We are SO EXCITED to announce our Summer 2021 Adult Class Schedule!

By The Numbers

Our in-person class schedule is expanding...

• From 19 to 45 in-person classes
• From 79 to 279 in-person spots
• Double the number of in-person teachers!

Key Dates

• Monday, 5/17, 10:00am: Pack Sale begins (for both online and in-person classes)
• Tuesday 5/18, 10:00am: Adult Online Classes open for registration
• Thursday 5/20, 10:00am: Adult In-Person Classes open for registration
• Monday 5/24, 10:00pm: Pack Sale ENDS

Notes on Class Levels

We've reorganized the names of some of our classes, check it out:

• AERIAL: If you used to be in Level 1 aerial classes, you should now sign up for Beginner level. Level 2 = Intermediate level. Your old pre-reqs will work, like magic (that took a lot of work behind the scenes).
• ACRO: Beginner classes are open to anyone. If you had level 1 pre-reqs, then come to Intermediate.

COVID Rules

Until further notice...

• Everyone must remain masked at all times
• Everyone must maintain at least 6 feet of social distance
• Equipment will be shared between students
• Board assistance will be part of Flying Trapeze classes
• Handspotting will be available for students who want it

Questions?

We are lightly staffed over the weekend, so if you reach out with questions, we thank you in advance for your patience. We will get back to you as quickly as we can.

IN-PERSON CLASS SCHEDULE - Opens for registration on 5/20 at 10:00am PDT (UTC -7)

ONLINE CLASS SCHEDULE - opens for registration on 5/18 at 10:00am PDT (UTC -7)

Finally, at long long last, adult classes are meeting again in person at Circus Center! We are excited to welcome you back to Circus Center. Here are a few important house rules and procedures to know about:

ON ARRIVAL – OUTSIDE THE BUILDING

The first adult classes begin at 7:00pm, and no training space will be open before 6:45pm, so please time your arrival accordingly.

When you get to Circus Center, the first thing you will do is fill out our COVID Screening Questionnaire. There are two ways to do this:

1. PAPER: There will be clipboards and pens lying around outside the main entrance. Fill out the form, leave the clipboard and pen, and take the form to your teacher.
2. PHONE: Go to circuscenter.org/adultscreening (or scan the QR code onsite). Fill out the form, then show your teacher the screen on your phone that indicates that your response has been approved.

If you don't pass the screening – that is, if you answer YES to any of the questions – GO HOME. If you pass the screening, then go inside the lobby.

IN THE LOBBY

1. Remove your shoes.
2. Sanitize your hands.
3. Find your class location on the white board.
4. Take your shoes and the rest of your stuff to your classroom. You will use the cubbies there.

IN CLASS/AROUND THE BUILDING

• Masks must be worn at all times while in the building, except when drinking.
• Eating is not allowed in the building. Should you need a snack please go outside.
• All beverages must be in a non-spill bottle. Only the bottle dispenser on the main level water fountain can be used at this time. Please do not drink directly from any of the water fountains.
• Social distancing must be practiced at all times – 6' at all times, 12' if your heart/breathing rate is elevated.
• Only one person in a bathroom at a time. Please ask if there is anyone in the bathroom before you enter.
• Please cooperate with your teacher and Circus Center staff in helping keep the equipment and facility as clean as possible.

Circus Center is excited to announce a new digital show in celebration of LGBT Pride Month. We are honored to use our digital stage to highlight the excellence and authenticity of LGBTQ+ circus artists and allies in our community. This June, we will be launching a Circus Center Pride showcase!

Want to perform? Submit your digital performance application here! 

Applications due Friday 4/23/21. QTGNC & BIPOC performers strongly encouraged to apply. We are open to circus acts, including those that intersect with any other performance art - dance, spoken word, music, drag, sideshow, etc. A limited number of performers will have the opportunity to record their performances with our videographer in the Circus Center Theater.

Digital acts will be presented as part of a live streamed showcase the week of June 21-27. Performers' tipping information will be visible during their performances.

Any questions - please contact Ali (they/them) at execadmin@circuscenter.org.

