We are excited to announce two new adult classes being offered during the Winter 2020 session!

Ash Rexford is offering a new Contortion Dance class (Sundays 3-5p). This 2 hour dance class mixes hip-hop, modern, and contemporary urban dance with contortion and acrobatics. Each class begins with a warm-up of dance technique incorporating splits, back bends, and inversions. Choreography and sequencing repeats throughout the month so students can learn, build, and practice! Expect a new routine every 4 - 6 weeks. Students should be comfortable in splits, able to drop back into bridge and kick up to stand and forearm stand without a wall or spot. Students are expected to come at least 30-minutes early to warm up flexibility. Prerequisite: Approved for Advanced Stretch and higher or Instructor Approval.

Sean Heisler is joining the faculty and offering an exciting new upper-level class, Choreography for Tissu 2 (Tuesdays 7:45-9:15). While we have conditioning classes, and skill based classes - this series is looking to help round out the offering with explorations of how to use and vary skills already learned and set them to music with intention. In this class you will learn segments and entire songs worth of choreography progressing week to week (but if you miss a week you can still be caught up). While the intention of this class isn't to advance students to new repertoire, you'll likely be picking up some new skills and variations, and prioritizing how do you then think to perform them! Prerequisite: Approved for Tissu 2/3 or Instructor Approval.

For complete information about the Winter 2020 session, visit circuscenter.org/schedule.

Put yourself in the fast lane!

To realize your circus dreams, your training must tackle three areas:

1. Flexibility: Good flexibility makes technical skill more beautiful to the eye, and it can take the longest to achieve.
2. Strength: You need both power and stamina to train and perform at your best.
3. Technique: The skills themselves, learned in class and through independent practice. At Circus Center, we don’t just work a skill until you get it right – we work it until you can’t get it wrong. 

For the Winter 2020 session, we are excited to offer you special discounts when you combine full session enrollment in a technique class with a strength or flexibility class.

How It Works

Between November 19 and December 1 (i.e., the Winter 2020 priority registration period):

The Fine Print

This offer is good for full session enrollments ONLY, for one person (discount cannot be shared by multiple people). Each enrollment in a technique class gets you one discounted enrollment in a conditioning/flexibility class. Purchases must be made at the same time to receive the discount. No refunds.

Make 2020 the year you learn faster and go further with your circus dreams!

OPEN CALL FOR PERFORMERS, MUSICIANS, AND PRODUCTION TEAM

MAIN AUDITIONS: SEPTEMBER 15, 2019

Circus of Light

2019 Winter Show

Directed by Felicity Hesed

Light.  Light is ever present in our lives.  Lights in our homes, light on our cars, lights on the streets, lights on our phones, keys, toothbrushes even!  Why do we constantly surround ourselves in light?  Is it a fear of the dark?  Or a need to be constantly illuminated? At the darkest time of the year, Circus of Light will explore the way light reveals and exposes, the expression of our passions as light, the human longing for light, and the darkness that exists just a flick away. 

The Winter Show is a celebration and exhibition of our Circus Center community as artists and athletes.   The cast will include the many facets of our community – our youth groups, high-level adult rec students, flying trapeze, Clown Con students, professionals that train at our center, instructors, and alumni. 

Any and all acts will be considered for this show.  We are looking for a range of people and styles.  We are open to what the community has to offer.  We are also specifically looking for aerialists who play violin and people with circus acts who also play instruments.

Winter Show Schedule

We are fortunate to be able to have more rehearsal time than we have had for previous shows.  Rehearsals will be held every Sunday evening from 5-8pm starting September 22. 

In addition, for the first time in many years, the Winter Show will have a 4-show weekend! Since so much hard work goes into creating these shows, and they have a strong track record of attracting big crowds, it only makes sense to give our community more chances to perform and see performances!

Audition Schedule

• Youth Auditions: either September 13 or 16 during pre-pro training
• Sunday, September 15: Flying Trapeze Auditions from 1:30-2:30 pm
• Sunday, September 15: Act & Ensemble Auditions from 2:30-6:00 pm
• Additional Clown Con Auditions (if necessary): by appointment, week of September 16
• Can't make the date? Contact auditions@circuscenter.org about options for submitting a video or scheduling an alternate time for an in-person audition.

