Rare opportunity for Irish audiences to see one of the world’s best contemporary-circus companies

An elderly man carrying a shopping bag crosses a street and is confronted by a line of strangers, all dressed in black. They hold out their arms towards him and he returns their embrace, a smile breaking out on his face. A woman gingerly exits a hairdressing salon by walking over the backs of people lying across the floor like a spider’s web. They carry her out on their shoulders and she waves delightedly to passersby.

This is but a tiny sample of the wordless, unexpected interventions staged by Compagnie XY, a renowned 40-strong collective of artists and acrobats based in the French city of Lille, who made a surprise visit to Derry in September 2022. The company’s work champions community spirit, mutual trust and human interaction, achieved through the simple yet psychologically complex act of being lifted, held and raised up by total strangers.

They extend their invitations kindly, softly and with warmth. Time and again, whatever the surroundings or the individuals concerned, the results are profoundly moving.

Now Compagnie XY are about to be at the centre of After the Rain, a spectacular open-air public event to be staged in the centre of Derry during the North’s bank-holiday weekend, at the end of August. The culmination of several years’ work, it is a rare opportunity for Irish audiences to witness one of the best contemporary circus companies in the world performing alongside the best of Northern Ireland’s circus artists on home turf.

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“Compagnie XY is unique,” says Cian Smyth of Ulster University, whose new civic arts and culture programme, Ulster Presents, aims to bring and make widely available top-notch work by regional and international artists. “There isn’t anyone else like them in the world. I first encountered them over 10 years ago, and I thought I must get them to Ireland some day.”

Then “I discovered that Antoine Billaud, the company’s producing manager, had studied law and political science in Belfast during the 1990s. He told me he’d always wanted to bring Compagnie XY to Northern Ireland. So we had a bit of a chat and did up a little budget. I kept thinking, How the hell am I going to make this happen?”

Ultimately, Ulster Presents was able to commission After the Rain in partnership with the Imperial War Museums 14-18 Now Legacy Fund, a UK programme of more than 20 artist commissions, inspired by the heritage of conflict. The fund’s £2.5 million commissioning programme has been supported by royalties from Peter Jackson’s extraordinary first World War documentary, They Shall Not Grow Old, which was co-commissioned by IWM and 14-18 Now.

“We managed to stitch it all together,” Smyth says, who was provided with a welcome commissioning opportunity by the 25th anniversary of the Belfast Agreement. He had in mind a large-scale event that would celebrate the resilience of the civilians of Northern Ireland in sustaining the peace. In the knowledge that all manner of conferences, debates and new writing were in the ether, much of it revolving around the Clintons, Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern, he believed that more words were not needed. On the contrary, he felt that something physical and non-verbal, involving the wider population, could make a powerful contribution to the commemorations. Enter Compagnie XY.

Its Derry presentation is the latest episode in Les Voyages, a thought-provoking performance programme that, in 18 different manifestations, has been taken into communities in Palestine, Serbia, Portugal, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark and England, as well as all over France. Each is inspired by the lives of the chosen location’s population.

Billaud says that company members arrive in a town and immediately go out and about, unannounced, to get a feel for the environment and the local communities. They meet locals in their everyday lives, in the places where they live, work and socialise. Then, setting aside all political and personal baggage, they silently beckon them into their world.

“We eliminate social backgrounds, interpersonal difficulties, conflict, physical or psychological wounds, and invite people to enter a safe bubble,” he says. “We go outside conventional theatre audiences, towards people who might never cross the door of a theatre, who are perhaps afraid of going to the theatre, who think theatre is not for them. Without speaking, we offer them to be part of our creative process. Secure and trusting in our care, they can allow themselves to let go and take a short unknown trip. We leave them with a feeling of achievement, that they’ve done something they never would have done before.”

The involvement of local artists has been a crucial part of the project, as well as the aspiration to leave behind a creative legacy with the potential to expand. The Guildhall Square performance will bring together 20 members of Compagnie XY with nine local acrobats, a parkour artist, a graffiti artist, a spoken-word artist, musicians and a community choir. It will be an intriguing, fun introduction to contemporary circus.

“The public should understand that they will not be seeing elephants on footballs or clowns in funny cars,” Smyth says. “Contemporary circus is an art form that brings in techniques from contemporary dance and combines them with traditional circus elements. It’s all about the human body; it’s non-verbal and blends acrobatic and traditional circus skills with movement and dance, to tell a story or create an atmosphere or an artistic moment.

“Compagnie XY is expert at bringing performance into unconventional arts spaces and venues. Everything happens on the streets and in places where people live. They respond to the architecture and geography of the place they’re in. In Derry you have the walls, the Guildhall, the city gates, the River Foyle, the murals ... all of which mark that performance in that city.”

“Working with Compagnie XY has been a game-changing experience,” says Rachel Melaugh, creative director of Derry’s In Your Space Circus, which is co-producing the performances in association with Circusful – formerly Belfast Circus School – and Institut Français. “It’s been awe-inspiring to observe their process and watch them bringing this ambitious piece to life, using every nook and cranny of our city. When they explained their methodology of exploring physical and spiritual resilience in the face of obstacles, through a collective acrobatic act of lifting each other up, it sounded terrifying.

“Derry people are naturally cautious, and we weren’t sure how they would respond, but it was amazing to see their reactions. Apart from being fantastic performers, the company members are very warm and approachable. They do everything with a smile. Many people had really emotional and powerful experiences. In some cases it was like witnessing the release of trauma.”

This will be a rare and exclusive event for Derry, the world premiere of a new work, entirely inspired by the city, its artists and its citizens. Compagnie XY hardly ever accepts individual requests. As well as being the first work it has produced on the island of Ireland, this is one of only two new commissions it has taken on. The other is for the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games next year. But it has made a deep impression on the company.

“As in Palestine, we feel that we are at the beginning of a process with In Your Space and Circusful,” Billaud says. “Fifteen minutes after meeting them, we really connected. We have been working with beautiful and talented local artists. We are excited to participate with them and support each other. We have learned a lot from them. They are pioneers of contemporary circus and they work with music – music is everywhere here. We have found in Derry a new, creative home. Yes, we have things to do in Northern Ireland.”

Melaugh shares that sentiment: “We could never dreamed of being given the opportunity to work on this scale with a company like Compagnie XY. It’s also been important in terms of legacy. We all hope that After the Rain will not be the end of our partnership but the beginning of something really special and inspiring.”

After the Rain will be performed at 3pm on Sunday, August 27th, and Monday, August 28th, in Guildhall Square, Derry