Dear friends – Circus Center is lifting up the voice of our staff member Ali, who is yonsei Japanese American. Ali offers here a response that is both personal and communal to the recent spike in anti-Asian racist crimes and activities. The Board and staff stand in solidarity with this statement, and with all of the APISA community both here and across the country. – Barry Kendall, Executive Director

Hello Circus Center community,

If you’ve walked through the front doors or emailed in a question in the past few years, it’s likely we’ve met. My name is Ali and I am a Front Desk Administrator. I’ve been a team member of the unstoppable force that is the fingers clacking away behind info@circuscenter.org since 2018. I’ve taken your calls, filed your waivers, and booked your training sessions. I’ve signed your kids up for Afterschool or Summer Camp or Pre-Pro. I’ve celebrated with you when you’ve leveled up and cheered at your performances. I’ve laughed and cried with you in the lobby that I miss so dearly. 

I was originally drawn to work at Circus Center to be a part of a diverse staff, an organization with a clear mission, and a community with heart. Right now, I feel as if that heart may be broken. I know at the very least that my heart is broken.

Hate crimes targeting Asians, Pacific Islanders, and South Asians (APISA) have increased over 150% in major cities in the last year, including in our home of San Francisco. The latest major incidents of violence perpetrated against people of Asian descent culminated in the murder of 8 people in Atlanta and the injury of two elders in San Francisco this week alone. These events have been shocking and painful to process, but they are not random or unrelated. 

These events are symptoms of a system built on White Supremacy - self perpetuated by policies, politicians, and political movements that directly benefit from keeping racism, xenophobia, misogyny, and classism to the highest levels of our governing bodies. Anti-Asian policies and attitudes have made their home in the U.S. for generations, especially here in San Francisco. But this resurgence of violence was clearly bolstered by the repeated Sinophobic misinformation spread by the Trump administration throughout their mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the numerous warnings from APISA-led organizations and community leaders regarding increased incidents of discrimination. 

Our APISA circus community members have not been protected from the threat of racially-motivated attacks. As we grieve, care for ourselves, and support our loved ones, we still cannot guarantee our own safety or the safety of the most vulnerable members of our communities. We need everyone to channel their energy into confronting the systems we participate in that perpetuate White Supremacist violence. Below I’ve included a non-comprehensive list of resources for you where you can learn, volunteer, report violence, and donate. I’ve also included some mental health resources for our APISA community members who would like more support through this challenging time. 

It cannot be ignored that Chinese acrobatics is an essential element of Circus Center’s education programs. APISA community members are essential to the DNA of who we are and what we do. APISA circus artists are the foundation, leaders, and legacy of Circus Center. We are working to identify concrete ways we can move equity to the center of our organizational values. This is a priority that is being actively discussed at the highest levels of our organization. We want to honor our origins by structuring more equitable education programs as we move toward rebuilding and reopening. 

If you have the means, please consider donating to any of the following organizations listed below or an organization supporting the APISA community in your city! We understand that many still face unemployment and financial hardship due to the COVID-19 crisis, and we believe that fighting for justice is not optional. So in solidarity with our APISA community, Circus Center is proud to offer students who donate to any organization supporting the APISA community a matching dollar amount (up to $100) discount off of Online Adult Rec Classes, Solo Training, or Summer Camp enrollments. This promotion is valid for any donations made from 3/15/21-4/4/21. Please forward your donation receipt to execadmin@circuscenter.org and let us know what services you’d like your discount to be applied to. 

I look forward to the day when I get to welcome you, your friends, and your family again back home to Circus Center. Until then -

With Love and Perseverance,

Ali (they/them)

Signed in Solidarity by:

