Lightsphere and the Night of the Arts at Cirko

In 2022 Cirko started working with Hands some Feet Circus Company on co-producing their new family production: Colorsphere. The show is created together with Kerttu and Adam Opus from Company Opus and Liisa and Jeromy Nuuk from Hands Some Feet. Colorsphere will premiere at Cirko in September 2023.

The two circus companies’ collaboration on Colorsphere dates back to 2020. However, the partnership with Cirko through the Loisto project has allowed the world of Colorsphere to grow into new directions. In 2022 Company Opus started creating an interactive performance experience called Babysphere around the themes of Colorsphere. Babysphere is intended for babies and toddlers ages 0-3 and their parents. It will premiere as a part of the city of Helsinki Culture Kids programme in Autumn 2023.

Eventually the Colorsphere world grew into one more experience designed by Kerttu and Adam Opus for the Night of the Arts Programming at Cirko in Suvilahti.

Lightsphere is an immersive art installation that invites viewers of all ages to explore the different dimensions of light and perception. It is composed of multiple large scale spheres that act as a canvas for an interactive constellation of colorful light. In the installation, light becomes a medium for play through the presence and interactions of the spectator. The lights, in combination with soundscapes, engage the viewer in a multi-sensory dialogue, encouraging them to move, observe, and interact with the installation.

For the Night of the Arts event in August 2023 lightsphere was set up in two different formations. One in the afternoon and early evening for families and a second in the evening for adults where the light effects and soundscapes were altered slightly.

Kerttu Opus: “We wanted to create something that reflects the world of Colorsphere but in a simplified and elevated way. We envisioned the Spheres as an unusual canvas that would reflect an interesting color effect but only through the participation of the spectator. The balls would look plain until you touched them and that would make the colors appear giving the audience the agency to make the installation live.”

Cirko has a history of participating in the Night of the Arts with small scale events such as circus film screenings. With Lightsphere, a larger audience was targeted, but the success was beyond what was expected. From four in the afternoon until eleven in the evening the installation was at full capacity. A constant line was waiting for entrance. All in all, Lightsphere was visited by one thousand visitors in seven hours.

Adam Opus: “On the day of the installation we watched people interact with it in ways we could have never anticipated. The most interesting thing was to observe adults enter into a state of play with strangers”

After the September season of Colorsphere Opus Company is going to dive into the creation of their upcoming new performance ”Suddenly: and other ways to change” – a show about transformation through contemporary circus and quick change magic, premiering Summer 2024.

Hands some Feet’s Colorsphere is premiering at Cirko in September