SCHOOL OF CONTEMPORARY CIRCUS
By Shana Kennedy
In 2013, I had been the director of a recreational circus school for over a
decade (the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts). I had veered away from the
mission of my earlier education at Circomedia, Academy of Circus Arts and
Physical Theatre, in Bristol, UK. There, I studied contemporary circus and art-
making in the mid-1990s. But the United States was different—circus here was
either recreational or corporate—and I had settled into it, making ends meet.
In the early 2000s, circus schools like PSCA were popping up all over the
country, and we’d begun to network more—attending conferences, chatting
online, comparing notes. And as we watched the art form evolve at a
professional level, with Cirque du Soleil making space for touring companies
like Cirque Eloize and The 7 Fingers, there was an increasing sense that the
U.S. was being left behind, that talented young artists by necessity had to
leave the country for education and work opportunities. The companies who
did emerge and remain in the U.S., such as Cirque Mechanics and Ricochet,
had to struggle mightily to survive.
At that point, a few recreational schools in the U.S. had begun offering “pro-
track” programs, and excellent coaches existed at these schools. But from
my vantage point, this did not seem sufficient to meet the need. It was clear
from the European and Canadian models that for students to contribute
meaningfully to the art form, they needed several years of committed,
intensive training; big, professional facilities; recognition by governments and
arts foundations; and actual degrees.
2013 was when I realized that no such school was going to materialize by itself;
and that I was as qualified as anyone to take a stab at it. After one intense
focus group meeting in the summer of 2013, we incorporated Circadium as
a non-profit, formed a Board of Directors, and began a four-year planning
process.
Many have asked: why the need for a state-licensed degree program? For the
best explanation, I turn to Tim Roberts. Tim is the Higher Education Program
Director at the Ecole de Cirque de Quebec, and before that he was the
President of the Federation Européen des Ecoles de Cirque Professionelles.
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