Rehearsal Schedule

• Every Sunday night from Sept 22 – Nov 24: Rehearsals 5:00-8:00 pm
• Sunday, December 1: Rehearsal and Designer Run from 2:00-8:00 pm
• Saturday, December 7: Tech Rehearsal from 4:00-9:00 pm
• Sunday, December 8: Tech Rehearsal from 2:00-8:00 pm
• Thursday, December 12:  Dress Rehearsal from 6-10 pm 

Performance Schedule

• Friday, December 13 at 7:30 pm, Call is 6:00 pm
• Saturday, December 14 at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm, Call is 12:00 pm
• Sunday, December 15 at 2:00 pm, Call is 12:00 pm followed by Strike and Cast Party 

Audition Information

Interested in being a part of this show?  We are looking for the following:

• Youth and Adult performers with solo, duo, or small group acts.  Please be ready to present as much of an act as you have.  Works in progress are acceptable.
• Aerialists who also play violin for a group act.  Prepare to show us about 1 min of aerial and about 1 min of violin.  Hoop is preferred.
• People who do circus and also play musical instruments.  Please bring your act and your instrument.  Prepare to play a song that’s about 1 minute at the audition.
• Flying trapeze performers with tricks out of lines who can return to the board.  Please be ready to show us your tricks out of line, with a catcher, returning to the board.
• Clowns and ground circus acts.  Show us what you have!
• Artists interested in being part of the ensemble.  Great if you can do one or more of the following: juggle, tumble, play an instrument, dance, do basic rigging.  Please be prepared to show us little snippets of what you can do.

A note about music…

We aim to create a cohesive musical soundscape for this show.  We are also working on having some live music, featuring string instruments. Please be aware that we may ask you to change your music so that it fits into the overall musical theme better.  If you are still choosing music, look for something without words and not too electronic.

A note about the theme…

You do NOT need to have an act that “fits” the theme.  However, if you have ideas for how to fit into the theme, we’d love to see it or hear it. We love creative artists!

Sign up to audition!

Performers, please email auditions@circuscenter.org to sign up for an audition slot or to inquire about submitting a video or scheduling an alternate time. If you have questions or are interested in being involved in a non-performance capacity, please email Felicity at felicity [AT] circuscenter [DOT] org.

Felicity Hesed is a performer and director. You’ve probably seen her hanging around Circus Center – teaching, training trapeze, or juggling babies. Felicity had an incredible time directing Circus Addiction over the summer. She is really excited to once again collaborate with the amazing students and teachers at Circus Center to create beautiful and inspiring circus! Learn more about Felicity at felicityhesed.com.

Announcement from the Executive Director

SUMMARY: In order to pay teachers more competitively and protect Circus Center’s financial health, we are changing our pricing structure and prices. The changes will simplify our structure, some things will get more expensive, and a few things will actually get cheaper. In order to keep our training program accessible, we are also expanding our need-based financial aid and work-trade programs. Plus, we’re running an Adult Rec Program sale for the next couple of weeks.

Over the last several months, the Board and I have been focused on securing Circus Center’s future. Our training programs are by far our largest programs, so getting those right is essential, and the #1 factor in our training programs’ continued success is recruiting and keeping high-quality teachers. We get a lot right in our training programs – classes are small, plenty of instructor attention and time on apparatus, attention to curriculum and progression, and so on. But the overall financial structure for our classes is not working well enough to support a competitive pay scale for our teachers or the financial health of the organization as a whole. 

Our goal, therefore, has been a new structure that will benefit both teachers and the whole organization. The following three announcements lay out how we are changing to create a sound, sustainable financial structure for our classes and teachers, while still maintaining and even expanding on our non-profit mission to make circus training as accessible as possible.

