‘Wonderhaus’: the ‘glorious little carcrash’ of Bristol’s DIY renegade cabaret

The scratch clown and dada night Wonderhaus describes itself as “a place for new ideas to take shape and imaginations to run free”.

A true selection box cabaret of five or 10 minute acts, it features circus, comedy, live art, music, spoken word, and the inimitable audience game of ‘Fruit Tap’.

Often however, artists are drawn to the Wonderhaus stage to explore the freedom afforded by inhabiting the space between those niches – a place where all constraints or expectations are gone.

Marky Jay and Lucia d’Inverno – photo: Valentina Solari

Co-created by Lucia d’Inverno of Scarlet Oak Theatre and professional circus performers Robin Boon Dale and Loz and Mark James (better known as Loz Because and Marky Jay), the night runs quarterly on Sunday nights at The Wardrobe Theatre, where it has found a natural home.

Be they seasoned performers or those stepping on stage for the first time, central to the ethos of Wonderhaus is that everyone is up there trying something in a non-judgemental open space.

Fruit Tap – photo: Valentina Solari

And it’s important to say that not all of it works. In fact, lots of it doesn’t. But for Mark – who also used to run a famously anarchic pub quiz at The Canteen – that’s exactly where the alchemy of the night lies.

“I have people coming up at the end saying ‘I’ve literally just watched Cirque du Soleil at the Royal Albert Hall, and I was so much more into this’,” he says.

Photo: Valentina Solari

“And that’s exactly it: the professional circus world is meant to be good, and it is good. Tick tick. Whereas I think, when you’ve seen something intrinsically not work, and then someone comes on and you see that spark, that’s electric.”

Through Wonderhaus, the team are eager to forge links between the many creative communities within Bristol, as well as giving space to a multitude of voices, ages and levels of experience.

Photo: Valentina Solari

They are also dedicated to ensuring the night is accessible – at £5 a ticket, it’s currently the cheapest show at The Wardrobe Theatre all year. Admittedly, for Mark, it’s a labour of love, and the opposite of the glitz and glamour of the circus world. “Here,” he reflects, “we’re taking the paint and polish right off, and exposing the metal – for better or worse.”

Some audience members have become evangelical about the rollercoaster of Wonderhaus, veering from the sublime moment, to the crash, and back again. Mark is hopeful that the experience will inspire people to bring their own idea to a future event.

On March 10, confirmed acts will include a debut live performance from the mountains and synths-loving musician Tiiva, silent clowning from Darryl J Carrington, spoken word and axe-chopping from Jake England-Johns, and MC-ing from Doug Francisco of The Invisible Circus.

At the end, there is always time to mingle. “Everyone needs to talk it through afterwards,” concludes Mark. “Even though all the acts are completely disparate, I see us as an ensemble cast. We win or we fail together.”

Wonderhaus is at The Wardrobe Theatre on March 10 at 7pm, and then quarterly. Tickets are available at www.thewardrobetheatre.com. Follow @thisiswonderhaus for future news and events.

Main photo: Guy Bellingham

Read next:

• ‘Giving regular people their five minutes of fame’: the community comedy of Tommy’s Waffle Club
• ‘FailFailFailFailWin’: A family circus comedy show about the value of failure

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