OBLIVIOUS
Who are you? What part of you is chosen, and what part of you is the role you play? In Oblivious, House of Circus fuses drag and circus into a bizarre performance in which familiar ideas about what is considered normal and what falls outside it, slowly begin to shift.
Nick, Lily and Germain, inhabit a deconstructed world where nothing is set and the possibilities seem endless. Characters, costumes appear and disappear, leaving their own colourful mark. Yet even the greatest freedom begins to organise itself. An agreement between a few can become rules for many, hardening into an order that is not to be questioned.
In this performance where colours and curiosity slowly fade, House of Circus constantly plays with the audience's gaze. Unusual aerials, acrobatic action, and distorted drag pushes the tension between fiction and physical reality. In a world constructed around norms, the question arises if you can still be yourself. Oblivious suggests some performances continue long after we leave the stage.
Are you aware, or are you oblivious?
House of Circus is a circus company and drag house founded by Nick Van der Heyden and Germain Charlat. In 2021 they started their multidisciplinary research merging circus and drag into a distinctive artistic language. Their performances captivate through humour, visual richness and physical skills. Driven to prove that drag is more than glitter and a wig, they create accessible performances in which humour, urgency and spectacle proudly coexist. The belief that everyone should have the freedom to express themselves is reflected in their motto:
“Be who you want to be, wear what you want to wear and love who you want to love.”
Nick and Germain graduated from the Fontys Academy of Circus and Performance Art, specialising in hand balancing and trapeze respectively. Under the name House of Circus, they previously created Spotlight, Beach!, Goes Delusional, Fitness and Carnivale Royale.As pioneers in fusing drag, theater and contemporary circus, they have developed a distinctive artistic signature, leading to an increasing international recognition. In 2026, Carnivale Royale played a summer season to sold-out audiences at the renowned Chamäleon Theatre in Berlin as well as The Magic Mirror at Sziget Festival. House of Circus is a Maker at TENT, where they are developing Oblivious through the Dutch New Makers Trajectory of the Performing Arts Fund NL.
CREDITS CONCEPT & CREATION Nick van der Heyden, Germain Charlat PERFORMANCE Nick van der Heyden, Germain Charlat, Lily Nolan DRAMATURGY Loulou Sjerps OUTSIDE EYE Dionne Verwey MUSIC Andreas Tegnander TECHNIQUE Cahit Metin PRODUCTION TENT COPRODUCTION De Landing, Schouwburg Amstelveen PARTNER CC Amstel SUPPORTED BY Amsterdams Fund fort he Art, Performing Arts Fund NL, Vfonds, Cultuurfonds, Fonds 5
OUR MAKER
HOUSE OF CIRCUS