Animacirk

Animacirk is a Toulon-based association dedicated to teaching circus arts , creating and presenting live performances. Founded in 2019, it runs a circus school in Toulon primarily for children, as well as holiday workshops and programs for schools and leisure organizations.

Animacirk's first weekly workshops opened in November 2019 thanks to a partnership with the Amicale Laïque du Mourillon . The association then developed its activities and partnerships in order to offer more time slots and reach new audiences.

Today, regular classes are held at the Amicale Laïque du Mourillon , in the district of the same name in Toulon. The school welcomes children from the age of 4 and offers a tailored progression up to the age of 14 .

A multidisciplinary approach to circus arts

Animacirk develops a multidisciplinary approach to circus arts. Children are not immediately directed towards a specialty: they discover several major families of techniques in order to progressively develop coordination, balance, motor skills and creativity .

Juggling

Juggling is one of the main focuses of the teaching. Students can manipulate scarves, rings, Chinese plates, diabolos and balls, but also rhythmic gymnastics ribbons and bolas.

This variety of objects allows the activities to be adapted to the age and skill level of the children. The most accessible objects allow them to understand the basic principles of throwing and manipulating objects before gradually moving on to exercises requiring greater coordination.

Balances on objects

Balancing on objects constitutes a second major family of practices. Animacirk has in particular pedal-go, rolla-bolla, balance balls, a slackline, a balance wire and unicycles.

These activities help develop balance , posture , concentration , and body awareness in space . They also require participants to gradually learn to manage imbalance and adapt their movements.

Ground acrobatics

Ground acrobatics complements this training. For the groups concerned, Animacirk offers a level 1 introduction with progressive work that can lead to rolls, cartwheels, roundoffs and handstands.

Acrobatic training can also incorporate core strengthening exercises , animal-inspired movements, and simple human pyramids . These exercises allow for the gradual development of the physical qualities necessary for the sport while maintaining a playful approach.

The school also uses a trampoline for training . This complements the physical and acrobatic work offered during the sessions.

A teaching method inspired by the new circus

Animacirk claims an approach inspired by the new circus. Learning is therefore not limited to the technical mastery of an apparatus or an object.

Concepts of theatre and dance are integrated into the workshops in order to develop expression, stage presence and the ability to transform a circus technique into an artistic proposition.

This dimension is consistent with the background of the association's participants, several of whom have professional experience in circus , theatre and dance .

The teaching aims to introduce children to the circus as both a sporting and artistic discipline. Activities are presented in an educational and fun way, adapted to different age groups.

Groups and time slots

For younger children, Animacirk offers Baby Circus groups starting from age 4. At this age, the sessions are shorter and allow for a first introduction to the equipment, motor skills and different circus situations.

A specific group welcomes 4-year-old children, corresponding approximately to the middle section of preschool, then a second group welcomes 5-year-old children, corresponding to the upper section.

From age 6 , the sessions gradually become longer. Children aged 6 and 7 have a one-hour-and-fifteen-minute workshop allowing them to further explore the initial techniques.

Children aged 8 and 9 practice for an hour and a half . Finally, those aged 10-14 have the longest time slot, with an hour and forty-five minutes of practice.

This gradual increase in session time accompanies the development of the children's physical abilities, concentration and autonomy.

The groups are therefore organized primarily according to school age , which makes it possible to offer educational situations adapted to the development of the participants.

All weekly workshops currently take place on Wednesdays , excluding school holidays, at the Amicale Laïque du Mourillon.

Internships during the holidays

In addition to this regular practice, Animacirk organizes workshops during school holidays .

During the shorter school holidays , particularly at All Saints' Day, in February and April, the association can offer introductory circus arts courses organized in half-day sessions .

During the summer , training courses can be organized on a weekly basis, with full days dedicated to each course. This format allows for a deeper exploration and practice of the different disciplines.

The workshops cover the main technical skills taught throughout the year: juggling , object balancing , and floor acrobatics . They may also incorporate theatre , dance , stage direction , and group choreography .

During longer courses, Animacirk seeks to show participants that circus can be simultaneously an individual and collective practice .

Each child can progress in a technique that is unique to them, but the work must also allow them to build something with others and share this creation with an audience.

The week-long workshops can thus conclude with a musical performance bringing together all the participants. The techniques learned during the week are then integrated into a genuine little group presentation.

This performance aspect directly aligns with the association's artistic project.

An association for creation and distribution

Animacirk is not just a leisure school. Its association's purpose also includes the creation , production and distribution of specialized or multidisciplinary animations and live shows.

The association has held a performing arts entrepreneur license since 2020. It can produce and distribute its own creations but also support the shows of other artists and associated companies.

This professional activity helps to maintain a link between the education offered to children and the world of live performance.

The teaching staff

The teaching staff itself is composed of people with professional artistic experience.

The workshops are led by Nicolas Gauthier . A graduate of the Toulon Conservatory of Dramatic Arts and holder of a degree in Modern Literature as well as the BIAC, he works as a professional juggler and actor.

His career thus combines circus practice, theatre and stage experience, which corresponds to the multidisciplinary approach developed in the workshops.

Vanessa de Lambert also works with students and is notably responsible for registration follow-up. Trained in theatre professions, she holds a professional Master's degree in Performing Arts specializing in directing and scenography, as well as a certification as a stage technician in the fields of sound, lighting, and stagecraft.

She also has experience as a dancer and actress. This combination of circus , theatre , dance and performance techniques contributes to the unique identity of the teaching offered by Animacirk.

External interventions

The association also has a significant external intervention activity .

She particularly wants to develop the presence of circus arts in schools and leisure centers in Toulon and its region.

The interventions are designed according to the needs of each institution: duration of the project , number of children , educational content and subjects covered can be adapted.

Projects can take the form of a one-off introductory session or a full-fledged training course organized over several days .

For week-long workshops, the association prefers a Monday-to-Friday format with several hours of daily practice. A musical performance may conclude the project.

The objective is then to introduce participants not only to different circus techniques, but also to the concepts of staging , choreography and collective construction necessary for the presentation of a show.

A vision of the circus that blends physical practice and artistic creation

Animacirk therefore develops a vision of circus arts situated at the intersection of physical practice and artistic creation .

Juggling, balancing, acrobatics and trampolining allow children to develop their physical abilities and coordination, while theatre, dance and staging gradually lead them to think about how to present this learning.

The school has a deliberately accessible and fun approach. The weekly workshops are primarily an introduction and amateur practice for children.

The progression of the groups, from Baby Circus at 4 years old to the workshops for 10-14 year olds , nevertheless allows us to support students for several years and to offer progressively more elaborate exercises.

Through its courses, workshops and external interventions, Animacirk thus contributes to the development of circus arts education in Toulon .

Its identity is characterized in particular by the cross between juggling, balancing and acrobatics on the one hand, and theatre, dance and stage creation on the other, in the spirit of the new circus.