![\"Plakat](\"https:\/\/warsztatykultury.pl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/carnaval-sztukmistrzow-2026-1.png\" "\\"Carnaval")
<\/span><\/div>About<\/h2>\n
One of the most spectacular cultural events in Poland is ahead of us \u2013 the Carnaval Sztukmistrz\u00f3w 2026. This year\u2019s edition will take place on July 23\u201326, and Lublin will once again become the capital of contemporary circus art. Check the full festival programme to make sure you don\u2019t miss anything.<\/strong><\/p>\n For four July days, Lublin breathes to a different rhythm. The streets become a stage. Circus blends with theatre. The air trembles with laughter and risk. Bodies defy gravity. Artists appear wherever the predictable comes to an end. This is not about elegantly observing art from a distance. It is about wandering from one moment of wonder to another. Part performance, part dream, part summer romance with the city. And suddenly you realise that the world can be more colourful, more absurd and much more fascinating than you remembered that morning,<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n the festival coordinators invite everyone to this year\u2019s edition.<\/p>\n The art of contemporary circus can be admired both in urban spaces and on theatre stages. The rich Carnaval programme includes five stage performances, ten outdoor performances, five street shows, three concerts and numerous accompanying events. An important part of the programme consists of productions by Polish artists selected as part of Incydent Polski \u2013 a development programme for the Polish contemporary circus community.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s edition of the Carnaval Sztukmistrz\u00f3w will open with the stage performance \u201cBlanc\u201d by S\u00e9bastien Wojdan \/ Galapiat Cirque<\/strong>. In this solo performance, the artist reveals himself to the audience and confronts his own fears, such as hypochondria and the constant fear of death. It also explores fears of failure, lack of love, rejection, abandonment, humiliation and facing the end alone. Before each performance, the artist runs 10 kilometres through the city. Only then does he step into the centre of a white space surrounded by high walls.<\/p>\n Another stage performance is the French-Swiss production \u201cCeramic Circus\u201d<\/strong> by Julian Vogel \/ Cie. unlisted<\/strong>. In his solo performance, the artist crosses the boundaries between contemporary circus, visual art and performance. Surrounded by plates dancing on delicate rods, Vogel creates his own unique circus on stage \u2013 a world governed by its own logic, where every element matters and the smallest gesture can become an event. The unpredictability of the performance makes the audience forget what they were actually expecting. The Sunday performance will be accessible to blind and visually impaired audiences.<\/p>\n Buy tickets<\/strong><\/p>\n S\u00e9bastien Wojdan \/ Galapiat Cirque | \u201cBlanc\u201d (FRA)<\/strong><\/p>\n July 23<\/strong> 2026 (Thursday), 20:00 | BUY TICKET<\/a> | check the event<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n July 24<\/strong> 2026 (Friday), 16:00 | BUY TICKET<\/a> | check the event<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Julian Vogel \/ Cie. unlisted | \u201cCeramic Circus\u201d (CHE\/FRA)<\/strong><\/p>\n July 25<\/strong> 2026 (Saturday), 20:00 | BUY TICKET<\/a> | check the event<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n July 26<\/strong> 2026 (Sunday), 17:00 | BUY TICKET<\/a> | check the event<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n This year, the festival club will be located at Browar Per\u0142a at 15 Bernardy\u0144ska Street<\/strong>. It is there, in the so-called tin building of the Rado\u015b\u0107 club, that Comedy Stage<\/strong> will make its debut at the Carnaval \u2013 a space dedicated to contemporary forms of clowning. The programme will include, among others, \u201cRequiem for Sophie Withman\u201d<\/strong>, a wordless burlesque performance created by Normandy-born performer and clown Cl\u00e9mence Caillouel<\/strong>. The artist has brought to life the character of Sophie Withman, a woman in love with fame, romance and stories with tragic endings. The performance follows this colourful personality as she decides to write her own tragedy and bring it to life on stage night after night.<\/p>\n Piotr Sikora<\/strong> returns to the Carnaval with a premiere production \u2013 the Polish artist has received numerous awards at international comedy festivals. The action of \u201cBlizzard\u201d<\/strong> takes place 214 years after Napoleon\u2019s disastrous retreat from Russia and tells the story of a lone soldier who continues to struggle through a snowstorm, lost somewhere between reality and imagination, searching for a way home. The performance is almost entirely without words and tells a story of loneliness, survival and the absurd determination of the human spirit. In addition to the performances, both Piotr and Cl\u00e9mence will lead open clowning workshops<\/strong>, with registration opening soon.