Circus and its Others is thrilled to announce that its fifth international conference will take place in Kerala, India, in January-February 2027!
Through our conference theme, “Embracing flows and challenging genealogies: Ruptures, remains, and resurrections in circus studies and practice” we will explore the disciplinary, historical, creative, and intellectual inheritances that shape our understanding and practice of circus.
Kerala is known in South Asia as the cradle of Indian circus, and as conference co-organizer Aastha Gandhi (2023) has explored, circus there demonstrates the ongoing and complex interplay of local, regional, and global forces that continue to shape the field. Thrissur, our host city, is a particularly vibrant site of festivals, academies, and cultural institutions, with strong ritual and performance traditions. CaiO V will take place in the context of the International Festival of Theatre Schools in Thrissur in late January 2027.
(From left) Gaia Vimercati, Aastha Gandhi, and Lucas Nathan Silva Vilela; photo courtesy Aastha Gandhi.
(Left) The performer Baby on horseback in Clowns and Clouds (directed by Abhilash Pillai, 2011), a co-production between the National School of Drama and Grand Circus, at a performance in Kozhikode, Kerala. Photo by Priyanka Pathak. (Right) A performance of the ritual dance-drama Theyyam in northern Kerala, 2018. Photo by Aastha Gandhi.
The conference logo features a Koothambalam, a typical Keralite performance space, infused with the vibrant hues of a circus tent, set against the backdrop of Kerala's landscape. The gajam (“elephant” in Malayalam), is essential to the cultural fabric and festivities of this region, particularly in Thrissur, which is renowned for its annual elephant parade, Thrissur Pooram.