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About BassAlto

BassAlto is a new, all-female company of professional wirewalkers.

The BassAlto spectacle features five women funambulists, tightrope walkers and acrobats from the best European circus schools and ten passionate local participants on an extraordinary infrastructure – a web of wires suspended at different heights with 360° audience visibility – discovering the magic of walking the sky.

The name 'BassAlto' is a fusion of 'basalt' taken from the basalt columns of the Giant's Causeway, and the legend that accompanies that area and 'bass'/'alto'- 'low' and 'high', referencing the wires at different heights that will be used for their performance.

In January 2020 auditions were hosted in Belgium for the new funambulism company. The BassAlto performers are Grace Neville-Evans (United Kingdom), Suzon Gheur (Belgium), Louise Mercadier (France), Carlotta Risitano (Italy), and Klara Sköldulf Philipp (Sweden).

The artistic team is comprised of Sergi Ots (Director/Creation), Mariona Moya (Choreographer/Creation), Vincent Wauters (Artistic & Production Director), Bruno Frenette (Technical Director), Gil Mortio (Musical Director), Margaux Fabre (Production Coordinator) and Alexandre Lapouge (Production Assistant).

Over the course of the Creative Europe project, BassAlto will complete residencies in Galway, Brussels and Timisoara, and will perform a show in each place with a group of 10 amateurs from each location. The premiere of BassAlto is in Galway and their Galway residency takes place before the LifeLine spectacle, 6-17 July. BassAlto is a part of the 2022 Galway International Arts Festival.

BassAlto residencies:


April 11-15 in Brussels, Belgium
June 12-18 in Timisoara, Romania
July 6-17 in Galway, Ireland, with the premiere of BassAlto July 15

Wires Crossed: Head, Heart, Balance

Wires Crossed - Head, Heart, Balance’ is a Creative Europe funded co-operation project running from 2019-2023 between Ecole de Cirque de Bruxelles, Galway Community Circus, The Serious Road Trip Romania, Université libre de Bruxelles and the European Funambulism Network that supports artistic and participatory excellence in funambulism (wirewalking with a balancing pole.)

The project has focused on the creation of the new professional wirewalking company called 'BassAlto', the creation of a new wirewalking performance by BassAlto, and scientific research into the neurological effects of funambulism on the brain in partnership with Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Lead Partner: Ecole de Cirque de Bruxelles (BE). Other partners: Galway Community Circus, The Serious Road Trip Romania (RO), Université Libre de Bruxelles (BE).
Associate Partners:
NUI Galway, Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture.