ASTRAT

= from Piedmontese, "abstract"

"the nature of juggling might not aline so well with what you can easily explain in a narrative or a concept, it might be so that what you cannot easily explain in a narrative or a concept is what gives depth to juggling"

[Erik Åberg, "Objects episode 7"]

So why try to talk about a show that calls itself abstract juggling?

Why write about it? Why read about it?

I, Carlo, the author of this project, invite you first to watch this video, created specifically to give you what this file can never give you, and then to read the text

Astrat / Non-utilitarian and anti-pareidolic

amimetic and counter-apophenia juggling

To understand,

ASTRAT is

an exploration of juggling as abstract art:

a sensitive composition of images, movements, and relationships that do not tell stories but shows things.

an involuntary rebellion

against a world that pushes art to always have a function or message.

a humble exploration of the human-object relationship,

but also of the fundamental qualities of the physical world: gravity, light, colors, weight, shapes...

showing fluid and complex identities.

Objects, costumes, lights, individuals blend together, transforming into one another, forcing us to adopt a curious and open gaze.

de-anthropocentrizing the circus,

to make space for objects and technique.

ambiguity. Not clear meanings, but room for doubt.

Merging the tangible with the ineffable, perhaps to reach the simple beauty of what we call “useless.”

but also chatting with the audience and having a laugh.

In practice

a juggling show, about 1 hour long.

Frontal, technically self-sufficient, adaptable to non-dedicated spaces and big tops.

A multidisciplinary show, with juggling as its main medium, but a mix of:

visual and kinetic arts, electronic music, fashion/costumes, video, text, and lecture.

Coming in 2026

Team

Juggling + sound + composition: Carlo Cerato

Administration, production, diffusion: Collectif STP

Costumes: Françoise Léger

Scenography: Mathis Brunet-Bahut

Lighting + technique + offstage: ?

Help 1: Johan Swartvagher

Help 2: Martin Schwietzke

Help 3: Jay Gilligan

Photos: Andrea Macchia