Circumstances creates impactful performances with a mission. Our productions explore a delicate balance between spectacle and care, where people support each other. Our work is not about perfection, but about collaboration, community, authenticity and embracing our imperfections, fostering a sense of understanding and belonging. Human connection is the common thread, both on and off stage.
"Circus is not about achieving, but challenging the impossible. The search for the limits of balance, gravity, time and endurance creates a unique dance." - Piet Van Dycke
Circumstances is a Flemish circus and dance company that brings together a diverse team of artists for each production. We create the performance collectively, every link in the chain matters. Circumstances is supported by a dedicated core team of enthusiastic collaborators behind the scenes. We are known for our drive, passion and flexibility. Joy, wonder and trust are woven into everything we do.
Circumstances aims to bring circus and dance closer to a broad and diverse audience. Thassos handles tour planning and promotional support in Belgium, while Buro Piket and Aurora Nova contribute to the international distribution.
Circumstances vzw was founded on 1 December 2021, with Jonas Van Soom (coordinator CIRKLABO), Evelien Alles (business director Theater FroeFroe), Maaike Vanderhaegen (programmer CC Het Gasthuis) as board members. Circumstances would not exist without the support of our partners: PLAN Brabant, Festival Circolo, DansBrabant, CIRKLABO, Miramiro, circuswerkplaats Dommelhof, PERPLX, HET LAB Hasselt, Festival Boulevard, fABULEUS and Circ'uit.
Circumstances creates wordless, physical performances that balance tension and emotion. Each creation arises from new “circumstances” featuring varying (circus) disciplines, performers, audiences and contexts. At the heart of the symbiosis between acrobatics and expressive movement lies the dynamic interplay between control and speed, dependence and autonomy, focus and calm. From these contrasts, we craft boundary-pushing experiences that explore the porous borders between circus and dance.
We travel the world with our productions, from Chassepierre to São Paulo, from Tienen to Hong Kong. We perform outdoors or in theatres. Our work reaches a wide-ranging audience: from children to seniors, skaters to pole dancers, hardcore festival-lovers to casual passersby. We strive to create real impact with our performances, extending beyond the walls of the theatre.
Currently, we are touring with three productions: EXIT (2022), an installation performance where movement, partneracrobatics, and balance board merge; GLORIOUS BODIES (2023), a piece about the power of the aging body; and BEYOND (2025), a performance about boundless bridgebuilders. Be sure to keep an eye on our calendar!
In his latest production, choreographer and dancer Piet Van Dycke once again masterfully blends dance with acrobatics. Scenes follow one another through free association—sometimes delightfully clumsy, other times sharp and witty, but always playfully rebellious and refreshingly contrarian. There is a real sense of momentum in the precise choreography and acrobatics. It remains gripping. And funny.
Typical of Van Dycke is the way he mixes and layers circus idioms, acting, and dance. This fresh, sharp approach casts the space, objects, and bodies in a slightly absurdist light. Once again, Van Dycke has managed to forge a humorous and consistently surprising piece with this trio.
Piet has the ability to shape his imagination and life, and then share that with others. He possesses a distinct choreographic signature: contemporary, meticulous, thoughtful, and mathematical in form. Yet, it is placed within a context featuring elements that everyone can recognize. This allows Piet to provide his audience with an entry point to experience the abstraction of an art form like dance in an associative and personal way.
Piet possesses what the French call a certain je ne sais quoi. It is an intangible yet palpable restless creative energy that cannot be reined in, driven by a creative necessity to express itself. His choreographic work is characterized by an exploration of the human condition. On stage, he creates a world that challenges, uses irony, and provokes, while also touching the audience and prompting reflection. It is a world full of associative space that frequently keeps the viewer guessing.
This breathtaking performance will blow you away. It is a fusion of dance and circus, featuring four loners who, despite initial resistance, find they need each other to bring balance to their lives. It is incredible how these four young men execute all those walking and movement patterns, constantly dodging or intentionally doing the exact opposite. And how they always manage to move just in time to avoid being hit by the collapsing wall. With bleating sheep and an audience cheering in relief, EXIT is a production by Belgian choreographer Piet Van Dycke and his company, Circumstances.
What makes BEYOND so beautiful, beyond its thoughtful dramaturgical structure and impressive acrobatic work, is the interplay between the performers themselves and their attentive care for the audience. In BEYOND, they test every single possibility of their objects, their bodies, and, in doing so, my own imagination.
The piece builds cleverly toward a breathtaking apotheosis (…) the performers hoist themselves into the air, slide down the wall, and together the four of them seek a balance that they ultimately find. Impressive (…) the sensation of the weekend.
Five stars for ‘GLORIOUS BODIES’, a show that endlessly captivates fans of both classical and modern circus. Do aging performers still matter? The pure execution, intense synergy, and acrobatic mastery make any doubt about the answer to that question completely unnecessary.
In his latest production, choreographer and dancer Piet Van Dycke once again masterfully blends dance with acrobatics. Scenes follow one another through free association—sometimes delightfully clumsy, other times sharp and witty, but always playfully rebellious and refreshingly contrarian. There is a real sense of momentum in the precise choreography and acrobatics. It remains gripping. And funny.
Typical of Van Dycke is the way he mixes and layers circus idioms, acting, and dance. This fresh, sharp approach casts the space, objects, and bodies in a slightly absurdist light. Once again, Van Dycke has managed to forge a humorous and consistently surprising piece with this trio.
Piet has the ability to shape his imagination and life, and then share that with others. He possesses a distinct choreographic signature: contemporary, meticulous, thoughtful, and mathematical in form. Yet, it is placed within a context featuring elements that everyone can recognize. This allows Piet to provide his audience with an entry point to experience the abstraction of an art form like dance in an associative and personal way.
Piet possesses what the French call a certain je ne sais quoi. It is an intangible yet palpable restless creative energy that cannot be reined in, driven by a creative necessity to express itself. His choreographic work is characterized by an exploration of the human condition. On stage, he creates a world that challenges, uses irony, and provokes, while also touching the audience and prompting reflection. It is a world full of associative space that frequently keeps the viewer guessing.
This breathtaking performance will blow you away. It is a fusion of dance and circus, featuring four loners who, despite initial resistance, find they need each other to bring balance to their lives. It is incredible how these four young men execute all those walking and movement patterns, constantly dodging or intentionally doing the exact opposite. And how they always manage to move just in time to avoid being hit by the collapsing wall. With bleating sheep and an audience cheering in relief, EXIT is a production by Belgian choreographer Piet Van Dycke and his company, Circumstances.
What makes BEYOND so beautiful, beyond its thoughtful dramaturgical structure and impressive acrobatic work, is the interplay between the performers themselves and their attentive care for the audience. In BEYOND, they test every single possibility of their objects, their bodies, and, in doing so, my own imagination.
The piece builds cleverly toward a breathtaking apotheosis (…) the performers hoist themselves into the air, slide down the wall, and together the four of them seek a balance that they ultimately find. Impressive (…) the sensation of the weekend.
Five stars for ‘GLORIOUS BODIES’, a show that endlessly captivates fans of both classical and modern circus. Do aging performers still matter? The pure execution, intense synergy, and acrobatic mastery make any doubt about the answer to that question completely unnecessary.
