibrant exchange, Bauke Lievens and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nOPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS | Quattrox4<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quattrox4.com\/en\/open-letters-to-the-circus\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS | Quattrox4\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[ITA | ENG] LETTERE APERTE AL CIRCO OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS SYNOPSIS Written in 2015, the OPEN LETTERS TO THE CIRCUS marked a turning point in contemporary circus and remains one of the most widely read and debated texts among circus makers around the world. 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