Sat 4 Feb 2023

Venice Carnival Street Show

The very best of street artists of renowned fame will bring their creativity, fantastic worlds and joy at the first event of Carnival 2023 in Mestre: a preview of the Carnival Street Show that will animate the Teatrino in Piazza Ferretto.

Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th, the stage in Piazza Ferretto, the venetian “campi” and Mestre.

Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th, and then every day during the main week of Carnevale (from Sunday the 16th to Tuesday the 21st, February) calli and campi, streets and squares will once again resound with music and performances for a Carnival spread throughout the city, from the islands to the mainland.

Find out more about the Venice Carnival Street Show Program:

Saturday 4th February
Sunday 5th February

Saturday 11th February
Sunday 12th February

Thursday 16th February
Friday 17th February
Saturday 18th February
Sunday 19th February
Monday 20th February
Tuesday 21th February

Revealed the Artists of #CarnevaleVenezia2023

All’Incirco “Stories Hanging on a Thread”
At the InCirco, he will take the audience into his own miniature world inhabited by small wooden characters, where proportions are turned upside down and even the adult becomes a child again. Small micro-dramaturgies with handcrafted string puppets, small stories, small worlds. Because playing with dolls is serious business!

Arteare “Orientis Tempus”
Recognised as elegant, well-groomed and engaging, the performance unfolds through a succession of performances with a continuous musical basis, making both adult and child audiences enchanted, attentive and fascinated as it is expressed in a harmonious and pleasant form.

Atuttotondo “The Treasure Ways
An interactive show with street arts… forest or city? mountains or river? red door or blue door? The audience will choose!!!

Bambabambin Puppet Theatre
“Harlequinades”
ARLECCHINATE uses a repertoire of farces from the Italian tradition that have Harlequin as their protagonist, accompanied by his friends from the Commedia dell’Arte, united in a show that mixes funny dialogues and fast-paced rhythm. Played on the oldest mechanisms of puppet theatre, but adapted to contemporary taste, it lends itself to all kinds of audiences and spaces. The dynamic aspect of the show and the possibility of performing it in different languages makes it suitable for an international audience.
“The Wood Merchant
Once again the protagonist is him: Harlequin! Harlequin, poor as a church mouse, cultivates the ambition of marrying the King’s daughter, who, naturally, wants to marry a handsome and intelligent man, provided he is also rich and powerful. Our Hero thus sets out to become a rich entrepreneur, selling what he has always received: ‘resounding’ beatings!

Baracca Dei Buffoni “Fleur”
An enchanting builder with his magical watering can becomes a gardener, accompanied by giant flowers worn by stilt-walkers and magical characters carrying music and scents.
The show becomes olfactory as well as visual. The sowing, the flowering, the floral composition become the motif that unleashes the 5 characters in a series of choreographies and interactions with the public, who, abandoning themselves to the dreamy atmosphere, let themselves be led into a fantasy world

Bubble On Circus ‘Man in Bubble’
A combination of poetry, comedy and magic with soap bubbles.
A captivating story that will take us to the wonderful world of dreams, where we will see bubbles with smoke, giant bubbles, tiny bubbles, flying bubbles and other magical effects that this funny character will present in this amazing show.

Burattini Aldrighi “La Commedia delle Maschere” (The Comedy of Masks)
From the Commedia dell’Arte to Goldoni, this puppet show is a collection of the funniest jokes from the Theatre of Masks. Thefts, chases and disguises, starring Harlequin, Meneghino, Pantalone and Brighella, will entertain audiences of all ages with a timeless show.

Chien Barbu Mal Rasé “Arrrotella – Itinerant Pirate Bike
Captain Brassura and the Crafty Jok, on board their phantasmagorical pirate quadricycle, ride through the streets and squares of Mestre performing small circus acts.

Cikale Comic Vocal Trio “HoStress
Le Cikale is a comic singing group born in 2016 with the show ‘HoStress’ directed by Rita Pelusio. It is made up of live show professionals who have different backgrounds but have met in the passion for singing and the pleasure of making spectators smile.

Circateatro
“Paratrampolata in C”
“Stage in motion” the stilts are used in different ways to great effect and appeal to people. Through direct contact with the audience, despite the height, the dance-theatre performances will give colour and music to the city streets enlivened by the sounds of drums and percussion. The musicians, with their medieval instruments, encourage everyone to dance and party, while the dancers, with their synchronised steps, perform choreographies, tricks and games.

