Stockholm’s annual circus festival
CirkusMania is Stockholm´s circus festival, presenting an insane amount and variety of circus in February each year. The festival shows audiences all over the Stockholm region what a fascinating, lively and dynamic artform circus is today.
In 2019, the first edition of the festival was introduced. Since then, CirkusMania has grown to make sense of its name: in this year´s edition 35 different performances were presented in 30 venues and 13 municipalities around the region. In a total, over 100 opportunities to experience different variations of circus during the 10 days of the festival.
CirkusMania was initiated and is coordinated by Subtopia, with the goal to stimulate interest and curiosity for contemporary circus among audiences, in an extensive collaboration between stakeholders across the region.
Each venue presents it own program, which gives a varied festival program in different genres and for different audiences. During 2023 year´s edition, Swedish and international performances were presented at small and large venues, in cultural centres and institutions, indepentent theatres and schools.
”It has been 30 years since the new circus came to town, and rooted in Botkyrka and Stockholm. The artform developed in rocket speed. Today we say “contemporary circus” or “experimental circus”. Interest is growing in all respects, and the Swedish circus scene is internationally known for our artists and educations.
Sometimes Im asked what contemporary circus is. It is circus as contemporary performing arts, emanating from traditional circus disciplines, placed in new contexts. The expressions are very varying, the creativity and go–ahead spirit is tangible. The audience is invited to a journey around something that is almost impossible and at the same time deeply existential. The venue can be a tent, but is today most often a theatre.
With CirkusMania we wish the audience in the region to discover contemporary circus in a broad program showing everything fascinating and inspiring that circus can be!”
Kiki Muukkonen, Festival Director
CirkusMania is coordinated by
with the support of
in cooperation with