Circus Center Staff

Xiaohong Weng

Serchmaa Byamba

Elena Panova

Barry Kendall

Tracey Shababo

Fernando Gambaroni

Texas Holly

Jennings McCown

Felicity Hesed

Jives

Miriam Telles

Thuan Lieu

Ash Rexford

Zephaniah Bensaid

Nick Karsant

Kelsey Keitges

Ashe Giovanni

Jeremy Vik

Alex Baesen

Joey Moore

Chloe Axelrod

Dwoira Galilea

Board of Directors

Natalie Quan, Co-Chair

Sophie Turrell, Co-Chair

Lynn Freedman, Secretary/Treasurer

Bridgette Lin

Arthur Hong

Oliver Hack

Martina Rogers

Ceci Walken

Mental Health Resources for APISA

Racial Trauma Toolkit by Boston College

Asian, Pacific Islander, and South Asian American (APISAA) Therapist Directory

Asian Mental Health Collective

@AsiansForMentalHealth

Subtle Asian Mental Health - offering 1:1 supportive listening sessions

Lai Chien Therapy - offering pay-as-you-wish group therapy for APA

Crisis Line (English): 1-800-273-TALK

Crisis Line (Asian Languages): 1-877-990-8585

Crisis Line (Engling, text-based): Text "CONNECT" to 741741

CalHope Emotional Support Hotline: 1-833-317-HOPE

Samhsa National Hotline: 1-800-662-HELP

Learn

"You, Me + White Supremacy" webinar by Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Free Bystander Intervention Training from Hollaback! & Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Volunteer (SF Bay Area)

Oakland Chinatown Coalition

Compassion in Oakland

SF Peace Collective

Report

@StopAAPIHate / stopaapihate.org

standagainsthatred.org

Donate / Support

Red Canary Song - distributing donations to families and survivors of ATL shootings

National: Asian American Community Resources/Donations

Stop Asian Hate: Together, We Can Make a Difference

Hate Is A Virus by Philanthropic Ventures Foundation

Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Asian Pacific Fund: COVID-19 Recovery

Asian Mental Health Collective

18 Million Rising

Asian American Journalist Association

Asian Pacific Environmental Network

Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce

Asian Health Services

Asian Women’s Shelter (SF)

Cameron House (SF)

Save Our Chinatowns (SF Bay Area)

Chinese Progressive Association

SF Filipino Community Center

Vietnamese American Community Center of the East Bay

They Can't Burn Us All

Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund

Asian Prisoner Support Committee

Asian American Feminist Collective

AAPI Women Lead

Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project

The Center for Asian Pacific American Women

National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum

NQAPIA

APIENC

CAAAV

Apex for Youth

APIA Vote

Read (Buy Local or Buy from an Asian-Owned Independent Bookstore!)

Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong

If They Come for Us: Poems by Fatimah Asghar

The Farm by Joanne Ramos

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Arrival by Shaun Tan

Dear Girls by Ali Wong

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

Know My Name by Chanel Miller

In the Country by Mia Alvar

The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hong Kingston

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei (personal recommendation by Ali)

GET A CLASS-PACK & SAVE

Sale ends on 3/9

60 & 90 MINUTE CLASSES 

Online 3-Pack: $54 ($18/class)
Online 5-Pack: $85 ($17/class)
Online 8-Pack: $128 ($16/class)
Online 10-Pack: $150 ($15/class)
Online 15-Pack: $210 ($14/class)

BUY 60-90 CLASS PACKS
 

2 HOUR CLASSES

Online 3-Pack: $81 ($27/class)
Online 5-Pack: $125 ($25/class)
Online 8-Pack: $176 ($22/class)
Online 10-Pack: $200 ($20/class)

BUY 60-90 CLASS PACKS

Spring class rollout starts tomorrow. Sign up for our newsletters to get advanced access to classes:

http://circuscenter.org/online

Throughout our history, we have faced numerous challenges.

The beginning of the pandemic confronted us with some seemingly insurmountable roadblocks. Yet, with your help, our resilient faculty, our creative admin staff, and our resourceful board of directors, we were able to weather almost everything that came our way.

Today we find ourselves at yet another crossroads. And we need your help to get through this Winter.

We have so much in store for 2021. Everything that happened this year has helped us sharpen our focus and rediscover our core values. It is with this new-found sense of purpose that we are laying the groundwork for the coming year.

As we have in the past, we are certain that we will bounce back. We are just asking you to be our trampoline.

Donate now: http://circuscenter.org/donate

By Sara Toby Moore

It’s not funny. Nothing is.

The many Covid deaths and illnesses, the never-ending quarantine, the near-smashing of our American democracy and the long Orwellian presence of Herr Tweetler has made daily life in 2020 nauseatingly anxious and depressing. Now THAT’S comedy, right?! Wasn’t it Mel Brooks who famously said “Tragedy is VERY funny. World War 2? Hilarious!” That kind of paradox is, in my opinion, the root of being human. It’s our base. Funny-Not Funny, Love-Hate, Real-Fake, I-you, Dead-Alive. The dialectical nature of humanity is where our greatest comedies and tragedies, our greatest stories, are born. It’s still not funny, though. Yet the thing is, we are living inside a clown act right now, even an entire sideshow. Everyone, it seems, is part of a massive multicultural pie fight with real consequences. No banana cream here but rather bricks and bullets and bombs and hate and sneak attacks and ugly reveals and nasty magic tricks and bait-n-switch tactics and quick changes.

