Circus Arc

Circus Arc

Arc en Cirque is a school and training center dedicated to circus arts located in Chambéry, Savoie. Created in 1987 , the association has become over the years one of the important structures for circus education in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes .

Arc en Cirque is more than just a recreational circus school. The organization supports children and adults who want to discover or practice circus arts, as well as young people who aspire to a career in the field. It also hosts artists and contributes to the development and promotion of contemporary circus arts.

Organization of activities

Its activity is mainly organized around three main areas:

• circus school and amateur practice
• preparatory and professional training for circus arts professions
• a resource and exchange center focused on circus arts, including hosting artists in residence

A circus school open to different levels of practice

The Arc en Cirque circus school allows you to discover and then deepen your knowledge of different circus disciplines in an environment specifically dedicated to this practice.

The teaching approach is not based solely on learning a technical skill. The activities also allow for the development of motor skills , balance , coordination , creativity , body expression , self-confidence , and interpersonal skills.

Students can gradually discover the different families of circus arts before, for those who wish, developing more in a particular discipline.

Circus disciplines practiced at Arc en Cirque

The diversity of disciplines taught is one of Arc en Cirque's great strengths.

Depending on the workshops, levels and courses, participants may encounter the following disciplines:

Juggling and object manipulation

• juggling
• object manipulation
• various techniques to develop coordination, precision and creativity

Acrobatics and movement

• ground acrobatics
• acro-dance
• trampoline
• work with movement and body expression

Balance

• balancing on objects
• wire
• slack thread
• unicycle
• German wheel
• Cyr wheel

Aerial disciplines

• static trapeze
• swinging trapeze
• aerial fabric
• rope
• aerial straps
• different forms of aerial acrobatics

Specialized acrobatic disciplines

• Chinese pole
• rocker
• Russian bar

Artistic work can also incorporate clowning , play, expression, and stage research.

Naturally, not all of these subjects are offered in the same way to all students. Their learning depends on age, level, educational project, and the curriculum followed.

Amateur practice

Amateur practice represents an important part of Arc en Cirque's activity.

The goal is to allow different audiences to discover circus arts or to pursue regular practice without necessarily considering a professional career.

The workshops allow you to progress technically while retaining the dimensions of fun, experimentation and creation inherent to the circus.

Beyond learning a figure or a technique, students are encouraged to develop their autonomy, their imagination and their ability to build something with others.

This approach allows the circus to become a true tool for artistic and physical expression.

Circus workshops during the holidays

Arc en Cirque also organizes introductory and practical circus arts workshops, particularly during certain school holiday periods.

For children, these workshops offer the opportunity to experience several major circus disciplines within the same week:

• object manipulation and juggling
• acrobatics
• balancing on equipment
• aerial disciplines
• body language
• play and creativity

The activities are adapted to the age of the participants and allow a progressive discovery of the different practices.

Internships are a good way to discover the circus before signing up for a regular activity, but also to practice more intensively for a few days.

The circus as a space for experimentation

The teaching methods developed around amateur practice place great importance on experimentation.

In circus arts, a move doesn't necessarily work on the first attempt. The student learns to try, start again, understand their movement, and look for another way to succeed.

This special relationship to learning makes the circus a wonderful tool for developing perseverance, body awareness, concentration and confidence.

The collective dimension is also important: parades, lifts, collective creations and presentations allow one to learn to evolve with others and to gradually build an artistic project.

Arc en Cirque and schools

Arc en Cirque also works in the field of arts and cultural education.

The organization develops projects that allow students in schools to discover and practice circus arts.

These interventions may include workshops on:

• acrobatics
• juggling
• balance on objects
• creativity and artistic expression

Some projects are built over several sessions with teaching teams and can lead to a public presentation or a performance.

They also allow children to discover a real circus school and to encounter the world of artists and students engaged in professional training.

From discovering the circus to professional training

One of the unique features of Arc en Cirque is that it brings together different levels of practice on the same site.

A child can discover the circus there as part of an internship or an amateur workshop, while young artists come to follow intensive training with the aim of becoming professionals.

This coexistence between amateur practice, training and creation helps to make Arc en Cirque a true living space dedicated to circus arts.

