Nico Baixas: "I want to perform top-quality theater on the stormiest streets."

BarcelonaNico Baixas (San Esteban de Palautordera, 1971), after almost ten years of success with Cirque du Soleil, has decided to return to street theatre, where he feels most comfortable. And he starts, as it could not be otherwise, in the next edition of the FiraTàrrega (from September 11 to 14) with the premiere of his new show One Hand Show, in which his hands regain prominence.

He revisits the decision he made in 2013, when he traveled across Europe homeless and with a shopping cart. Why?

I don't like art being the preserve of enlightened people. I want art to connect with society, with everyone, not just with those who might come prepared to see you, but with those you meet by chance. I remember in 2014, just when I was most homeless, most settled, and happiest, Cirque du Soleil called me.

With an offer he couldn't refuse?

They offered me a red carpet and to do my own act. No, I couldn't say no. I had the opportunity to learn a lot.

And almost ten years after touring around the world, he's back on the road.

I'm back to doing what I want, my first choice.

An option in regression?

We're at the end of the era of street theater. Paying artists with Bizum is an example of this degradation that will put an end to shows where artists pass the hat to the audience.

What has changed in your art since Cirque du Soleil?

I'm back to my sleight of hand. But aside from putting them to the test, I'm taking my stagecraft to the next level. Now I don't use a cart like I used to, but rather an electric bike, and I use professional lighting and good sound. The idea is to bring a top-quality show to the streets, to the most sordid and crazy places if necessary.

What do you get out of doing this?

Being in front of a genuine audience that welcomes me with open arms. It's always on the street where I do best and where I have the greatest impact.

And should FiraTàrrega be the place to resume this path?

The idea was to revive an art form that was free for the viewer, and that's only possible at fairs like the one in Tàrrega. I think we should appreciate that in the Mediterranean we have a unique type of fair, which many of us take for granted because they're part of our culture, but which aren't everywhere. I've traveled a lot and realized that there are countries where this concept doesn't exist. We must take care of our legacy.

Are the streets really ours?

They are currently too controlled.

What does it mean?

Well, the street is increasingly dangerous for artists. It seems like everything in Europe is illegal these days. The street has the potential to be open to everyone, open to everyone, uncontrolled, and that's one of the great things we've wasted. It's a shame it's not understood that way.

I'm afraid this regression happens everywhere, right?

In Asia, street life is much more culturally ingrained, and in cities like New York, where I've been for a long time, you don't want to know how the lien in the street, some chickens that you flip out, and the police never say anything. And here in Europe, it seems the streets are an increasingly dead place.

A controlled street?

Politicians want boring streets, where nothing happens.

His new project, therefore, rows against the wind.

Yes, absolutely. But I refuse to accept it. I'm acting illegally. If necessary, I'll run from the police. It's my way of actively fighting against what I don't like. We have to protest, not by posting on Instagram, but by actually doing it.

In today's complex world of wars, climate crisis, xenophobic politicians, populist governments... isn't it even more difficult than ever?

Art is a way of escape, a door to a better world. Art can make something beautiful out of ugliness. This is what happens to all artists who go to difficult places: they make beauty out of complication; they eventually find a way out of problems through art.

Mastering reality through art?

Today, we can no longer control the world. We were led to believe that voting in an election allowed us to decide. Now we know otherwise.

And what is left for us?

Creating a small oasis, a small utopia, a small action. This is art.

But doing it on the street exposes you to punishment more easily, doesn't it?

I've seen that I can change reality, that of a square or a street that seemed dead and ended up full of people clapping and laughing. With the street, I've heard that I'm a magician, that I can change things.

It reminds me of Leo Bassi.

I'm glad you said that. I always thought I didn't have the balls. If you join the system, it absorbs you and you end up becoming a product.

However, your new show is small, with a maximum of 200 spectators. Another limitation?

No. Working for a small audience doesn't mean less impact. There are small spaces where people value you much more. But, in any case, I'm preparing much larger projects, with the introduction of giant screens, which may even lead me to make live films.

Multidisciplinary theater. A way to diversify and avoid putting all your eggs in one basket?

As a child, I grew up with a lot of freedom. I wanted to be anything, and anything sparked my curiosity. I learned this from my mother, who was very good at everything. She painted incredibly, cooked incredibly, sewed incredibly… I thought this was my path. Music, film, photography, theater… People kept telling me I was lost, that I couldn't put it all together. But I've learned from each discipline, and together, it's all made sense.

Can your theatre be understood all over the world, in all cultures?

I come from a background in visual theater. It's a language I know very well. The fact that the word doesn't exist makes it more universal. My hands, when they speak, express a lot.

Do you have a favorite hand?

Each of my hands has a different sensitivity, and that's why there are things I do better with one hand than the other, and vice versa. They say the left hand is the best silly it isn't true [laughs].