I admit I winced when Biden called Trump a “clown” at the presidential debate. I just as quickly found myself thinking: well, but he IS. He’s a cruel clown.

I used to vehemently defend the word “clown” as reverential to the art form and hated it being chucked about as an insult to oily, shitheel politicians and other malcontents. But you know what? I’m done with all that, even as protective as I’ve been of myself and my fellow professionals. People are right to use the word, especially in relation to an individual with such amplified, entertainment-level cruelty. And also, not all of us professionals are goody-two-shoes clowns. I do love what the sweet clowns do and I deeply admire any artist who can fully enchant children of all ages with an authentically goofball, kind-hearted persona. I’ve loved doing that myself. But to use a Beatles analogy: while many of my beloved colleagues are fully in the realm of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” I am more “The White Album.” There is a mix! And a dark side and I don’t mean a genre like horror clowns. Granted, the codification of clown forms and types is a pretty passionate thing as I learned from my years as the director of a clown conservatory. There’s a very real and often rigid adherence around the definition of who or what constitutes “clown”, sometimes dogmatically so. I think the best clowns always have pathos, darkness, often eclipsed by hope and levity. If we can leave you laughing through sobs we have done our job. If we leave you sobbing and rageful and laughing yet passionate to love and forgive then we are geniuses.

With all that said, I’m still talking more about a systemic, amplified, childlike darkness inherent in all human beings. I’m remembering the Q train in the evening rush hour, packed with grown humans looking like exhausted, scolded children, sitting pigeon-toed, clutching newspapers, everyone unique, dorky, adorable, grotesque, gorgeous in the twilight of a packed subway train clattering over the Manhattan bridge with our Statue Of Liberty visible out on the water. The poignancy of this was inescapably glorious, a mélange of scowls, dyspepsia and boredom on the faces of many races and skin tones. The commonality was as glaring as the individual eccentricities.

How many people could I easily refer to as “clowns” whether it was my weirdo chemistry teacher in 10th grade who smashed chalk on his desk and reeked of vodka or the current outgoing President of the U.S. who really does remind me of a few predatory guys I did shows with in casino entertainment. I can’t honestly imagine him in higher relief than he already is, with his mane of wig-like faux-blondiness and his orange foundation oozing sweat and his barking litanies and repertoire of broad gestures. There’s no denying a certain charisma that’s irresistible with old fools, whether Uncle Alfred at the seder table or say, the owner of a major league sports team: bigliness & super confidence always seem to get the Koolaid drunk by folks eager to be led and dazzled, not to mention being mother’s milk to those who grew up abused by assholes just like them. There is a clownishness that erupts as much from pomposity, self-aggrandizement and the telling of bold lies as from squirting flowers, big shoes or tiny, packed cars. And seriously, come on, how many of us have family members riddled with grotesqueries but we still love them, even enough to allow them their warped opinions if they’re pushy enough, only to slink away later muttering “shithead” under our breath. We are everywhere, in every guise, we animated humans.

In the professional realm, there is a certain benign cruelty in a lot of comedy, too, as amply employed by the likes of Sasha Baron Cohen. He’s one example of a brilliant setting-up and punching-out of hapless ignoramuses and man, he does it SO well. The greatest clown acts or characters have some measure of malevolent mischief in them, soaked in bludgeoning silliness and rocketed by love, real love. A longing to expose, face it all, smack down and then check a mirror on the way out. Outside of Cohen, I’ve definitely seen some very mean bouffons & comics and watched with queasy glee the machinations of dragging folks onstage for “audience participation.” I vividly remember Don Rickles, a highly physical stand-up who humiliated his audiences. There are so many examples.

I guess I’m finally coming to this: if all the world is a stage then each one of us is some kind of clown. I think we first become clowns in darkest childhood. As kids we are at our most real. Kids are part monster, part imagination machine, part silly fool and I think most of us never really travel that far from our childhood to become the weird hodgepodge of scars and longings we are as adults. We just learn to manage it all better.

