Cultural Dose
- Aug 1

Read our interview with circus performer Lachlan McAuley on spectacular new show Apricity

Circus is one of the most challenging performance forms, encompassing both intense creativity and incredible physical prowess. Pushing the human body to its limit, while also creating beauty, entertaining audiences, and working collaboratively with a group of other performers, circus can be considered a true multi-disciplinary art. We spoke to Lachlan McAulay, cofounder of Casus Creations, creative designer, and ensemble member of Apricity, a new circus show which will be coming to the Edinburgh Fringe this August, about the beauty, challenges, and process of creating striking and unique circus shows which have toured all over the world.

Apricity makes careful use of lights, colours and shadows. How did you approach these elements during the choreography and rehearsal process?

Coming into the development process for Apricity the director Jesse Scott (who is also my husband) had a clear vision of what he wanted the show to feel and look like. I then, alongside my father-in-law (Jesse‘s dad), set to realising these visions by building set pieces, engaging costume designers, and creating beautiful lighting states all to enhance the atmosphere of a beautifully thoughtful concept. When the ensemble began rehearsing physically, we spent many hours understanding the world that had been conceptually created, and how we could physically enrich our surroundings. It truly was a team effort, and we are all extremely proud of the outcome

How do you ensure your mental and physical wellbeing throughout your demanding tour schedules?

Every tour, every show and every ensemble brings with it different demands. I have been doing this for quite a number of years now and a few tips I’ve picked up along the way are; when you land from a long-haul flight try to watch the sunset, travel with your own personal little pharmacy as certain countries may not have what you need, and always find a quiet moment to have within nature.

Your show is strikingly beautiful - can you tell us a bit about how you manage to bring abstract creative visions into reality?

We make sure that we are working with the right people, maybe there’s someone out there that can do the most incredible Circus trick, but if they’re not a good person or easy to live with on tours or work with creatively, then your life becomes hard and you get stuck in an unhappy place.

I have always put trust in the creative people around me to encourage my artistic voice, and I’ve also learned to follow the directors vision and let them lead me into the unknown.

Do you find it challenging performing a very physical show in new venues, or do you manage to settle in to different environments easily?

The way we create our shows lends to the way we tour. This means we very rarely perform in the same venue more than once. We want our work to reach into the four corners of the globe, the smallest remote island in the Pacific, the Arctic Circle, Broadway, NY, or a small premiere theatre in France which all luckily we have been able to achieve. Adapting our shows into new venues has always come quite naturally to us. Yes, it may come with extra work but it also come with extra rewards

Would you recommend your show to newcomers to physical theatre?

All of Casus Creations shows have been created to reach all people, Apricity has left audiences with a sense of hope for the future and warmth inside their hearts. With our breathtaking Circus and mesmerising choreography Apricity is truly a show for everyone. And from a performance perspective, it is a joy to put on stage.

Apricity will be performed at 3pm in Assembly George Square Gardens (Palais du Variété) from 1st – 25th August (Not 12th or 19th)