Zirkus Šardam

Step right up to the Šardam Circus, where the ring is open for skilled riders, tightrope walkers, aerial acrobats, Filipino jugglers, and shark trainers! What promises to be a fascinating show is repeatedly disrupted by the stubborn citizen Vertunov, who is eager to perform but lacks any real talent. His imitation of a goat leaves much to be desired, and his grunting and neighing are unconvincing. The desperate director tries everything to rid himself of this nuisance. The performance spirals more and more out of control until eventually, everyone on stage drowns, yet they are not dead. How the troublemaker Vertunov manages to become the hero of the circus troupe in the end is a fantastic spectacle like you have never read before.

Daniil Kharms was only interested in nonsense, as he himself stated. His portrayals of a meaningless world made him an enemy of Stalinist culture: the Šardam Circus, a prototype of absurdity, was written in 1935 for the short-lived Leningrad Puppet Theater, but it could only be published in a literary magazine in 1992. Against the backdrop of repression and persecution, his great explosive power is revealed.