Regular Training

Women’s Circus offers a Training Program of weekly classes that cater to the different needs, interests and skill levels of our members. The Training Program is open to Women’s Circus members only. It runs over four terms of around ten weeks each, roughly matching the school terms. The first two terms of classes focus on skills development and the third and fourth terms also incorporate creative development in preparation for a public performance. The classes cover a range of circus arts including aerials, acrobalance, music, performance, tumbling and conditioning.

To do regular circus training with us and become a member of Women’s Circus, you must do the New Women’s Program and can do regular training classes from Second Term. There is one intake of new members each year, in February. To join, send your name, address and phone number to info@womenscircus.org.au

If you’re keen to do some circus training in the meantime, try one of our Short Courses or Intensive Classes , open to all women.

Members Information 2008

• Term 4 starts Monday 6th October and ends Sunday 16th November (6 Week Term only).
• We will be running 4 Intensive classes this holidays. German Wheel L-Plate and P-Plate with Mel Fyfe, Tissu with Aaron Walker and Tumbling with Teresa Blake.

Download the Term 4 Enrolment Form

TERM 4 REGULAR TRAINING TIMETABLE

Monday

1- 3pm: Aerials 1 with Jenny McLeod

6 - 7.30pm: Nadja Kostich

Tuesday

6 - 7pm:General Conditioning with Sharon Bonnici

7 - 9.30pm: Acro 3 with Sara Pheasant & Annie Stephens

7-9pm: Aerials 1 with Jenny McLeod

Thursday

5 - 7pm: Aerials 4 with Spenser Inwood

7 - 9pm: Tumbling (All Levels) with Teresa Blake

7 - 9pm: Flexibility & Contortion with Pippin Remi

7 -  9.30pm: Music with Irine Vela (4 wks, Oct 16 - Nov 6)

Friday

6.30 - 8.30pm: Acro 1 & 2 with Franca Stadler

6.30- 8.30pm: Aerials 2 & 3 with Spencer Inwood

6.30pm - 8.30pm: Chinese Pole with Teresa Blake

Saturday

8.30am - 10.30pm: Advanced Tumbling with Teresa Blake

Sunday

10 - 12am: Acro with Franca Stadler

10 - 12am: Aerials with Spenser Inwood

12am - 2pm: New Women with Jenny McLeod and Sal Frances

Class Descriptions

Aerials 1This class will be facilitated so that you will build strength and stamina, feel comfortable using aerial equipment, experiment with moving from one position to another and work towards the end of year show.

Aerials 2 & 3: Aerials 2+3 is about gaining strength, building participants knowledge of tricks and increasing confidence on the equipment.

Aerials 4: Aerials 4 is about extending your strength, development of routines and reaching a higher performance level.

Chinese Pole: Chinese Pole is an aerial act requiring a lot of upper body strength and co-ordination. If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty (literally as sticky goo is used on the pole to aid climbing) and you want to increase your upper body strength and look good doing it, this could be for you. Flexible rubber-soled canvas runners and overalls preferably with sleeves are needed for this class. Class numbers are limited as students work on the pole one at a time.

Acro 1 & 2: This class focus on learning and consolidating basic acrobatic skills. Basic technique. Working on trust and having fun.

Acro 3: This will be an intermediate to advanced acrobalance class for women who have done some acrobalance before and would like to focus upon tricks and technique. The class will cover doubles and triples tricks and involve some handstand training, so the ability to hold a handstand with spotting is preferred. Women with or without an existing doubles partner are welcome.

Tumbling (all levels):In Acrobatic Tumbling students will work on individual tumbling moves such as rolls, cartwheels, round-offs etc. There is a strong focus on conditioning and flexibility and for this reason acrobatic tumbling is considered in most circus traditions around the world to be part of basic training for all circus acts. Learning tumbling will improve all over body strength, fitness, flexibility, co-ordination, body awareness and reflexes and allow students to be well prepared for any other circus training as well as helping to equip the body and mind to better avoid accidents and injury. In this class students will be taken through exercises that break down the tumbling moves into there components and equipment such as crash mats and mini-tramps will aid in the safe progression through the skills. An important focus in tumbling is the work on the inverted straight body position - the handstand. We work on moving into and out of this rather than specifically on hand-balancing.

Tumbling (Advanced): Tumbling 2 is a progression on from Tumbling 1. Students in this class will work on further tumbling skills such as backflip, aerial cartwheel, front and back somersaults, hand springs, walkovers etc. Students in this class will need to have previous tumbling training and to have an appropriate level of fitness.

General Conditioning: Conditioning is based on a one-hour circuit and provides the opportunity to improve your core strength, abs, legs, upper body and cardio. Each participant works at her own level, with a sheet to inspire her and record her progress from week to week. Participants have full flexibility with how hard they wish to push themselves and which areas they want to focus on. All participants will be supported throughout the process by the trainer. Conditioning is for many people- for those wanting to be generally fitter, those wanting to work on their strength in particular areas, and those wanting to enhance the training that they do in other classes. Go on- challenge yourself!

Performance: In this performance class we’ll be looking at developing a strong physical and emotional presence… and skating between the discipline of form and the freedom and imagination we can bring to that form as performers. There will be physical exercises, improvisation, small structured performances and writing. Sometimes we’ll focus on individual, pair and small group work and other times it will be the whole group. We’ll be looking at what it takes to call yourself a performer and venturing further and deeper into that terrain.

TERM 4 INTENSIVES TIMETABLE AND ENROLMENT FORM

Download the German Wheel Spring Intensive Enrolment Form

Download the Tissu and Tumbling Intensives Enrolment Form

*Please note you must have participated in Teresa’s tumbling class to enrol in the Tumbling intensive!

From the Floor

Overall, training was excellent. The trainers were dynamic, motivated, highly skilled and very encouraging. The other students were inspiring and supportive, and the classes were fun, challenging, useful and varied.

The trainer caters to each student’s level, encouraged you to try new skills, inspired confidence that you can do it, and provided great positive feedback.

Thank you to the whole circus team for providing women with such an incredible opportunity. It has been an amazing year, and I have benefited greatly from my participation.

Training Members feedback, 2006