But we never fully grow out of ourselves, do we?

Some of us decide to put a string of lights and a loud horn on all that and travel the land as professionals on stages and screens, but that doesn’t mean we can deny there are others who channel their own civilian foolishness into ignorance and cruelty, parading their boorishness to grab power. Or on the flip side to amplify all that is joyful, kind and eccentric to create buoyancy and laughter. As professional clowns the realness of everyday humanity’s clowns is truly a treasure trove, a stockpiled casting office of “types” to study and take on. Let’s face it, the profession of clowning depends on the humanity of clowning to fuel and provide the characters and stories we take on.

My first impulse has always been to defend my chosen art form and profession by screaming “We’re here to bring jooooy!” But this is only partially true. The truth is that all clowns aren’t joyful. We are also here to stoke awareness, to invoke danger in order to avoid or overcome it, to tell stories of grace and survival, and also to take a crap on the bed of the self-righteous and run away screeching. Funny stuff, not always comfortably so.

Real life’s clowns are a lot more dangerous.
A moron with power is hysterically funny onstage, in pretend-land.
But in the real world there are real stakes and they are terrifying. I’ll laugh at them anyway and vote them out.

But it’s not funny. Not yet.

On Sunday night at 10pm, San Francisco County joined the state's Regional Stay-At-Home order.

All Circus Center's in-person indoor programming for adults has ceased until at least January 4, 2021. Private lessons, supervised solo and staff training, and supervised flying trapeze are cancelled.

Our Out-of-School Time programs for youth (both recreational and pre-professional) are permitted to continue for now, following the same safety protocols as before.

Over the coming days, our team will be cancelling adult in-person programs and reservations. Please be patient as we process this administrative load, and feel free to reach out with any questions. Contact us at info@circuscenter.org.

You CAN stay in shape and stay connected to your community while you stay at home.

Our adult programs may be closed for now, but we are STILL doing everything we can to serve you. Our fantastic teachers offer over 50 online classes a week, and right now we are offering a Class Pack Sale with our best prices. You can...

• Maintain your conditioning
• Improve your flexibility
• Learn a new skill like juggling or handstands
• And maybe most importantly
• See and stay connected to your friends and coaches

TAKE A CLASS 

Your support of Circus Center helps us keep providing access to the best-possible circus training during these difficult times. We are grateful for your support, and we look forward to seeing you again soon, whether online or in person.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Over the weekend, San Francisco moved into the "Purple Tier," the state's most restrictive tier for COVID-19, and as a result, the Mayor and Department of Public Health announced a new set of restrictions that impact Circus Center. Fortunately, most of our current activities are still permitted, and the Board has given us authorization to continue while we monitor the situation daily.

Our activities for youth under 18 are considered Out of School Time programs, which are permitted on page 18 of the current Health Order.

Our activities for adults 18 and over are governed by the rules for gyms. We are currently offering private lessons, solo training, and supervised flying trapeze, and these are still permitted according to page 33 of Appendix C-1 to the current Health Order.

The health and safety of our teachers and students is our highest priority, and we will continue our adherence to all city and state public health and safety recommendations. We will also keep offering over 50 online classes per week for adults, and we'll be introducing online versions of our youth programming in 2021.

EXPLORE ONLINE ADULT CLASSES

SEE OUR YOUTH OFFERINGS

Your support of Circus Center helps us keep providing access to the best-possible circus training during these difficult times. We are grateful for your support, and we look forward to seeing you again soon, whether online or in person.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Ends on 12/15 at 10pm
 
All class packs have new 4-month expirations! 

 
60 & 90 MINUTE CLASSES

Online 3-Pack: $54 ($18/class)
Online 5-Pack: $85 ($17/class)
Online 8-Pack: $128 ($16/class)
Online 10-Pack: $150 ($15/class)
Online 15-Pack: $210 ($14/class)

BUY 60/90-MINUTE CLASS PACKS

 

2 HOUR CLASSES 

Online 3-Pack: $81 ($27/class)
Online 5-Pack: $125 ($25/class)
Online 8-Pack: $176 ($22/class)
Online 10-Pack: $200 ($20/class)

BUY 2-HOUR CLASS PACKS

ALL SERVICES