Based on the novel, The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern, my film adaptation depicts a magical fantasy story set in Victorian London. It follows a travelling circus which appears in towns without warning or advertisement; the circus opens at midnight ad closes at dawn. Everything is black and white from the tents, to the floor and costumes and also completely spherical. Dimly lit by the warm glow of the fire in the centre of the courtyard and twinkling lights strung between the tents,
“The whole of Le Cirque des Rêves is formed by a series of circles…Rather than a single tent with rings enclosed within, this circus contains clusters of tents like pyramids, some large and others quite small.”
However it becomes clear that the magic of the circus runs deeper than the façade and is actually a contest between two old rival magicians, each pledging a contestant of their choice in a magical fight to the death.