In Banquet, a candlelit dining table is set for four. Violin underscores the opening scene as a love story is told through acrobalance. After the dinner party finishes, a thief is discovered hiding under the dining table – and the story becomes a love triangle as themes of class start to unfurl.
Under the direction of Gabriel Walker, the cast are all recent or soon to be graduates of National Institute of Circus Arts. Featuring a variety of disciplines, Banquet is beautiful nonverbal storytelling that explores the perils of drinking with the bourgeoisie.
Banquet at Melbourne Fringe – quick links
Circus arts used to explore class themes
Banquet is an experimental fusion of genres and influences, from writer Anton Chekov to director James Thiérrée and the Belgian dance company Peeping Tom.
The live musical saw is a welcome, ethereal surprise. Partner juggling provides a beautifully unique moment, with a game of catch turning into a bromance that builds nicely into collaborative trio work with gravity defying acrobatics, though it’s not quite in keeping with the tone of the rest of the performance.
Read: Circus De Licious review: promising variety show doesn’t quite hold together
The Chinese pole is a solid, playful and poignant vignette, offering a strong commentary on class solidarity. The themes of greed and power culminate in a strong final act.
Chekhov’s gun: overstuffed set distracts from the main fare
Banquet would benefit from a pared back set. There are apples all over the stage, though they seem to serve little purpose except for the partner juggling sequence and the force-feeding of the romantic lead.
While the gun on stage does prove central to the plot, the apples are cleared from the stage without much fanfare or consideration for what they add to the act structure. It’s a missed opportunity the use of the set and props can only improve with some dedication to further development.
Who’s invited to the banquet? Tackling the big issues
The circus sector is in desperate need of education and mobilisation around diversity, equity and inclusion. Class stories like Banquet can be well told but without integrating those values into the production itself, it’s hard to feel like there is genuine commitment or commentary.
The simple narrative could be strengthened with more attention towards the mise en scène, set dressing and overall representation within the cast.
While raising class consciousness through circus arts is an incredibly noble pursuit, offering something as simple as a mask-mandatory show could go a long way to providing accessibility to a broader community (though it’s a service most events in this year’s Melbourne Fringe program have seemingly overlooked).
Overall, Banquet is innovative and captivating. It received a Judges Pick for Circus in Melbourne Fringe 2025, and the skills and sound design alone merit the attention. Hopefully we will be treated to seeing this cast commit to exploring other relevant and current topics with the same creativity in future.
Banquet was presented at Studio Nexus as part of Melbourne Fringe Festival.
This review was written as part of Circus.txt, a professional development program designed and delivered by Oozing Future to engage arts writers with contemporary circus and physical theatre practice, and increase the visibility of critical dialogue within the sector. This project was funded by Creative Australia through their Victorian Circus and Physical Theatre grant round.