“Ignis Rotae”
The combination of the power of fire with elements of circus acrobatics, martial arts and dance-theatre will create a lively, sensual and attractive flame. Through the sounds of percussion, masks, make-up and especially through the body, we will unveil the mystery of fire, which attracts and frightens everyone equally and which becomes play, ritual, spectacle, remaining the undisputed protagonist of the scene. We will dance with fire, fight for it, play with it and with the audience.

Circo Patuf – Maurizio Marchetti “Zuurli
ZUURLI more than a show is a social experiment, it is a man testing himself and the audience. His universally indecipherable language makes people burst out laughing regardless of age. Bizarre, clumsy, unpredictable, he is a clown with the extraordinary ability to create embarrassing situations with unusual objects.
ARIA: seller of hot air, his comedy goes where the wind takes it

Circo Patuf – Dario Ayala “De Pura Cepa
Ceferino is a character who takes us straight to those neighbourhoods in Buenos Aires where art is a form of survival. Between tango, boleadoras and other marvels he makes the audience fall in love and fight, he makes himself loved and hated. A show to laugh and cry about.
TERRA: a character with strong roots on the ground, he tells of his origins with originality and wit.

Circus Patuf – Fede Scoch “Psychotropic
A clown capable of doing anything to entertain his audience, presents Psircotropico.
A mix of humour, juggling, fire tricks and acrobatics on a mini-bike, mixed with spontaneous comedy, during which the audience is involved in active participation. A show suitable for the whole family. The audience will have the luxury of being the audience!
FIRE: he not only manipulates and plays with fire, but above all sets the audience on fire with his humour.

Circus Patuf – Lidy Mae ‘Wonderful-looking’
She is a sweet and somewhat crazy character. Her world is pure magic and anything can happen! She enchants the children, who become the protagonists of a fairy tale of magical experiments and funny situations… and it all culminates with a giant balloon that swallows her and then spits her out amid applause and laughter. A delicate show made for children but that adults will adore.
AIR: Light as a morning breeze, but leaves you breathless!!!

Flying Circus “Flying Cabaret”
“LAURAAAA!?!?!?” Where is Laura?
If the star of the show is never ready then it’s up to the poor presenter to invent anything to get the show done!

Combriccola dei Lillipuziani “Streamproject”
Steamproject is a visionary and timeless show, suspended between the past and the future. A contemporary circus show that develops in the constant search for that moment and that space that unites earth and sky. A show that will leave you poised between man’s atavistic desires: that of being able to fly and that of dominating time and space.

Compagnia il Bianconiglio “Alice and the Wizard”
The secret of all magic is imagination, says the Wizard.
Magic is a dimension of imagination, replies Alice.
She arrives in a suitcase, bursts into the audience, a curriculum, and off we go.
A show, or rather a merry-go-round, that starts spinning frantically, straddling magic and juggling, ventriloquism and illusionism. With the audience that never wants to stop spinning, but is eventually forced to get off, and continue dreaming.

Compagnia Samovar 
The Samovar Company is an artistic blend of musical clowning, comic-poetic theatre and gimmicks. This independent, family-run company has its artistic roots in Eastern Europe and then blossomed on Italian soil. The tall, slender and moustachioed brothers move with musical balances between clownish porterage, veracious acting, Brescian DIY and intellectual truckism. Skilled at everything and experts at nothing, they make their sensitive world view the big show.

Compagnia Zorba officine Creative – “Il Mascheraio” (The Mask Maker)
A veritable theatre mask-making workshop is open to the public. There are dozens of leather masks, plaster casts, wooden matrixes and all the accessories of the mask maker’s work (skins, furs, hammers, etc.) that will be used to introduce the public to this ancient theatrical art. The mask-maker tells the history of the mask in society, religion and theatre, from Greek theatre to the commedia dell’arte, right up to the present day. Every time an anecdote is told, the audience understands more and more how the mask is at the origin of so many modern forms of performance. But not only that, the mask-maker chooses people from the audience and shows how a mask inspired by a person’s face is created, how it is given a character, a body, a voice and a meaning. As the master reveals how a mask is created, he also reveals to us all its symbolic meanings, its social purpose, but above all why the mask is always relevant.

