Dear INCAm member,
we proudly present the third edition of IMAC. Unique in its design, this inter-magazine Circus Festival brings together international circus magazines, featured at the UP Festival 2026, and students from the Université Libre de Bruxelles, who share their thoughts and questions on what is currently shown on stage and in the ring. Their perspectives and approaches are thereby as diverse as their backgrounds: coming from a variety of fields such as literature, journalism, acting or cultural studies, some of them are familiar with the artform meanwhile others offer reflections from the position of a circus-newcomer. What reunites them: A curiosity for the performing arts, which made them chose to study the MA Arts du spectacle. This program offers the discovery of a diversity of artforms – including the circus. In the context of the project Circus | Studies, theatre students at the Université Libre de Bruxelles have the possibility to explore practices of circus dramaturgy while collaborating with upcoming artists, they can take first steps in the analysis and critique of circus performances or contribute to academic conference dedicated to the circus. These adventures ultimately take shape in the form of MA Theses or articles such as the ones we will write in the frame of this year’s issue.

Framework
Guided by Franziska Trapp (circus researcher and dramaturge), students from Theatre Studies will learn methods of circus performance analysis based on a selection of 12 performances attended during the UP Festival. In addition, the students will receive a short introduction to journalistic writing on contemporary circus. As a result of the seminar, each student will write a two-page journalistic article on one of the performances, always in relation to a specific critical question. Franziska Trapp will conduct a first round of editing and select the most compelling articles. The editors of the participating journals may then choose one or two articles from this preselection, contact the respective student(s), and continue their internal editorial process. This stage of the process will take place exclusively between the student and the respective editor. All selected articles will be published simultaneously in order to create an inter-magazine dialogue and connection.

Dates
Seminar during UP Festival: 19–27 March
Deadline for first internal manuscript submission (ULB): 17 April
Preselection of articles: 24 April
Revised manuscripts for magazines: 15 May
Publication IMAC III: To be discussed among participating members

Kind regards,

Franziska Trapp