RAISING TEACHER PAY

This year, working with our Board of Directors, we are happy to be offering substantial raises to our teaching staff – 15-20% in many cases. We’ve also introduced opportunities for instructors to earn incentive pay for things like full classes, and we’re going to have to start keeping an eye on classes that have low enrollment. We want Circus Center to be an organization that takes care of its teaching staff, and we are grateful that our community shares this value.

CHANGING PRICING

The Board has approved changes to the prices and/or pricing structure of our adult rec, youth pre-pro, and youth after-school programs. These changes bring us more in line with our competitors and peer studios around the Bay Area, and I believe they reflect the true value of the high-quality services we offer, with smaller classes, longer classes, and better teachers. The changes will simplify our structure, some things will get more expensive, and a few things will actually get cheaper. 

STAYING ACCESSIBLE

How can we build a sound, sustainable financial structure for our classes while still honoring our mission as a non-profit to make circus training as accessible as possible? We are improving the accessibility of our training program in two ways: 1) increased financial aid, including offering (for the first time in many years/ever) need-based aid for adult rec students; and 2) enhanced work-trade opportunities. Initial support for these programs is baked into the budget, and they can expand over time through fundraising campaigns. 

*****

THE DETAILS

Information about youth after-school and pre-professional program tuition is coming soon – here’s the info about Adult Rec: except for a few Premium offerings (Flying Trapeze, Swinging Trapeze, and Premium Trampoline), all classes will be sold at a single set of tuition rates:

Classes

Single Drop-In: $38
5-Pack: $190 $180 ($36/class)
10-Pack: $380 $340 ($34/class)
20-Pack/Session: $760 $640 (or $32/class)

Premium Classes (Flying Trapeze, Swinging Trapeze, & Premium Trampoline)

Single Drop-In: $55
5-Pack: $275 $250 ($50/class)
10-Pack: $550 $450 ($45/class)
20-Pack/Session: $1,100 $800 (or $40/class)

A few new policies that should help keep things simple for everyone:

• Except for the New Student Pack, all packs will have an expiration date of one year, with no extensions or exceptions.
• For session enrollments, in place of one-time makeup credits, all session enrollments will include one bonus credit of the same type (regular/premium), which expires at the end of that session. You can use it if you miss a class, or just to try something new.
• If there is only one student in a class, instructors will shorten 90 or 75 minute classes to 60; and shorten 120 minute classes to 90.

What about my existing packs? For the rest of the summer, we will honor them as usual. You can still use your Tier A packs for what we called Tier A classes, Tier B packs for Tier B, and so on. Starting on September 3, 2019, we will make Tier A credits usable for any class, whether it used to be Tier A or B. And they all keep their original expiration dates, no extensions or exceptions.

To help ease the transition to this new pricing structure for everyone, now through Monday, July 29, we are running a SALE on Class Packs.

Classes (click red links to purchase)

• SALE Class 5 Pack: $170 (save $10)
• SALE Class 10 Pack: $320 (save $20)
• SALE Class 20 Pack: $600 (save $40)

Premium Classes (click red links to purchase)

• SALE Premium Class 5 Pack: $235 (save $15)
• SALE Premium Class 10 Pack: $420 (save $30)
• SALE Premium Class 20 Pack: $740 (save $60)

PLUS fall session enrollment will be discounted to $30/class for Classes and $37/class in Premium – offer good until the day that fall opens for drop-in registration.

For those who could use extra help in making sure that our classes remain accessible to them, here are the details on need-based Tuition Assistance and our Work-Trade Program.

TUITION ASSISTANCE

Circus Center provides need-based financial aid to families to help offset tuition fees for the following programs:

• Full Session Enrollment in Adult Recreational Classes (new!)
• Clown Conservatory
• Youth Pre-Professional Program
• Summer Camps
   

Awards are based on household income qualifications (see application for details). The total amount of tuition assistance available each year depends on our annual budget, and will grow with increased fundraising. To support this program with a tax-deductible donation, please click here.