<\/p>\n The Comedy Stage will also feature the Wroc\u0142aw-based company Fools on the Hill Orchestra<\/strong> with the music-theatre performance \u201cWhat Is Love\u201d<\/strong>. Four eccentric musicians humorously interpret love songs by bands such as The Beatles, ABBA and Queen, drawing on the spirit of contemporary clowning. A concert full of comic mishaps transforms into an emotional story about human relationships and the search for love.<\/p>\n The performance \u201cHappy Hour\u201d by ALE Circus Dance Company<\/strong> will also have an unusual setting. The protagonists invite the audience to a restaurant where everyday objects gain completely new uses. The tabletop becomes a stage for spectacular juggling, while chairs transform into acrobatic props. It is light entertainment with style, where the evening buzz becomes an excuse for a phenomenal show.<\/p>\n Another proposal for the circus stage in the green areas of Browar Per\u0142a will be an outdoor presentation of S\u00e9bastien Wojdan\u2019s<\/strong> work. The performance \u201cD\u00e9sordre\u201d<\/strong> is a collection of experiences and a kind of retrospective of the artist\u2019s previous productions, full of movement, controlled chaos and object manipulation.<\/p>\n Another resident of the Rado\u015b\u0107 club will be Henryk Zbir \u2013 a charismatic magician who, faced with the harsh reality of life as a circus artist, decides to leave the legal path behind. He is the protagonist of the performance \u201cOut of the Law\u201d<\/strong> by DomiCirco<\/strong>. Using his illusion skills, he makes a living through clever tricks, schemes and misleading the audience. All, of course, in the name of good fun. Get ready for a comedic, interactive performance where illusion meets comedy and an elegant \u201ccon\u201d becomes a form of art.<\/p>\n Among the permanent elements of the Carnaval, the street programme and busking performances will return \u2013 featuring artists who present their skills in exchange for donations into their hats. This will be the 6th edition of the Busking Competition<\/strong>, in which the audience will choose the winner and award the winning artist with a statuette.<\/p>\n In street performances, spontaneous reactions and active audience participation are just as important as the show itself. This year, such emotions will certainly be provided by Javier \u201cChiquito\u201d Casali \u2013 one half of the Gato Blanco Gato Negro<\/strong> duo, which won last year\u2019s competition. This time, the Argentinian artist will try to delight the audience with mime, clowning and improvisation. British comedians Rudkin & Hicks<\/strong> will deliver a comedy of errors combining slapstick humour, eccentric dance and subtle clowning.<\/p>\n In addition to typical busking performances, the streets will also feature more artistically experimental forms, such as an interactive walking act performed by the French trio Fatal Cirque<\/strong> and a tightrope walk by clown Mireya Guzm\u00e1n<\/strong>. The mysterious Mexican artist will take the audience into a magical world where an imaginary horse plays an important role. The Blow Up Crew<\/strong> duo will also perform with their interactive dance performance \u201cThe Clay Artists\u201d<\/strong>, inspired by the Andean festival of Pachamama (Mother Earth), traditionally celebrated on August 1. The performance takes the form of a ritual thanksgiving \u2013 an expression of love, respect and positive energy, a symbolic gift made of flowers and the fruits of the earth.<\/p>\n The stages for street artists will be squares: Litewski, \u0141okietka, Kr\u0105pca, behind the Tribunal, and the corner of Krakowskie Przedmie\u015bcie and Kapucy\u0144ska streets<\/strong>. All artists will perform twice a day in different locations. Encounters with original street performances will be a perfect opportunity to break away from everyday life and experience live art in public spaces.<\/p>\n At Litewski Square, audiences will encounter, among others, an open-air performance by the La Bande \u00e0 Tyrex<\/strong> collective. It features 9 bicycles, 10 acrobats and live music. While some artists balance on handlebars and perform complex acrobatic figures, others pick up the trombone, bass guitar or percussion instruments. This bicycle ballet amazes and entertains.<\/p>\n The Chilean artist from Cia. Frutillas Con Crema<\/strong> will present in Lublin an intimate portrait of loneliness and the search for hidden meanings in everyday life. The protagonist of the performance \u201cFatiga\u201d<\/strong> invites the audience into his \u201ctravelling home\u201d \u2013 a cart full of secrets, where nothing is quite what it seems. The central element of the set is an impressive collection of more than 6,000 used tea bags, old shoes and dozens of other sentimental trinkets that travel together with the protagonist.