“Tarabumba Circus” to conclude the open-air day — free performance in Leśnicki Park
To close the day, Klinika Lalek Theatre will invite the audience on a magical journey during the extraordinary outdoor performance “Tarabumba Circus”. This unique event, inspired by the tradition of circus arts, celebrates the beauty of puppet theatre as an alternative to animal suffering, honoring all sentient beings with respect.
The performance will take place outside the main festival grounds, in the western part of Leśnicki Park, at 7:00 PM.
Admission is free.
The handsome Giraffe Tara – singer and dancer – will reveal her true face as a sensitive artist, a nature lover, hopelessly in love with her trainer. The mighty Lion Leonardo, who can roar and wants to eat the trainer, will teach us courage. Elephant Bumba, a trombone virtuoso, will show us that anything is possible in life – even flying.
In roles typically reserved for animal characters, life-sized puppets take the stage, while the circus performers are portrayed by actors. Undoubtedly, the true stars of the show are the “super-marionettes” – the Elephant, Giraffe, and Lion – all designed on a 1:1 scale.
“Tarabumba Circus” is one of the first initiatives in the world to combine a joyful, colorful spectacle – a tribute to theatrical, puppet, and circus arts.
Klinika Lalek Theater was founded in 1988 at the Puppetry Department of the State Theatre School in Wrocław. The main goal of the young actors was to graduate not as individual performers scattered across the grey theatrical landscape of the time, but as a professional ensemble with a ready repertoire. And they succeeded. During their studies, the company premiered three performances: “Mass in Black and White, Momo” – the peculiar story of the Grey Gentlemen and the girl who gave people back their stolen time – and “Let’s Fool the Birds”.
In 1989, the artists established the Foundation for the Support of Alternative and Ecological Cultures, a platform for pursuing their creative dreams. By 1991, Klinika Lalek moved from Wrocław to the picturesque village of Wolimierz, at the foot of the Izera Mountains, and became a rural, traveling puppet theatre. In an abandoned 19th-century train station, they created their headquarters – Stacja Wolimierz / Interplanetary Kingdom of Art – an open, self-sustaining place of unique artistic exchange.
Klinika Lalek performs throughout Poland, across Europe, and beyond – including China (approx. 100 performances), Taiwan (60 performances), Iran, and Cuba. As a representative of Polish culture, the theatre has been invited to the world’s most prestigious street theatre festivals, including Expo ’92 in Seville, Festival d’Avignon, the Venice Carnival opening, and festivals in Edinburgh and Brighton.
Script / direction: Wiktor Wiktorczyk
Set design: Wiesław Drzewiecki
Puppets: Zbigniew Roszkowski, Wiktor Wiktorczyk
Music: Antoni Ziut Gralak, Konrad Rogiński