Curious Bubbles “Diamond Unicorns”
White, emblematic and majestic unicorns, accompanied by their riders, come to life as if by magic and come together to dance. They perform solos, duets and trios in geometric and elegant forms. Accompanied by live musicians, they have overwhelming power. It is marching choreography, wild manes pawing, hearts throbbing.

Daiana Orfei “Daiana Orfei Show”
Circus variety show, with clowns, jugglers, magic and grand illusion games, the ball man, fakirism games, comedy sketches, antipodist juggling with feet, magic giant soap bubbles, the mascots of the moment greeting the children such as Minions, Olaf, Mickey Mouse, etc.

Damiano Massaccesi “Savoir-Faire”
An unlikely romantic Latin-lover with an irresistible charm grappling with his dream… finding the woman of his life!!! A candlelit trunk becomes the ideal place for a gallant encounter.
It’s all so perfect… that it plunges into disastrous and hilarious accidents!!!
You will witness the total degeneration of this idyllic character who has made savoir-faire his way of life.
A show full of comic moments, poetically absurd, starring a clown who is a ‘tightrope walker’ of pantomime, equilibrium, juggling and the notes of an accordion in love.

Dario Zisa “Count Von Tok arrives”
Count Von Tok arrives with his suitcases and his old radio. A one-of-a-kind, funny, original and engaging show. Constantly evolving, it is never the same. A succession of clownesque gags between juggling, magic and pantomime that adapts each time to the environment in which it is performed.

Diego Draghi “Fuori Pista”
A show of comic juggling and balancing acts, where the audience is involved from the very first bars.

Donamora “BonBon Rouge, na scarpa e na panchina” (BonBon Rouge, a shoe and a bench)
The sweet and naive Bon bon Rouge, who twists and turns looking and searching, looks, landscapes, smiles.
This show is focused on the eccentricity of the character, the intention is to give moments of lightness and leave a smirk on the faces of all those who enjoy it…
An attitude so monotonous that it becomes a game!

El Bechin “Horror Puppet Show”
How to awaken these otherworldly puppets from their deepest slumber? Of course in time to music, wild dancing and a good dose of madness. A clown with macabre but hilarious stories, El Bechin, succeeds in bringing to life a truly entertaining show from which the spectator is magically captivated, a show that brings children back to life. A comedy full of antics or a dance with gruesome choreography? Surely a laugh will bury you.

Evaq “Say yes”
Tell me yes, a clown show of comic, acrobatic and eccentric magic, where the audience will be the real protagonists.

Fausto Barile ‘Gran Teatro Dentro’
Fausto Barile is a fantastic character who hides something special inside himself. But fear not, he is always willing to show you his magical inner world.
If Pirandello said that each one of us wears a mask every day to act in the comedy of life, then Fausto is willing to swear that in addition to a thousand hundred thousand characters inside us there is an entire theatre! A ‘birth’ of curiosities will dispense from within in the form of small attractions, comic or poetic everyday actions: the Theatre Within.
(Jonah was returned after three days from the belly of the whale. Fausto will treat you to just a few minutes follow him, in a little corner he will take you to another world).

Fausto Giori “Psycho Chicken”
Demenzio is an eccentric and demented character whose only goal is to love his audience by giving them his joyful presence. Alas, his every little move is a disaster and this is the formula for his success. Mount confidently on his catapult and let him shoot you into the most hidden corners of this magical kaleidoscope that is none other than the realm of strong emotions. An original and unique show, full of wonder and ingenuity. The atmosphere of Dementius’ bizarre world is charged with wonder and eccentricity. A tightrope walker of improvisation, acrobat of illusion, clown and modern-day charlatan.
This mad and dumb entertainer will make you float with him in a comic and original
spectacle where reality and logic change their connotations into a roundabout
roundabout in which appearance, ingenuity and creativity chase each other incessantly
revolving around the very essence of play. Mount confidently on its catapult and let yourself be shot into the most hidden corners of this magical kaleidoscope that is none other than the realm of strong emotions!

Francesca Zoccarato “Varietà Prestige. The show in flesh and wood”
A show of string puppets, clowning and magic. Tout publique. Mitzi, an elegant Fellini-esque clown, will take you into her world of retro fantasies, surreal manias and real dreams. Next to her, her wooden partners: innocent-looking puppets, but… who will manipulate whom? Who will be the real star of this show?
A tribute to the world of the Café Chantant; when people sought enchantment and tasted the sweetness that Art Variety knew how to give, because you know: “life is bitter when there is no sugar at the bottom”.