<\/p>\n Cirkus Grand Danois<\/strong> will present a moving yet rebellious story that challenges ideas about freedom, wealth and the dream of a good life. We meet a dysfunctional circus troupe living in constant motion \u2013 with sawdust in their lungs, popcorn in their pockets and a tired circus heart beating for something greater. Their home is wherever the wagon stops, even if only for a moment, even if it is a roadside ditch. Yet deep down, they continue to dream of a real circus tent, a world tour, applause and recognition from the audience.<\/p>\n As every year, the Carnaval will also welcome \u201cFriends of the Magician\u201d<\/strong> with a spectacular display of skills and talents from participants of the \u201c\u015aladami Singera\u201d<\/strong> festival organised by the \u201cGrodzka Gate \u2013 NN Theatre\u201d Centre<\/strong>, who will finish their journey in Lublin on Thursday.<\/p>\n Po Farze Square will be the setting for, among others, the performance \u201cCurtainCall\u201d<\/strong> by the German group Circus unARTiq<\/strong>. The audience will experience an aerial, fairytale-like theatre filled with breathtaking acrobatics and poetic imagery. Lisa Rinne and Andreas Bartl have been bringing city squares, parks and boulevards to life for years, transforming them into open-air stages. The central element of their performance is a huge curtain that constantly changes its meaning and function. What appears ordinary and familiar in everyday life becomes part of a theatrical story for 30 minutes.<\/p>\n A completely different show \u2013 full of playground bar acrobatics \u2013 has been prepared by Karolina Bana\u015b and Sabina Dr\u0105g<\/strong> in the performance \u201cAunts\u201d<\/strong>. The artists promise: \u201cAfter what you see, no playground bar will ever seem ordinary again! Aunts will take you on a melancholic journey to grey housing estates, inviting you to a concrete playground carefully watched by vigilant neighbours looking out from their windows\u201d.<\/p>\n At Litewski Square, a circus activity camp for children prepared by Frikart<\/strong> will be created. Those interested will also have the chance to try their hand at slacklining during open slackline workshops<\/strong> led by UHF instructors.<\/p>\n At the Rado\u015b\u0107 club at Per\u0142a Brewery (Chill-Out Zone), participants will be able to enjoy: Wake up Carnaval, open clowning workshops, Ping Pong Party, Combat Fight Night and a food truck zone<\/strong>. Meanwhile, film screenings will take place in the auditorium of the Workshops of Culture: Circus&Film<\/strong> \u2013 a presentation of short films \u2013 and a screening of UHF competition films<\/strong>.<\/p>\n In the evenings, concerts and DJ parties will take place at the festival club. The programme will include, among others, post-punk band Chair<\/strong>, future folk artist Turfu<\/strong> and artists from La Bande \u00e0 Tyrex<\/strong> in their funk incarnation. Each concert will be followed by a party with music played by DJs. The DJs will be: sto koni zwierz\u0105t<\/strong>, Ma\u00eetre Mim’s<\/strong>, ALV cabr\u00f3n<\/strong> and Ecl\u00e9ctico Nom\u00e1dico<\/strong>.<\/p>\n In the Old Town, highliners will create a stage in the sky. Urban Highline Festival<\/strong> has been part of the Carnaval for eighteen years, attracting the world\u2019s best slackline and highline athletes. Over the years, participants from 56 countries and 6 continents have visited Lublin \u2013 from the USA, Argentina and Australia to Taiwan and Morocco.<\/p>\n Urban Highline Festival is not only about lines stretched above the streets of the Old Town. It is also about workshops, meetings and discovering the city from a different perspective. All highline installations are created thanks to the work of a professional rigging and mountaineering team, which is the festival\u2019s hallmark and a guarantee of safety.<\/p>\n This year\u2019s edition will bring a unique event: Urban Airline Cup<\/strong> \u2013 the world\u2019s first open trickline competition above a special safety net. This innovative format allows competitors to perform the most spectacular tricks without the risk of falling onto hard ground. Leading trickliners have already confirmed their participation, promising a show of the highest level.<\/p>\n\n
Stage performances at the Centre for the Meeting of Cultures<\/h2>\n
Comedy Stage \u2013 a new Carnaval module<\/h2>\n
Circus Stage at Browar Per\u0142a<\/h2>\n
Street performances \u2013 who will win the audience award this time?<\/h2>\n
Outdoor performances and shows at Litewski Square and Po Farze Square<\/h2>\n
Accompanying events \u2013 activities, workshops, music and entertainment<\/h2>\n
Urban Highline Festival \u2013 the best highliners in Lublin<\/h2>\n
About the Carnaval Sztukmistrz\u00f3w<\/h2>\n