Cirkidz is a youth

circus school Circus schools are institutions that offer professional and sometimes degree-level training in various circus skills such as acrobatics, aerial arts, object manipulation, and other specialized physical skills. The rise of the circus school as ...

based in

Bowden Bowden may refer to: Places Australia * Bowden Island, one of the Family Islands in Queensland * Bowden, South Australia, northwestern suburb of Adelaide * Bowden railway station Canada * Bowden, Alberta, town in central Alberta England * Bowde ...

in the

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

n capital of

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

. It was founded by Tony Hannan and Michael Lester in 1985 as a workshop project to provide alternative opportunities for recreation for disadvantaged young people in Adelaide's industrial inner-western suburbs. The initial 6-month project was so successful that it was continued, to the point where in 2015, Cirkidz celebrated its 30th anniversary. Numerous Cirkidz alumni have gone on to careers in the circus arts at

Circus Oz Circus Oz is a contemporary circus company based in Australia, collectively owned by its Membership, founded in 1977. Its shows incorporate theatre, satire, rock 'n' roll and a uniquely Australian humour. History Early years Circus Oz was inco ...

NICA Nica or NICA may refer to: * Nīca, a village in Latvia * Nica, the name in some languages of Nice, a French city * Nica is an adjective which may refer to: ** Nicaragua ** Nicaraguan people * Nica Airlines, an alternate name for Nicaragüense de ...

or by forming their own company (Rambutan Circus Collective, Gravity and Other Myths). Cirkidz teaches circus and performance skills to children, young people, and adults through three core programs: Circus School, Performance Troupe and Community Workshops. Circus School classes are available to anyone from 2 and a half through to 18 years old. Adults can also attend to adults only classes. In these classes, skills are taught according to each student's age in a wide range of acrobatic arts, such as: Juggling, Unicycling, Stilts, Trapeze, Hula, Trampoline, Pyramids, Tissu, Barrel walking, Acrobatics, Skipping, Mini-Tramp, Flowersticks, Poi, Acrobatics, Cloud swing, Teeterboard, Clowning, Cord, Slapstick, Table sliding, Plate spinning, Cigar boxes, Globe, Manipulation, Slack Wire, Staff Twirling, Contact Juggling, Tumbling, Hoop diving and Fast Track; as well as movement, acting and related performance skills. They aim to provide meaningful recreation and community engagement opportunities for disadvantaged youth in Adelaide’s inner west. The Performance Troupe are Cirkidz participants, and create high quality artistic work in the form of theatre & roving performances. They are regularly booked to perform at a range of iconic South Australian events, including the

Adelaide Fringe The Adelaide Fringe, formerly Adelaide Fringe Festival, is the world's second-largest annual arts festival (after the Edinburgh Festival Fringe), held in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Between mid-February and mid-March each year, i ...

Parade, the

Credit Union Christmas Pageant The National Pharmacies Christmas Pageant is a parade held annually in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Established in 1933, the event is staged annually on the second Saturday of November, typically from 9.30am except 2020 and 2021 wh ...

, the

Tour Down Under The Tour Down Under (branded as the Santos Tour Down Under under a partnership arrangement) is a cycling race in and around Adelaide, South Australia, and is traditionally the opening event of the UCI World Tour and features all 19 UCI WorldTe ...

as well as a range of other events. The Performance Troupe also have annual productions for the general viewing public. In 2009, they performed 'Freaky', a sold out co-production with Circus Monoxide as part of 2009 Come Out Youth Arts Festival. With an extensive production history, Cirkidz' most recent production was 'Nest' in 2013, in association with several local emerging visual and audio artists. The Performance Troupe's creative output is under the direction and guidance of Cirkidz' Artistic Director. Since 2012, Cirkidz' Artistic Director has been Joshua Hoare. The Community Workshop Program takes the circus arts into schools, workplaces, health organisations, child care centres, or partners with events such as Tunarama in Pt Lincoln as part of Cirkidz brief to provide circus experiences for a range of disadvantaged, or isolated young people.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Cirkidz
CirkidzCircus in Australia at the Australian culture and recreation portal
Circuses Circus schools Education in Adelaide Performing arts in Adelaide Performing arts education in Australia

See also

References

External links