With 30 years of experience teaching circus in the Canberra region, Warehouse Circus is one of Australia’s finest youth circus organisations. We make our programs friendly and accessible for all people of all ages, catering to a wide range of skill levels, from those who have never done circus before to those who have quite a lot of circus experience. We respect diversity in our programs and provide assistance to young people with additional needs to ensure everybody can participate to the best of their ability in classes. We foster a co-operative environment rather than a competitive one and aim to give everyone an opportunity to learn fun skills they can show off with. We have a very low student/teacher ratio which allows each student constant support and supervision whilst learning a wide range of interesting and exciting circus skills.
Our General Circus Classes which run alongside the ACT School Term are a great place to start! Learn all about what circus has to offer in a fun, inclusive and non-competitive environment and begin your journey as a well-rounded circus artist.
Young Participants in these classes have the opportunity to perform as part of our mid-year show and end of year shows.
From our entry level stream, students who have acquired a few skills and have a great attitude to training are invited into our Next Step stream, consisting of Next Step classes for under 8’s and Next Step Troupes for ages 8 and up. Next Step classes are general circus classes that continue to focus primarily on individual development of core shapes and skills and group cohesion, while in Next Step Troupes, participants also begin to work on group skills for performance.
Once students are in a Next Step Troupe, they may like to consider taking up an extra night of training per week such as our Fundamentals for Specialty Training where they can focus on the fundamentals for specific disciplines across the three streams on offer – aerial, acrobatics and manipulations and balance (including equilibristics). If students are keen performers, they can also enrol in our Performance Development Class which teaches performance techniques and also puts together material for community events and festivals. We believe doing lots of community shows is the best way for young performers to learn and perfect their craft.
Students with a high level of skill across a number of areas and consistent good attitude and dedication to training are invited into one of our two Performance Troupes. Performance Troupe members are considered young leaders within our community and as such have the opportunity to be involved in special projects and theatre productions and to represent Warehouse Circus at larger festivals and events. Performance Troupe Members can also continue to train a second night a week in Advanced Specialty Training and are invited to Performance Development Class for free!
There are discounts available for Next Step and Performance Troupe members who enrol in Specialty Training and/or Performance Development Class. See our Performance Packages for more details.
General Circus classes are great for Adults as well – offering a chance to increase fitness in a fun, social environment. Adults who want to specialise can also enrol straight into our Adult Specialty Training as a stand alone class or to compliment their general circus class. For the over 50s we offer Circus Gold – a relaxing, social general circus class which for older members can double as a fall prevention strategy and, through activities like juggling, even increase brain plasticity, keeping you physically and mentally well and young at heart!
Want to kick start your circus experience or top up your skills when you have the time? Why not enrol in a Warehouse Circus School Holiday Program? Our Holiday Programs provide a full week of training for ages 8 -17, and half day programs for ages 5 – 7. Holiday Programs cater for entry level and intermediate students, while our Next Step holiday program is a great starting place for teens and a chance for concentrated skill development for Next Step Troupe members.
If you are looking for intensive skill development and a chance to learn from guest professionals from across the industry keep an eye out for our holiday Training Intensives, the biggest of which is held in January each year. Open to young people and adults, Training Intensives are like a circus boot camp where you get to choose your own suite of sessions throughout the week.
For people with disabilities we offer circus as therapy in our Spin Out classes, and we offer a way to transition into a general class for students who are not quite group ready through our Assisted Places Program.
We also have an increasing number of School and Community Programs which can run in our space in Chifley, or we can come to you! If you are a school or community group interested in having us deliver a circus program, please follow the link for more information or submit a Program Enquiry.
