Circo Valise is a suitcase-sized piece of magic: an outdoor ten minute mechanical circus that has trundled up in Assembly George Square Gardens. You’ll spy the ornate cart from a distance. Up close, an olde-worlde suitcase covered with stickers from exotic places sits atop the cart. And folded out of the suitcase, a tiny prosecenium arch theatre complete with red velvet curtains that conceal the circus ring.

The delightfully dapper Eduardo Salzane arranges this audience by height – littlest people at the front – and an Amelie–style jauntily sweet soundtrack serenades us. All of a sudden, an elephant with wings soars over the top of the theatre and swoops down to the eye level of the delighted children on the front row, heralding the start of this suitcase circus.

The curtains open and a succession of characters swoop across the stage, masterfully manipulated by Salzane. The bombastic ringmaster, a cheeky clown, and even an acrobat on the trapeze. The circus, the captivating characters, the cannon from which an unsuspecting clown is fired adorned with a handy helmet – it’s all been made by hand. Each jointed figurine is full of personality and the tiny details – in this tiny circus – make this pocket-sized production captivating. It’s like a miniature Victorian music hall show that you’ve suddenly discovered at the bottom of your garden.

The curtain falls all too soon but the winged elephant makes one final appearance, bearing its own perfectly proportioned suitcase, entreating an audience member to carry our dreams away with her. In this age of AI and CGI and all-round fakery, Circo Valise conjures up proper old-fashioned analogue heart-warming wonder. Find this tiny treat at the Meeting Point at Assembly George Square Studios as part of Brazil’s São Paulo Showcase. 

Circo Valise has finished its run