‘Our’ Iker Galartza had the dream of creating the first Basque circus. With a lot of commitment and effort, ‘Gure Zirkua’ is today a consolidated reality, a success in conception, participation and hook among the people. It generates empathy and affection, from its simple conception and … indisputable quality of all its members. The writer Álvaro Bermejo and the photographer Joseba Urretabizkaia have been the creators of a book about this magical project, which will be presented this Tuesday.
«The beautiful thing is that we immediately connected with the public, children and adults. The language of the circus works. People are still excited to see acrobatics, or clowns, and in our case with live music. It’s a shame that sites are increasingly betting on recorded music. Here the “sax” follows in detail and at its own pace the movements or doubts of the acrobat,” Iker assured our colleague Mitxel Ezkiaga.
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Name of the book
‘Gure Zirkua’. -
Authors
Álvaro Bermejo and Joseba Urretabizkaia. -
Promoters
Xibarit with the help of Caja Laboral. -
Presentation
Tuesday, June 4, 7:00 p.m., small tent of ‘Gure Zirkua’ itself in the San Esteban neighborhood. Special price for attendees.
Álvaro Bermejo, author of the book, says that in our land there is news of wandering circuses from the times of Etxepare to those of Baroja, but none that documents a genuinely Basque circus like the one that Iker Galartza set foot in, in 2016. Bermejo assures that ‘Gure Zirkua’ is born from an ambition “as humble as it is excessive.” And he explains his virtues like this: «building a circus where everything is heroically analogical, in the pleonasm of the virtual era. Do it exclusively in Basque, with Basque artists from all backgrounds. And bring them together around a classic circus concept, combining its nomadic character and its sedentary need around its epicenter, Tolosa.
All the protagonists of the circus parade through the book, telling their experiences. «There have been wind-sole artists, nomads, acrobats, magicians and jugglers who were there and are no longer there, others who were not there and it is now unthinkable to open the tent without them. The show must go on, the book never ends,” describes the author.
The growing success of his tours throughout the Basque Country, with packed shows after shows, certify that Iker was not wrong, says Bermejo. What’s behind this project? For the author of the book, “the validity of a popular show founded on closeness to its audience, but also the permeability of that audience, yearning for the new, but faithful to the essence of the traditional circus. The same one that continues to fascinate children and adults, not only because of what is in front of them, but because of everything that beats behind them.
«When the show starts and Iker paints his clown face, which is what he likes the most, the world will seem wonderful to him again. Talking about the magic of the circus seems like a cliché, but it is so real…”, Galartza told Mitxel.
