A theater homage by Marcel Keller (direction & live comics) and Barbara Falter (play) based on the book "Dummheit" by well-known forensic psychiatrist and neurologist, Heidi Kastner, promises to take visitors on a "journey into infinity".

Stupidity is dangerous. It threatens human relationships, social cohesion, basic democratic consensus, and our survival on this planet. Drawing on her experience as a forensic psychiatrist and neurologist, Heidi Kastner’s book, "Dummheit", shows us that measured intelligence and stupidity are by no means mutually exclusive as the play analyzes the different variations of stupidity with razor-sharp precision. This theatrical homage based on her successful book features a spaceship carrying Earth’s last survivors – and the audience - on a journey to an unknown destination, thereby also revealing what ultimately led to mankind’s demise. It is a humorous blend of acting and live-drawn animation!

Heidi Kastner remarked: "When Airan Berg contacted me about adapting my book, “Dummheit”, to debut at the Circus of Knowledge, I was pleasantly surprised. It became a greater joy when I saw the designs by director and comic artist, Marcel Keller. After having been to rehearsals, I couldn’t wait for the October 1^st premiere. It’s a fun and lively transfer of the theme, made better for the stage through live animation."

Circus director Airan Berg added: "I am excited to start the new season at the Circus of Knowledge, and the new academic semester at the JKU, with a world premiere. Heidi Kastner's successful book, 'Dummheit', serves as the inspiration and basis for this amusing and playful theater adaptation. Marcel Keller and Barbara Falter are two extraordinary artists involved in the project. Reality encounters science fiction and live comic drawings and it is a linguistic and visual delight! It’s both funny and serious. Come and be amazed at what awaits you at the circus! Now, and in the coming weeks."

DUMMHEIT. A Journey into Infinity. (Ages 15+)

A theatrical homage to Heidi Kastner's book, "Dummheit".

Featuring: Barbara Falter, Marcel Keller

Direction, stage production, and live animation: Marcel Keller

Content: Heidi Kastner

Duration: 75 minutes

Dates: Saturday, October 1, 7:30 PM / Sunday, October 2, 6:00 PM, followed by a discussion with Heidi Kastner / Wednesday, October 5, 6:30 PM

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window. Admission is free, donations to support the Circus are greatly appreciated.

The New Program from October to December: A Colorful Program for Young and Old Alike

In addition to the tribute to Heidi Kastner's book, Linz actor and theatrical producer, Karl Sibelius, will also make a guest appearance in October at the Circus of Knowledge with three solo dates (including his autobiographical song recital "Karli Bua"). "Faszination Krake" and "MondTraum & PlanetenKlang" delighted young audiences this past spring and will return to the Circus of Knowledge as part of Children's Culture Days in Linz (October 12-15). In November, shadow theater "Kamishibai: Das Leben großer Forscher*innen als Papiertheater" will continue with a performance about dinosaur researcher, Mary Anning. "NAT.U.R.AL - an Ode to Imperfection" will also premiere in November, exploring the relationship between humanity and the artificial. A special collaboration between JKU artists and philosophers will take place in December as part of a performance titled "Und da oben dazwischen die Sterne", following in the footsteps of Galileo and Kepler and raising questions about science and ethics. This performance marks the return of director Gerhard Willert to Linz.

JKU Rector Meinhard Lukas is impressed with the new program and remarked: "The program will attract young and old alike, especially those who are curious, inquisitive, and interested. The choice of topics reflects university’s diversity. I am particularly pleased about our comprehensive program for children, teens, and school classes. Whether it be ‘Faszination Krake’, 'Kamishibai', or ‘MondTraum & PlanetenKlang', each and every child should come to the Circus of Knowledge at least once to experience the magical world of science. With all of this in mind: Come one, come all - and enjoy an exciting new season!"

Important information: On account of limited space, we strongly recommend signing up in advance to attend events at the Circus of Knowledge. Sign up at: www.jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens.  Admission is once again free during 2022; donations to support performances at the Circus of Knowledge are greatly appreciated..

A detailed program for October to December:

October

World Premiere: DUMMHEIT. A Journey to Infinity. (Ages 15+)

A theater homage to Heidi Kastner's book "Dummheit".

Featurig: Barbara Falter, Marcel Keller

Direction, stage production, and live animation: Marcel Keller

Content: Heidi Kastner

Duration: 75 minutes

Dates: Saturday, October 1, 7:30 PM / Sunday, October 2, 6:00 PM, followed by a discussion with Heidi Kastner / Wednesday, October 5, 6:30 PM

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window                                              

‘Vom Fremden und vom Eigenen’. A Karl Sibelius Trilogy at the Circus of Knowledge.