Funkasin Street Band “On the road, in the club, Funkasin Street Band!”
Funkasin are the Venetian Cross Street Band. 11 woodwinds and 3 percussions that reinterpret different genres with original arrangements, mixing the traditional sounds of brass and drums with the pulsating rhythm of Rock, Funk, Jazz and Disco hits that they carefully select. A mix of music, choreography and energy in motion, flowing to involve the most important element of each of their performances: the audience of any age.

Geo The Juggler “Cosmonautick – the juggler of the future
A vermilion figure wanders around riding a single-wheeler. Who is he? Where does he go? More importantly, what drives him? Cosmonautick is a multifaceted juggler from the future, bringing with him a thousand devils and extravagant games. A mix of juggling, clowning and balancing, to be seen with feet on the ground!

Grande Cantagiro Barattoli “Steam Folk from these and other continents”.
Marching band in fantasy-steampunk style from Bologna, a formation of 5 musicians-craftsmen-actors combining the art of portable puppets with that of music and popular theatre in a light and entertaining show suitable for audiences of all ages.
Get ready for Steam-Folk from these and other continents!

I Burattini di Daniela Castiglione “Pulcinella Innamorato” (Punchinello in love)
The beautiful and sweet Margherituccia is contended by more than one lover. Between one dish of pasta and another, Pulcinella covets the love of the beautiful flower. But there is no stronger charm than that of a devil in love: Beelzebub, with one horn up and the other down, with fiery and deceptive poems kidnaps Margherita’s heart. The deception is soon discovered. “Help! Help! ” and Pulcinella comes ‘storming in’. This story we are going to tell and you come to listen.

Kalu’ “Kalù Strip Show”
A peculiar juggler, a clown between the eccentric and the poetic, sometimes cynical or perhaps quite spontaneous, who uses feet as hands and vice versa. Balls that spin and splash like mad, hats that fly constantly, bicycles as microscopic as fleas… laugh out loud in a fiery finale!

Fabiola “Beware of those two”
Giulio and Fabiola are two extremely sophisticated string puppets, maniacally developed over the years, who move not only all their body parts but also their facial details and interact with each other and with the audience in a surprisingly natural way, breaking down that thin wall that divides reality from fiction… A unique experience that literally leaves you speechless.

Lo Mago Abacuc “et come non”
The magician Crispino alias ‘Lo Mago Abacuc’ to the rhythm of a medieval saltarello draws the audience into his magical ancient world. With a jester’s manner, he prepares to astound the audience with magic tricks that were in vogue at the time. Between card games and close-ups, Lo Mago drags the audience to his final number, the oldest known magic game ‘The Game of the Three Cups’.

Lo StramaganteWith a Flair”
What is a Stramagante? A magician? A clown? A juggler? A musician? Simply someone who doesn’t like labels. If he likes something, he just does it, as long as it makes people laugh, that is.
Contraindications: it can provoke fits of laughter!

Lucia Fusina “Leon&Io”
Leon&Io is a wordless journey into the universe of the non-verbal to tell a story of emotions, failures and conquests.

Mariam Sallam “HABITAT-O”
An unexpected call, an old telephone and an extravagant house are the ingredients for this journey of laughter, dancing, transformism and acrobatics.
Surreal clothes to prepare for a special meeting, a red, giant skirt as an evening dress and an engagement ring to dance on: what crazier date could there be?
“Habited” takes this name to ironically narrate the multiple personalities that “inhabit” the protagonist, using laughter as a catalyst.

Mr Bang “Mr Bang Sensation
Mr Bang is the metropolitan clown, the laughter terrorist who blows inside our fears until they … burst out in a succession of unstoppable laughter!

Nespolo Giullare “The Frog Prince”
It is the story of a prince turned into a frog who wanders from place to place seeking from any princess the fairy kiss to change his fate. Or it is the story of a mediaeval jester who believes he is a frog and ‘seeks the princess’s kiss’ using the excuse at every turn!

Nicola Pesaresi “Street SAFARI”
Show of improvisations and encounters… for children and families.
One of the most active and well-known ventriloquists in Italy, he has taken part in Tu si que Vales, Italia’s got Talent and many other programmes, as well as the most important Italian festivals. With his inseparable Scimmietta Isotta and other characters, he presents a show in which the ventriloquist technique is just a pretext for constructing hilarious comic situations, a succession of expected and unexpected encounters always hovering between the real and the possible.

