A celebration of contemporary circus from around the world, 2016 is the year of 10th anniversary edition features international artists from Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Nepal, and France along with Cambodian artists from Phare. The festival takes place from April 28 to May 10 in Phnom Penh, Battambang and Siem Reap. It includes nightly full-length performances, artist-led workshops, pop-up shows, and a public panel discussion about the business of performing arts in Cambodia.

More than 4500 people attended Tini Tinou last year, which took place over eight sold out nights in three cities. “Cambodia is leading the region in contemporary circus, with three years of nightly performances by Phare, The Cambodian Circus in Siem Reap, and twenty years of regular performances by Phare Ponleu Selpak in Battambang,” says Phare, The Cambodian Circus CEO Dara Huot.

This year’s international troupes are: The Flying Fruit Fly Circus, Australia’s national youth circus, performing their new show Stunt Lounge; Collectif Open Ticket from France, performing Sans queue ni tete (Nonsense); and Inner Ring Circus from Canada, performing a juggling duo act. Artists from Nepal, Indonesia, and Afghanistan will perform in free improvised pop-up shows throughout the festival. Phare will perform its newest show, Influence. Each night of the festival will feature a different full-length performance.

A unique aspect of Tini Tinou is encouraging international collaboration through a series of juggling, trampoline, creation and street performance workshops. Artists are split into groups, share skills and work together to create something new. The results are shared in pop-up shows in public spaces throughout Battambang and Siem Reap during festival. “Most artists don’t speak the same language and they come from very different backgrounds,” says Huot. “These workshops are an extraordinary way to transcend cultural barriers, learn new skills and form strong bonds. Giving this opportunity to our Cambodian performers and the international artists who travel a long way to take part in this festival, opens the doors to more working relationships in the future, and strengthens Cambodia’s reputation as a leader in the creative and performing arts field in the region”.

According to pharecircus