Do This: Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival

By Matt Byrne in Arts & Entertainment on Jan 9, 2014 8:00PM

The 2014 Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival kicks off four days of live performances tonight in Lakeview, splitting time between the newly opened modern dance / performing arts haven Links Hall and the multifaceted Athenaeum Theatre. Contortionists, acrobats, jugglers and other contemporary circus performers from around the world will be on deck performing mind-blowing feats of artistic physicality.

From the lighthearted, breathtakingly acrobatic group exhibitions of Montreal's Flip FabriQue to the cerebral beauty of New Mexico-based duo act Ricochet to Finnish choreographer Ilmatila's genre-bending animation/circus/dance hybrid Muualla/Elsewhere, the Circus Fest explores every corner of this fringe phenomenon.

Organized by Shayna Swanson, owner of Aloft Circus Arts and producer of the wildly popular El Circo Cheapo Cabaret modern circus/variety/really great time show, and frequent El Circo Cheapo performer Matt Roben, the fest is the first of its kind in the United States, offering a slew of international performers a chance to perform stateside for current and future circus fans.

The Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival runs tonight, Thursday Jan. 9, through Sunday Jan. 12. More information and tickets available here.