In a circus after the lights have been turned off, four characters emerge in the darkness slowly revealing their desires, hunger and inner conflicts. Part mythical, part real, they define their own sense of sexuality and identity. Tension builds as the characters exist in their own separate worlds until a moment of destruction brings them together in an orgy of bodies, textures and emotions.

A show that enthralls and disrupts, Nights at the Circus presents themes of sex, desire and identity in a provocative and daring performance. This cutting-edge show was conceived and directed by our Associate Artist Fauve Alice in collaboration with learning disabled performers David Munns and Ellie Mason. After its debut at New Diorama Theatre London November 2017, Ellie won the Sexual Freedom Award for her performance.  

Our motivation for taking this piece to Edinburgh Fringe, the largest arts festival in the world attended by a global audience in their thousands, stems from our objective to improve representation of professional learning disabled performers on theatre stages around the world. The subject matters explored in the show are often seen as ‘taboo’ within learning disabled communities, which is something we wish to challenge and interrogate.