Psychotherapy & Art.

Karl Sibelius will perform during three different solo dates, with scholarly input and discussions as a backdrop. At the Circus of Knowledge, Sibelius will make the Georg Kreisler evening "Adam Schaf hat Angst", the song cycle "Ideologie der Verlassenheit", his autobiographical song recital "Karli Bua", making himself the object of research and incorporating the audience.

Duration: 70 minutes

Dates:

Part 1: Premiere: Karli Bua: Friday, October 7, 7:30 PM, plus a discussion

Play: Karl Sibelius

Pianist Nebojsa Krulanovic

Part 2: ‘Ideologie der Verlassenheit’: Saturday, October 8, 7:30 PM

Play: Karl Sibelius

Composition & Cello: Jörg Ulrich Krah

Piano: Hiroyo Masumura

Scenic arrangement & live animation: Marcel Keller

German text: Martina Winkel

Part 3: ‘Adam Schaf hat Angst’ by G. Kreisler: Sunday, October 9, 11:00 AM, plus a discussion.

Play: Karl Sibelius

Pianist Nebojsa Krulanovic

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window

Children's Culture Festival Linz at the JKU’s Circus of Knowledge

Dates:

Opening featuring Faszination Krake (ages 4+), Wednesday, October 12, 9.00 AM & 11.00 AM, 4.30 PM, plus the opening celebration, duration: approx. 50 minutes

MondTraum & PlanetenKlang (ages 8+), Saturday, October 15, 4:00 PM / Sunday, October 16, 4:00 PM, duration: 50 minutes

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window

November

World Premiere: NAT.U.R.AL - based on motifs by Karel Čapek's R.U.R. (ages 14+)

A wandering troupe of actors decides to recapture the audience's attention by posing as humanoid androids capable of predicting the future. A critical study of the relationship between humanity and the artificial, the problem of universal morality, and of the potential to misuse artificial intelligence.

By: Dávid Paška

Duration: 75 minutes

Dates: Friday, November 4, 7:30 PM / Saturday, November 5, beginning at 4:00 PM (performance and symposium)/ Friday, November 11, 7:30 PM / Saturday, November 12, 7:30 PM.

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window

KAMISHIBAI: Shadow Theater about the Lives of Great Researchers.

Part 1 - The Series Begins with Dinosaur Researcher, Mary Anning. (Ages 6+)

The audience at the Circus of Knowledge experience the lives of important scientists and researchers in an unusual way. The first episode focuses on dinosaur researcher, Mary Anning, who, as a young girl, discovered dinosaur fossils. Mary spent her entire life searching for fossils: Her finds and discoveries significantly contributed to the development of early paleontology.

By and featuring: Alexandra Meyer-Pernkopf, puppeteer and Upper Austrian storyteller.

Duration: 90 minutes

Date: Saturday, November 19, 3:00 PM (performance and workshop)

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window

December

World Premiere: Und da oben dazwischen die Sterne. Science & Ethics - Galileo & Kepler. (Ages 14+)

Galileo and Kepler? There was something about those two. Stars and binoculars, mathematics and experiments.

While these two gentlemen only corresponded with one another, the two of them nevertheless shook the western world view considerably, paving the way for modern natural sciences. They managed to resolve the issue of the stars in the sky, but the in between? What is between the stars? Divine harmony? Or emptiness? Kepler was inclined toward harmony. Galileo proved that the "void" exists, something thought impossible since the ancient Greeks. He knew what he was talking about.

But when Sister Maria Celeste, Galileo's eldest daughter, asked him for money for her own room (long before Virginia Woolf), did he know what she was talking about? So, what does "knowledge" mean? Where does "knowledge" take us? And above all: how do we come up with what and why? A performance by artists and philosophers at the JKU will focus on these questions.

Text & Director: Gerhard Willert

Featuring: Barbara Novotny, Julian Reiss, Aline Potiron, and students at the JKU Institute for Philosophy and Scientific Method

Stage: Alexandra Pitz

Music: Wolfgang Dorninger

Duration: 75 minutes

Dates: Friday, December 2, 7:30 PM / Saturday, December 3, beginning at 4:00 PM (symposia and performance)

Sign up in advance to attend at: jku.at/zirkus-des-wissens, opens an external URL in a new window

The program for January to June will be available at the end of 2022.