Preparatory training for careers in circus arts

Arc en Cirque offers preparatory training for young people wishing to build a professional project in circus arts and in particular to prepare their entry into a higher education school.

This training program takes place over two years .

It allows for the joint development of the physical, technical and artistic skills essential for pursuing a professional career.

The work focuses in particular on:

• physical preparation
• the acrobatic fundamentals
• circus techniques
• progressive specialization
• the movement
• artistic research
• the interpretation
• the construction of a personal project

The goal is therefore not solely to improve the technical level of the future artist. It is about gradually guiding them to understand their own artistic language and to build a genuine project in the circus arts.

Admission is based on selection.

The professional training program "Circus and Movement Artist"

Arc en Cirque also offers professional training for Circus and Movement Artists .

This is an intensive three-year training course, registered with the RNCP.

It corresponds to a level 5 qualification (Bac +2) .

This training is aimed at people who have already undertaken a significant career in circus arts and wish to make their practice their profession.

The training combines technical refinement and artistic development. The student artist works on their specialized discipline while developing their ability to interpret, create, research and participate in the construction of an artistic project.

The goal is to train not only technicians capable of delivering high-level circus performances, but also performing artists and creators of contemporary circus.

A contemporary conception of the circus artist

Arc en Cirque's educational project is fully in line with the evolution of contemporary circus.

Technique remains essential, of course: acrobatics, aerial work, balance, and juggling require years of training. But the feat itself is not considered an end in itself.

It becomes a tool serving an intention, a style of writing, and an artistic presence.

Future professionals are therefore required to work simultaneously on their circus technique, their body, their creativity, their interpretive skills and their artistic identity.

This ongoing interplay between technical learning and artistic research is one of the important principles of the training center.

A resource center and residential accommodation

Arc en Cirque is also a resource and exchange center dedicated to circus arts. This mission goes beyond the traditional framework of a school.

The structure participates in the circulation of knowledge and circus practices and notably has a documentation center.

This activity helps to create bridges between students, artists, teachers, professionals and cultural partners.

Hosting artists in residence

Arc en Cirque also hosts artists and companies in residence. These residencies provide professionals with spaces to research, experiment, and develop new creations.

For a vocational school, this regular presence of working artists is particularly enriching. It allows students to stay in touch with the reality of contemporary creation and fosters exchanges between learning, research, and professional life.

Cirq'ule: the artistic event

Arc en Cirque also organizes Cirq'ule , its annual artistic event.

This event brings people together around the circus:

• students of amateur practice
• students in preparatory courses
• artists in professional training
• artists and professionals
• families
• the partners
• and the public

The shows provide an opportunity to showcase the work done throughout the year and to connect learning with an essential aspect of circus arts: the encounter with the audience. Cabarets, original creations, and student presentations thus allow audiences to discover different facets of the work carried out at Arc en Cirque.

Professional networks

Arc en Cirque also occupies an important place in the French and European networks for training in circus arts.

The centre is notably a member of FEDEC – an international network bringing together establishments committed to professional training in circus arts.

Arc en Cirque is also identified by the FFEC among the centers offering professional training in the circus field.

This membership in various networks promotes educational, artistic and professional exchanges with other schools and circus actors in France and Europe.

A school founded in 1987

Arc en Cirque was created in Chambéry in 1987 as an association under the 1901 law.

The organization is gradually developing its activities and has been recognized as a vocational training center since 1995. It has been a member of FEDEC since 2000.

This history allows it today to bring together several generations of practitioners and artists and to play an important role in the development of circus arts in Savoie and more broadly in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

Arc en Cirque in summary

Arc en Cirque is at once an amateur circus school, a professional training center and a place for resources and creation around circus arts.

Since 1987 , the organization has supported practitioners from their first discovery of the circus to professionalization.

Juggling, acrobatics, balance, aerial disciplines, Chinese pole, unicycle, trampoline, Cyr wheel, trapeze, silks or even artistic research: the diversity of practices offered reflects all the richness of contemporary circus.

For families looking for a circus school in Chambéry, for young people wishing to improve their skills or prepare for entrance exams to prestigious schools, as well as for those who wish to build a real professional career in the circus arts, Arc en Cirque is today a major place for practice and training in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.