Celebrate all things circus with a pop up event in Castlerea

Roll up, roll up! Castlerea is set to be Ireland’s capital of circus for one day only.

The town is set to host a free celebration of circus artistry to mark World Circus Day.

Taking place in the setting of Somers’ Park, Castlerea, which features a new outdoor event space and stage, this spectacular will showcase an array of circus skills.

Expect aerial performances, acrobatic shows, tightwire, clown antics, circus skills and music from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 20th.

The Roscommon World Circus Day event in Castlerea is part of a wider collaborative project which aims to encourage more outdoor arts performances in public spaces. The Castlerea event will be the third in a series of five arts events organised by local authorities in Laois, Kerry, Roscommon, Cork City and Tipperary, which has been coordinated by Roscommon County Council. Arts officers from each local authority have been providing training and working in tandem with arts groups, event organisers, local authority departments and local communities as part of the Planning for Outdoor Performances (POP) project which aims to promote the arts, unlock creativity, and encourage more arts based outdoor performances in public spaces.

The Roscommon World Circus Day event on April 20th is facilitated by Roscommon Arts Office in association with Motion Chapel, Promenade, and Castlerea Rose Festival. It will offer members of the public the opportunity to try various styles of circus performance throughout the afternoon while enjoying entertainment by Ireland’s top circus performers.

On the day members of the public can join Galway Community Circus to try out some exciting circus skills including juggling, hula hoop, and tightwire. Their talented tutors will help you discover skills you never knew you had! There will also be circus shows including: ‘On Tish’ by Síolta Circus, a 30 minute explosive acrobatic show for all ages. A small eccentric tribe of noisy, boisterous beings will be on the hunt for food, shelter and a bit of craic! It will also feature ‘Cirkada’ by acrobatic duo Cirkado Circus, which is a hilarious and heart-warming 30 minute show about companionship and all its ups and downs!

Aerial performances on the day will be performed by Jenny Tufts with her piece entitled ‘I Dance to Become Enormous’ on a 3-metre-tall spiralling steel structure in a dizzying display of power and artistry. Meanwhile ‘A Lovely Day for it' is the title of a seaside aerial performance by Freddy Burrows who specialises in floor acrobatics and aerial straps.

In an hilarious walkabout performance by Juanita the Cleaner, Europe’s leading female clown Angelica Santander will tackle plastic pollution with dance, climate saving circus and several bin loads of humour.

This will all be accentuated by live music from Music Generation Roscommon Trad Group, One Town One Voice Choir Roscommon and Ballaghaderreen ukulele group the Ukeydorys.

Commenting ahead of World Circus Day, Arts Officer for Roscommon County Council, Rhona McGrath said: “We are delighted to bring this exciting event to Somers’ Park on World Circus Day. The community of Castlerea and indeed the entire county can enjoy the benefits of Roscommon County Council’s investment in Somers Park, with capital funding from the Department of Tourism Culture Arts Gaeltacht Sports and Media. For this event we are thinking big and thinking fun thanks to the support of the Arts Council of Ireland and our many partners in this overall project.” 

Event manager Kath Gorman of Promenade said: “The aim is to showcase what can be achieved when communities come together to create outdoor arts performances. The event will also hopefully encourage more appreciation of circus skills and the diverse nature of styles of performance within this artistic genre. All events are free of charge and no booking is required. We are grateful for the support of all our partners in making this possible and to Roscommon Volunteer Centre for providing volunteer helpers to ensure the event runs smoothly!” All of the events in this project will endeavour to reduce the impact on the environment. Everyone attending is encouraged to be conscious of this by bringing along their own keep cups, picnics and are asked to recycle their waste in a sustainable and responsible way. The events team aim to further minimise waste by working with eco-friendly suppliers and vendors.

The Roscommon World Circus Day event is part of the partnership initiative, Planning for Outdoor Performance (POP). POP, delivered by 5 Local Authority Arts Offices (including Roscommon - lead partner, Cork City, Kerry, Laois and Tipperary), in partnership with the National Resource Organisations ISACS, Poetry Ireland, Music Network and Theatre Forum. It is supported by Promenade, who help artists and communities to create incredible new arts experiences in Ireland's public places and unusual spaces. The initiative is funded by the Arts Council’s Invitation to Collaboration Scheme with additional local authority support.