Kyo Ru Gi

A multidisciplinary artwork combining circus, theater, dance, and movement, about all we sacrifice and endure in order to win.

Kyo Ru Gi (meaning “the competition” in Korean) is about adrenaline, glory, ambition, and sacrifices. In a self-revealing circus mix of pole, whip, lasso, hair-hanging, and contortion, blended with theater, humor, and dance, four characters pose questions about our emotional development and our ideas about gender roles.

Circus creator Anna Nilsson is educated at the National Circus School in Brussels. She currently lives and works in Sweden, Belgium, and South Korea. In 2014, she co-founded the company Petri Dish with theater director Sara Lemaire, and since then, she has created and toured productions on stages around the world. Petri Dish is distinguished by a striking aesthetic, leaning towards the baroque and the absurd, in performances where circus, dance, theater, and visual art converge. Kyo Ru Gi is the company’s sixth production.