What’s on this week: 6-12 April

Artists from all over the world are coming to Brussels to bring their performances from within the circus tent. Hopla! includes 13 outdoors shows and three indoor, from trapeze to acrobatics to stunts that will keep you on the edge of your seat. This festival is to promote the relationship between the circus and the city, so many performances take place in popular neighbourhoods around town.
April 9-15, Place Sainte-Catherine and Vismet

Roma around the world will celebrate their international day to commemorate the anniversary of the founding of the International Romani Union in 1971. This day is essential for the Roma community to celebrate their culture and their history, but it is also a time for all Europeans to reflect on the discrimination they face on a daily basis. There will be concerts of gypsy music, stands with information and a photo exhibition called ‘Brussels Seen by the Roma’.
April 8, from 14.00, Place de la Bourse

This is the first time the Independent Label Market is in Brussels, but it finally offers the chance for independent record labels to unite for a weekend. Labels will introduce the masses to their artists and albums and meet face-to-face with collectors and fans. On top of that, there will be concerts, DJs and conferences.
April 7-8, Wiels, Brussels

Bicycle seat loose? CD player skip? Blender on the fritz? The Repair Café at Pianofabriek culture centre is open on the second Sunday of every month until June. Don’t throw it out, learn how to fix it.
April 8, Pianofabriek, Rue du Fort 35

Floralia Brussels at the beautiful castle in Groot-Bijgaarden, just west of Brussels, includes nearly all spring bulb varieties; they planted over one million bulbs. There are more than 400 types of tulips, huge numbers of narcissuses and daffodils and so many more. Enjoy the calmness of the flowers as you walk through the castle grounds.
April 6 to May 6, Groot-Bijgaarden Castle

Fans of the late Chantal Akerman will enjoy Chantal?, an homage to the pioneering Belgian filmmaker. Live classical music will accompany her short film Saute ma ville (Blow Up My Town), while Aurore Clément will interpret Akerman’s text Une Famille à Bruxelles.
April 11, Flagey

Kaaitheater offers a great chance to see a revival performance of Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s Achterland (Hinterland). The seminal modern dance piece from 1990 helped usher a new era of music played onstage with the dancers, one of the Brussels choreographer’s many pioneering methods. Music by György Ligeti’s and Eugène Ysaÿe bounces between energetic and calm, giving the dancers a wide berth in movement as they play out scenes that struggle with balance and boundaries.
April 12-15, Kaaitheater

It’s the 25th anniversary of the Brussels African Market, and its celebrating with a special edition called Festival Afrique en Couleurs. There are concerts, dance performances, Afro-Caribbean cuisine, kids’ entertainment and plenty of opportunities to decorate your home or body with the bright colours on display.
April 7, noon-23.30, Hembeek-Mutsaard Cultural Centre, Rue F Vekemans 131

Those persistent enough to have been taken on a carefully guarded tour of North Korea can attest to the authorities reactions to the taking of photographs. It is done only by permission and under the strictest of supervision. Professional photographers are simply not allowed. This makes Belgian photographer Carl De Keyzer’s DPR Korea Grand Tour all the more fascinating. Through the British-run Koryo Group, he was able to visit the mysteriously quirky country three times and take very intimate shots of everyday life. Many of the 200 locations he visited have been photographed by a Western lens for the very first time.
Until May 19, Roberto Polo Gallery

OUTSIDE BRUSSELS

Reuters seemed terribly excited when it ran the recent headline: “Huge chocolate statues spring up in Belgium”. Seemed like just another day to us, but the tiny Durbuy in Luxembourg province has indeed taken the art of chocolate one step further with a ChocoPalace festival, which includes animal figures, such as elephants, gorillas and bunnies sculpted out of chocolate, many vendors happy to help you choose the right flavour and filling and ‘a chocolate river’. This is the last weekend for the festival, which has so far attracted 30,000 visitors.
Until April 8, Durbuy

The 30th edition of the Belgian comicon is back. FACTS is home to all things fantasy, animation, comics, toys, sci-fi and cosplay. Meet the stars of your favourite comics and shows, watch cosplay contests and discover the special items you have always wanted. Ask your favourites actors and stars questions during the Q&A panels, visit hundreds of international exhibitors and experience the latest video games.
April 7-8, Flanders Expo, Ghent