WORK-TRADE PROGRAM

Circus Center is committed to providing affordable, accessible circus arts training to our community. We understand that circus training is a financial commitment. Our Work-Trade Program enables volunteers to earn credits toward free classes and other training opportunities with every shift.

We seek friendly, approachable and professional volunteers year-round to help support our front desk, events, and performances. We require commitment regularly to one shift per week, or alternating weeks.

Volunteer duties include: answering phone calls, signing in students for classes, administrative assistance, and maintenance upkeep.

The incentives of volunteering in the Work Trade Program are currently:

• Free Circus Classes

• Free Individual User status

• Discounts on apparel & merchandise

• Opportunities to take workshops

• Opportunities to see Circus Center performances

Incentives are subject to change, and based on space and availability.

*****

CONCLUSION, AND A REQUEST

It can be a tricky balance to take care of the needs of our teachers, our students, and the organization as a whole. We are putting these new structures and policies in place to try to improve as an employer, as a business, and as a charity. We have the best interests of ALL at heart, and we’ve worked very hard to think through all of these changes in a systematic way.

That said, there will be things we’ve overlooked or not gotten quite right, and it will take time for everyone in our community, including members of our team, to fully understand all of the changes. I ask you for your patience. If you have questions, concerns, or just need to talk it through, and you can’t get your need for that met with other staff members, please contact me directly. I’ll be happy to talk about it, and to find ways to keep improving this organization that all of us love so much. My direct line is 415-876-5034, please call anytime.

I’ll sign off as I usually do, and I believe it now more than ever –

Onwards and upwards,

Barry

Summer Training Hours (through August 23, 2019)
Mon - Thu: 8:30 - 10:00 am, noon - 1:00 pm, and 3:00 - 8:30 pm 
Fri: 3:00 - 8:30 pm
Sat: 9:30 am - 4:30 pm
Sun: 9:30 am - 8:30 pm

Summertime Ground Rules

Since summertime Individual Users will be sharing the space with programming with and for children, some additional ground rules need to be in place:

• Be Flexible with Space/Apparatus Needs: Your favorite point or preferred space may not be available, even if it is not directly in use, because it needs to be kept clear for safety and distraction reasons. 
• Dress Appropriately: We're not prudes – but don't let what you are wearing (or not wearing) be a distraction to the young children around you.
• Behave Respectfully: Again, there are kids around, so watch your language. Keep side conversations to minimum, and don't talk about R-rated stuff.

SUMMER 2019 SCHEDULE DOWNLOADABLE PDF

And on Tuesday 5/21 at 10:00 am...

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR SUMMER CLASSES

Summer Adult Recreational classes will be available for purchase on Tuesday, May 21 at 10am. Follow the links to see the weekly schedule, and to sign up. Make sure that you have an updated method of payment on your MindBody account and any new prerequisites added by the front desk team. Now is a great time to speak with instructors about the possibility of leveling up for the summer session.  

A few notes about summer:

• Summer Session runs June 10 – September 1, and we are closed July 4.
• We are pleased to welcome Dominik Wyss to the faculty this summer! Dominik is picking up Jeremy Vik's handstand classes while Jeremy's away, and he'll also be offering private and semi-private lessons. Dominik is a great and versatile teacher, so be sure to grab this opportunity to work with him at Circus Center!
• We are still finalizing plans around Serchmaa's upper-level contortion classes. She will be abroad for the summer, but we are still hoping to offer consistent training opportunities until she returns in the fall. We should have this information available before the end of this month so stay tuned if you are interested in those classes.
• There may be other additions to the summer schedule before it begins on June 10. Since there is not an option to session enroll for the summer, you are always able to early cancel out of any class you did sign up for in order to take a class that was announced later. We will keep our weekly schedule documents at the front desk and on our website up to date with the latest available class schedule.
• Opening the session for enrollment is a manual process that can take up to an hour. We aim to have all the classes open by 10am, but if you are attempting to enroll in very competitive classes, you can start checking by around 9am so that you will be ready as soon as your preferred class is available. If dates of your preferred classes are full, keep in mind that students are more likely to get in off the waitlist in the summer session than in other sessions. Get on those waitlists and fingers crossed you will end up on the roster!