Nina Theatre “Put your heart into it”
No words, just looks and smiles. This is how the protagonist of the show decides to address her audience, working on essence and simplicity. In a suitcase, the protagonist finds objects: dolls, clothes, books, toys and transforms them, bringing them to life, into funny and poetic characters.

Nuvoletta Giochi
The clowns Nuvoletta and Semola of the cultural association NUVOLETTA E I GIOCHI DEI NONNI present the games of yesteryear, the almost forgotten ones, the games our grandparents used to have fun with when they were still small, re-proposed in a modern key.

Paola Berton “iNperfetta”
iNperfetta explores a profound, contradictory, absurd and light-hearted thought about being female. The protagonist exasperatedly shows all versions of herself. A play between masks perceived by others and by the wearer, between maniacal precision, juggling, clowning, absurdity, indecision, manipulation of objects, romanticism, dance, theatre and failures, she tells the story of a woman’s continuous search for perfection and her multiple being.

Paolo Zaranella “The Pianist Out of Place”
He appears in every city and gives those who meet him timeless moments.

Pepino & Fedele “The Rich and the Poor”
They belong to two opposing social classes, but music exalting humanity makes all differences disappear, without denying them.

Saeed “The Enchanter of Fools”
The perfect conjugation of the classic numbers of Marcel Marceau, Chaplin and Totò. The technical ability to communicate using the mobility of every part of the body and the expressiveness of the face, combine with a pure and poetic imagination, generating a style based on courtly irony.

Teatro C’art – Comic Education Aps “WOOW!”
WOOW! is a surreal, non-verbal, clownish comedy show. They come from afar, travelling for who knows how long…! Two headlights of a Vespa, a handlebar of an electric scooter, a moving treadmill, lights and magic mechanisms. An image that generates awe, wonder and surprise, WOOW!

Teatro Giullari “Tuttotorna”
Tuttotorna is a comedy show using geometry and manipulation of objects. Two unbelievable characters enter the stage and instantly involve you, give you rhythm, and unleash cheerfulness by giving you smiles, surprise and amazement. Teatro Giullari searches for an aesthetic language where images and words build together a funny and exciting scene.

Teatro Viaggiante “Eddi Sick Du Soleil”
A character of pure fantasy, but with real experience. He claims to have auditioned more than 100 times at the great Cirque du Soleil and has never been cast. He boasts of this record! He is thankful that he failed all the auditions! Thanks to this he was able to make himself appreciated by you. He always finds ways to get applause, he is a pro at grasping at straws.

Teatrombria “Play the shadow guess the fairy tale”
A fixed set of five small theatres to watch and animate. A journey through fairy tales and shadow theatre. For one spectator at a time. Presented at many summer festivals and at Mercantia 2022.

Terzostudio / Circo Improvviso “Cromosaurus”
A gigantic dinosaur skeleton, 5 metres high and 7 metres long – from head to tail tip – fully clad in colourful fabrics wanders through the crowd…

Terzostudio/Badabimbumband “La Banda Molleggiata
A show in which the musical quality of the songs is combined with theatre, choral choreography and, exceptionally, dance. “Molleggiata” in fact emphasises the stage aspect of the band in which the musicians swing, twirl, dance while playing; and it also refers to the musical genre that starts with “Celentano”, the “molleggiato” par excellence, and ranges into more modern sounds and songs, to create an explosive and dancing musical mixture.

The Sparkle “Dancing with the flames”
Dancing with the flames is an intimate, refined and elegant show, with captivating choreography that goes beyond the canons for this type of show. Over the years, the artist has developed a very personal style, seeking original synergies between contemporary dance and juggling. She surprises with a great finale. She is the only artist on the Italian scene to perform an antipodist number with fire poi.

Thomas Goodman “Bollestrabelle”
Thomas Goodman, magical bollestrabelle, will take you on a journey of discovery through the merry world of soap bubbles. Between gags and poetry, passing from micro bubbles to giant ones, from bubbles with your hands or with strange instruments, climbing volcano bubbles and taming fire bubbles, you will find yourself under a shower of bubbles and who knows maybe even inside one of them, to then fly away free into the sky together with your dreams.