not only creates space for strategic
development, but also emphasizes
circus as a means of communication,
empowerment, and a way to gain
some color.
We’ve
built
our
Preparatory
Program as a stepping stone of
sorts to develop a solid base from
which our students can advance in
order to reach goals that include
auditioning for continued higher
education in schools such as ENC,
ESAC, CNAC, ECQ, and CODARTS.
We have traditionally accepted two
age groups into this program: 18–24,
comprised of students with the
availability and drive to invest fully in
a circus career; and 15–17, who have
that same drive but also have the
scheduling restraints of high school.
This upcoming 2018 school year,
we are additionally adding a 10–14
age group to cater to the younger
generation of circus so they can start
to maximize their skills before joining
the older Preparatory groups.
“What I have found really makes it all
work is a particular code—what I call
The Talent Code,” says SDCC founder
and CEO Jean-Luc Martin. “If you
have a student who is not necessarily
considered a natural talent but who
does have the passion, will do the
continuous studies, and will trust in
their coach, then everyone will look
up to them. If someone is only a good
technician, people will disconnect. I
tell my students, ‘I don’t care about
what you can do—I’ve been around
and seen a lot. I want to know about
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you, I want to be invested in you.’
It’s the students who are willing
to put their insecurities aside and
fully immerse themselves in our
program who really transform. It’s
about letting your raw artistry shine
by removing everything except for
your true self.” Melo Nolander, one
of our prior students, is currently
on her second year achieving her
Bachelor of Circus Arts at CODARTS
Rotterdam. Clara Laurent and Rosie
Rogmans, two 2018 graduates of our
Preparatory Program, were recently
accepted in to ENC’s 3 year Higher
Education Program and will be leaving
us in the fall. We are excited to watch
our students advance in the next
level of their circus education.
We are also planning to implement
a charter school in the fall of 2019
in collaboration with the state of
California for grades 7–12. Our charter
students will be able to train all day
while also completing their academic
studies, which will allow them to grow
up in their discipline. This school will
mimic how schools in the UK and other
nations incorporate circus studies as
a part of their middle and secondary
physical education curricula to foster
a stronger national circus culture.
It is our hope that in the next few
years, circus education will become
recognized in our school system as an
important and necessary alternative
to other school activities.
Circus gives color to all those
who encounter it, which makes it
a perfect platform for outreach.
It's the students
who are willing
to put their
insecurities aside
and fully immerse
themselves in
our program who
really transform.
It's about letting
your raw artistry
shine by removing
everything except
for your true self.
SDCC currently pursues 3 main
avenues of circus outreach, which
are our Autism, Limb differences,
and Scholarship programs. PIE, which
is another pathway for outreach,
kicks off in the fall and expands
deeper into the understanding
of physical theatre. In addition to
theatrical instruction focusing on
Mask/Commedia dell'arte, Mime,
Movement, and Clown, students
will gain a comprehension of Clown
as an action necessary for visual
comedy, visceral expression, and a
continued awareness of performing
from within. Through professional
instruction and feedback, students
will enhance their capabilities to
characterize themselves, develop
an understanding of how to play
comedic personae, and create fresh
material.
PHOTO CREDIT: ROB RIINGEN PHOTOGR APHY
PIE helps to aid in our involvement
with Rady Children’s Hospital and our
core acrobatic programs. We have a
humanitarian clown unit in the works
in collaboration with Rady’s that will
entertain cancer victims and so on
and so forth. “Clowning is lacking in
the industry because it’s not seen
as being important to being a strong
acrobat or aerialist ” says Jean-
Luc, “It is actually very important
because it gives a broad and in-depth
understanding of oneself, so that the
student can give that to other people
through performance.”
With that said, there are many
elements to becoming a well-rounded
performer. Again from Jean-Luc,
PHOTO CREDIT: ROB RIINGEN PHOTOGR APHY
PHOTO CREDIT: LILSHOOTS
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