The Spring Session of Adult Rec classes will go on sale for full session enrollment on Tuesday, February 26 at 10am. Here is what you need to know:

• Students can enroll by emailing info@circuscenter.org, in person, or by calling 415-759-8123
• Spring session runs March 25 - June 9, with building closures on Easter Apr 21 and Memorial Day May 27. There are some additional individual class cancellations due to shows and events.
• Please note that the maximum number of students has changed for some classes. We've made these adjustments in consultation with our department heads, and in many cases we've added apparatus to keep your time on apparatus high. 
• Check with your teachers now to see if you are ready to level up! If you get approval for a new class or level, let the front desk team know by Monday.
• Confirm that the payment method on your MindBody account is up to date. Don't let an expired credit card delay your enrollment.

Please be in touch with the front desk team with your questions. Registration for students using drop-in credits opens on March 11.

SPRING 2019 PUBLIC SCHEDULE

SPRING 2019 SCHEDULE DOWNLOADABLE PDF

OPEN CALL FOR PERFORMERS, STORYTELLERS, AND PRODUCTION TEAM

2019 Summer Showcase

"Circus Addiction"

Directed by Felicity Hesed

Why do we do circus?  What drives us to train bitterly for hours and hours each week?  Why do we endure the scrapes, bruises, and burns and still come back for more?  What sustains us through the tedium of training?  What motivates our circus addiction?

This performance will showcase Circus Center’s highest-level students and instructors while exploring the inner world of the circus performer.  Circus acts will be woven together with recorded memoirs and ensemble pieces exploring this theme.

Any and all acts will be considered for this show.  I would like to include a range of people and acts.  I am looking for people who are interested in participating in any or all of the following ways:

• Solo or small group acts
• Simple ensemble pieces to be created during the rehearsals
• Writing and/or speaking in an honest way about why they do circus.

Schedule

Auditions:  Sunday, March 10, 2-5p

Rehearsals: 

• March 31 – rehearsal
• April 7 – rehearsal
• May – schedule time with individual acts
• June 2 – acts and transitions
• June 9 – acts and transitions

Tech Rehearsals: Friday, June 14 and Saturday, June 15

Dress Rehearsal:  Thursday, June 20

Performances:  Friday, June 21 and Saturday, June 22 at 7:30pm

Interested in being a part of this show?  We are looking for performers with solo or small group acts, performers interested in participating in simple ensemble pieces, people who want to be interviewed, and a Stage Manager.

--Performers, please email auditions@circuscenter.org to sign up for an audition slot.   Be ready to present as much of an act as you have.  Works in progress are acceptable.

--If you are interested in being interviewed but not auditioning, are interested in Stage Managing, or have questions, please email Felicity - felicity@circuscenter.org.

Felicity Hesed is a performer and director.  You’ve probably seen her hanging around Circus Center, teaching or training trapeze.  Many of you have seen her perform her comedy trapeze act or stationary bike act at Circus Center or around town.  Felicity is truly a circus addict and loves circus in all forms, from traditional to contemporary.  Felicity believes in the power of performance to connect, heal, and nourish.

For the first time since 2015, we are raising prices in order to keep up with rising costs in San Francisco.

TIER A
Single: $28
5-Pack: $130 ($26/class)
10-Pack: $240 ($24/class)
Session: $20/class

TIER B
Single: $45 (no change!)
5-Pack: $200 ($40/class – no change!)
10-Pack: $360 ($36/class)
Session: $30/class

TIER C
Single: $49
5-Pack: $215 ($43/class)
10-Pack: $380 ($38/class)
20-Pack: $680 ($34/class)
Session: $32/class

We work very hard at Circus Center to maintain both the quality and the accessibility of our circus training program. Our classes are longer than you'll find most other places, offering students more time on apparatus for your money. And we know you come here because of our top-notch coaches – it's no secret that people who coach at other studios often trained (and still train!) with us. We are honored to teach you, and we are grateful for your understanding and your patronage.