F 28 / Cie Pieds Perchés_PHILIA / La Grande Descente (performance)

The performance was created by the international theatre company Cie Pieds Perchés specifically for the Automatické mlýny complex. Its premiere will take place in 2026 to mark three years since the opening of the reconstructed Automatické mlýny.

The performance explores the degree of risk we are willing to take and our relationship to the cycles of life and the fragility of our existence. It is a vertigo, a gaze into the abyss, but above all, it is a vibrant tribute to friendship. In this project, the artists speak through their bodies and voices about what connects us to others, as well as about the things that remain—or, conversely, disappear—when a bond is broken: when we lose someone close to us or become separated from them. Philia evokes the strength and fragility of our bonds…

Cie Pieds Perchés is an international new circus company working between the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and France. It combines circus, physical theatre, and visual art to create thought-provoking performances accessible to audiences of all kinds. The company focuses on contemporary social issues, exploring them through humor, dance, and aerial acrobatics.

The company was founded in 2009 by two Swiss artists, Morgane Widmer and Stéphanie NDuhirahe, who together discovered the magic of circus arts and aerial rope, which became their favorite means of expression. Stéphanie is a graduate of the University of Art and Design in Geneva and the circus school in Quebec, while Morgane received her professional training at the École Supérieure des Arts du Cirque in Brussels.

• Concept: Stéphanie NDuhirahe, Morgane Widmer, Cie Pieds Perchés / supervision: Lucie NDuhirahe, Aline Zbinden / rigging: Rogine Babaei / music: Roman Džačár / created and performed by: Stéphanie NDuhirahe, Morgane Widmer, Marina Mezzogiorno-Brown, Garance Hubert Samson, Lenka Švolíková, Pavla Rožníčková / choreographic consultation: Eliška Brtnická, Kateřina Vaníčková

The project was created with the support of the following organizations: Offcity z. s., Centrum pro otevřenou kulturu (Divadlo 29 and Galerie města Pardubic), Gočárova galerie, Taje z.s., Přistav 18600, State Culture Fund of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, Cirqueon, Alliance française Pardubice.