one4review | On 11, Aug 2025

The Genesis fills the Main Hall at Assembly Hall with a world made from bodies, trust, and music. Copenhagen Collective brings 17 international artists for an hour of contemporary circus that grows from an empty stage. The idea is simple and strong: people are strongest together. You see it in the mix of powerful female bases and soaring male flyers and in the way groups click into place like moving architecture. The show looks and sounds great too. A score of strings, piano, and voices guides the action, and the lighting shifts from cathedral calm to nightlife pulse. It’s welcoming for families without losing ambition.

From the seats, the experience feels close and big at the same time. The room goes quiet as someone holds a tense, perfect balance and then bursts into gasps and cheers when the energy returns. The four-person pyramid lands more than once, each time a little sharper, like the idea is growing in real time. The moment that floored me comes mid-show: performers stand on shoulders and backflip backwards into the hands of partners who are also standing on shoulders, two bodies high, catching clean. I still do not know how they set the timing. What you feel is trust, passed from grip to grip. The music holds the quiet parts and then lifts the speed, and the lights frame the risk without turning it cold.

What shines is how clear the purpose is. The performance never feels like showing off. They carry the story of cooperation, strength and solidarity. The Genesis is joyful, generous, and polished. For families, Fringe fans, and people with eyes, this show must be seen by everyone. Flawless.

*****

Reviewed by Matthew

Assembly Halls – Main Hall

12.30 (1hr)

Until 25 (not 18)