Chap' Chapo
Chap' Chapo Circus School
Chap' Chapo is located in Crotenay, in the Jura department, between Champagnole and Lons-le-Saunier. Founded in April 2022 , the association took over from the former Va et Vient circus school, which had ceased operations earlier that year. Chap' Chapo thus ensures the continuity of circus arts education, which was already well-established in the Jura region.
Affiliation and networking
The school is now affiliated with the FFEC, which links it to the FREC Grand Est and lists Dylan Chapelle as its director. Its presence within this network allows Chap' Chapo to participate in the exchanges and dynamics of the federated circus schools.
Main site and staff
Regular activities take place under a tent set up on Rue des Chauffaux in Crotenay. In March 2026 , the school announced it welcomed approximately 140 students aged 5 to 18 each week. This figure makes it a significant institution in the Jura region, especially since its activities extend well beyond the classes held in Crotenay.
Pedagogy and disciplines
The teaching method is based on the multidisciplinary nature of circus arts. Students can experiment with different techniques before developing the disciplines in which they feel most comfortable. This approach allows children with very different abilities to find their place: a student less drawn to acrobatics, for example, can become more involved in juggling.
- Acrobatics
- Aerial acrobatics
- Pyramids
- Juggling
- Trapeze
- Aerial fabric
- Artistic expression
Juggling is indeed a recognized discipline at Chap' Chapo. The school doesn't just offer a general introduction: its students can go on to create their own acts and present them to an audience as part of the school's or the Creation group's shows. However, current sources don't specify all the juggling props used; therefore, I wouldn't add diabolo, clubs, or devil sticks to the filters of the entry without further confirmation.
A creative group to move towards the stage
Chap' Chapo has developed a Creation group for young people wishing to further develop their artistic and stage skills. In 2025, this group created the show Entre Ombre et Lumière (Between Shadow and Light) , presented on June 28th under the big top in Crotenay.
For 2026, the new production is entitled Hollywood Under the Big Top . The show imagines the making of a film live: scriptwriting, casting, filming, and then the awards ceremony become pretexts for a series of scenes using the various disciplines of circus arts. The production is scheduled for FestiChap' 2026.
This activity is important for understanding the educational project: Chap' Chapo is not limited to the technical learning of the apparatus. Students are encouraged to imagine, create, and build a show and perform for an audience, with work on expression and staging complementing the physical practice.
Introductory and advanced training courses
The school also organizes workshops during school holidays. These are suitable for beginners as well as students wishing to improve their skills. The workshops generally end with a performance for parents, allowing participants to experience the entire process in just a few days, from discovering the disciplines to creating an act.
- In 2025: beginners' training course in Crotenay
- Advanced training course (2025)
- Several weeks in Chaux-des-Crotenay (2025)
- During their stay at Domaine de la Loge in Flacey-en-Bresse, around thirty children discovered the five families of circus arts, chose a discipline, and created an act for the weekend show.
A traveling school with its own big top
This is probably one of the most interesting features of Chap' Chapo for your directory: the school has a truly itinerant dimension.
The association has accreditation from the French Ministry of Education, allowing it to work in schools. Each year, the team visits several schools in the Franche-Comté region and can bring its own tent, which is temporarily set up near the school.
In 2026, Chap' Chapo reported working in approximately four to five schools per year. In Arbois, for example, the team led a project allowing students to work on different disciplines before participating in several group performances.
This possibility of moving the big top transforms the school project into a true immersion: the children do not just practice a few exercises in a gymnasium, but also discover the particular environment of the circus performance.
A team from circus practice
Dylan Chapelle is currently the school's official contact with the FFEC (French Federation of Circus Schools). He holds a Circus Arts Instructor's Certificate and teaches circus disciplines to both children and adults. Jean-Christophe Humblot is also listed as a circus arts instructor within the association's activities.
- Dylan Chapelle — official contact, holder of the Circus Arts Instructor Certificate
- Jean-Christophe Humblot — circus arts instructor
- Elvin Després — mentioned in the 2026 school projects alongside Dylan Chapelle
FestiChap': the school festival
Chap' Chapo is also behind FestiChap', a circus festival organized in Crotenay which connects students, local residents and professional contemporary circus companies.
The 2026 FestiChap' edition is scheduled for Saturday, September 19, 2026, at the Crotenay circus school. The site opens at 2 p.m. and the program includes four shows:
- Unnecessary Violence — Cie Huïn?
- MaDame — Cie 3 Secondes
- Hollywood Under the Big Top — Chap' Chapo Creation Group
- Perched Tea — Cie Prise de Pied
The festival isn't just about performances: circus arts workshops, wooden games, an inflatable structure, a raffle, refreshments, and snacks are also on offer. The shows are suitable for all ages, and a tent will be set up in case of rain.
Role of the festival
The festival allows students from the Creation group to share the stage with professional companies and contributes to the dissemination of contemporary circus in a rural area of the Jura.
Features
Key points to remember for a directory listing:
- Approximately 140 students per week (ages 5–18)
- Clean marquee (main site: rue des Chauffaux, Crotenay)
- Introductory and advanced training courses
- Creative groups and performances
- National Education accreditation for school interventions
- Touring in schools (moving the big top)
- Organization of the FestiChap' festival
These elements make Chap' Chapo a complete structure combining teaching, creation and dissemination.
For the NetJuggler directory, Chap' Chapo clearly deserves a detailed listing. It's not just a small weekly workshop: the school welcomes around 140 young people each week, has a big top, organizes workshops and shows, has a creative group, carries out projects approved by the Ministry of Education, and develops its own circus festival.
Its itinerant nature in schools is also a truly unique feature. The ability to move the big top allows Chap' Chapo to bring circus arts directly to children in communities sometimes far from a specialized school. The association thus contributes to amateur teaching, arts and cultural education, and the dissemination of live performance in the Jura region and more broadly in Franche-Comté.
