Trains aren’t just a means of transport – they are and have also long been vehicles for our dreams and desires, symbols of travel in foreign lands and times of yore. The 7 Fingers company pay homage to them in their latest production, making a scheduled stop in Graz at Christmas. In “Passagers”, a group of strangers in a compartment has one thing in common: they’re travelling. Their reasons for setting off and bidding farewell, alongside those for returning home and reacquainting, are just as diverse as their perception of what passes their window. Yet they are all connected by this moment between two lives, in limbo between departing and arriving. In an exciting combination of contemporary dance, acrobatics and theatre, these Canadian artists take their audience along on a journey – a wonderful mix of train journey and road movie.

When they come to Graz, for The 7 Fingers they’re practically playing at home. For many years now, these Canadian performers have counted among the best-loved participants in La Strada, repeatedly receiving delighted plaudits from audiences here, whether at premieres at the Opera House or at Cirque Noël. Ever since 2002, the now almost 40-strong team have been redefining what new circus is, courageously broadening their own horizons as well as those of their audiences with forever new approaches. Here they develop their ideas in cooperative activities too – including with La Strada – indeed at their own Creation Center in the heart of Montreal since 2018. So where do they regularly appear, in order to present their visions of modern circus to the world? From North and South America to Australia – and time and again, with very special enthusiasm, back in Graz.

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