Circus School Pretpiste

Circusschool Pretpiste is a circus school located in Amstelveen , in the Amsterdam metropolitan area. Created in 2003 by Loes Boerema , it offers regular courses allowing children and young people to discover and develop different circus disciplines.

One conviction: the circus as a tool for development

Pretpiste's project is based on a simple conviction: the circus is a fantastic developmental tool for children. Beyond the pleasure of mastering new moves, students gradually develop their coordination , balance , flexibility , strength , and self-confidence .

The school also considers the circus as a deeply collective activity. Students learn to work together, to help each other, and to create acts in which everyone can find their place.

Regular classes

Regular classes are at the heart of Pretpiste's activity. They are organized throughout the school year and require weekly attendance to allow for real progress.

This regularity is important in the school's pedagogy. Techniques are reviewed over several weeks, and students gradually build new skills from the elements they have already mastered.

Workshop I: The Discovery

New students usually start in Workshop I. This first group is for children aged approximately 6 to 12 years and allows them to discover several circus disciplines.

The goal is not to specialize the children immediately. They experiment with different apparatus and accessories and can gradually discover the disciplines in which they feel most comfortable.

Balance and unicycle

Balance plays a key role in this discovery. Children can learn to move on a balance ball or explore different techniques requiring concentration, coordination, and body control.

Unicycling is also one of the disciplines practiced in the Pretpiste environment. Learning to ride a unicycle helps develop balance, perseverance, and independence.

Juggling and acrobatics

Juggling complements this multidisciplinary approach. Students discover object manipulation and gradually learn to coordinate their movements and construct different figures.

Acrobatics is also an important component of the practice. It helps develop the physical qualities essential to other disciplines and provides a particularly useful foundation for young artists.

Workshop II: In-depth study and creation

After gaining more experience, students can join Workshop II . This group is for young people who have become independent enough to further develop the techniques they have learned.

Students then have a wider choice of materials and disciplines and work on progressively more complex figures.

Workshop II also introduces the concept of creation more strongly. The techniques acquired do not remain mere exercises: students learn to organize them to construct their own acts.

This transformation of technique into performance is an essential step in Pretpiste's pedagogy. It allows young people to develop imagination , autonomy , and the ability to present their work to an audience.

Aerial acrobatics: silks and trapeze

The school also offers a dedicated aerial acrobatics program. These courses primarily focus on aerial silks and trapeze .

Aerial instruction is accessible at different levels. Beginners, intermediate and advanced practitioners work in the same time slots while receiving exercises adapted to their experience.

Aerial silks allows for the gradual development of strength, flexibility, and agility. Students learn to move within the apparatus and to perform positions and figures of increasing difficulty.

The trapeze is the other main apparatus in this specialization. Young people discover different positions and gradually learn to combine them in more fluid sequences.

For some aerial acrobatics groups, prior experience in gymnastics , dance , theatre or other physical practice can facilitate integration, but students primarily work according to their own level.

The artistic dimension and the shows

Pretpiste also places great importance on the artistic dimension of the circus. Students are not only encouraged to successfully perform tricks: they gradually learn to transform them into acts intended to be shown.

Presentations are therefore a regular component of the school's operation. Each year, the groups prepare one or more performances for parents and the public.

Advanced students can also participate in shows organized outside of school.

Pretpiste performs at events organized in Amstelveen and the surrounding area. The young artists have, for example, participated in entertainment in retirement homes, at the arrival of Sinterklaas , and in performances at the Openluchttheater Elsrijk .

These experiences allow children to discover the stage and the relationship with the audience in a concrete way.

Performing arts develops different skills than those needed during training. Students learn how to present themselves, memorize their act, work with others, and manage their concentration in front of an audience.

This dimension contributes directly to the development of self-confidence , which is one of the important objectives of Pretpiste's educational project.

An environment where every child can succeed

The school aims to create an environment where every child can achieve something. The diversity of circus arts allows each child to find a technique that matches their abilities and interests.

Some will naturally be drawn to acrobatics, others to juggling, balancing, unicycling, or aerial disciplines.

Individual progress is nevertheless always part of a collective dynamic. Students learn to observe others, to help them, and to build together.

The teaching staff

The teaching team brings together instructors with very diverse experiences in circus arts, acrobatics and teaching.

Founder Loes Boerema has been teaching beginner and advanced groups for many years and uses the circus as a tool to help children gain confidence and discover their own abilities.

Lucy Brouwer is involved in teaching aerial silks and trapeze. She also has experience in acrobatics, acroyoga, workshops and creating shows.

Lisa Sove is a certified social circus trainer at the European level and has over twenty years of experience working with youth circuses. Her artistic background includes acrobatics, mime, dance, theatre, tightrope walking and balance ball.

Other participants have professional experience in acrobatics and aerial disciplines or have themselves grown up within Pretpiste before becoming assistants and trainers.

This intergenerational transmission is an interesting dimension of the project: some children who started very young at school can gradually take on responsibilities and participate in the supervision of new practitioners.

Additional activities

In addition to weekly classes, Pretpiste organizes training sessions during certain school holidays, workshops and various activities around the circus.

The school also offers circus-themed birthday parties during which children discover several disciplines before choosing a specialty and preparing a small show together.

Finally, outings allow students to discover other structures and events of the Dutch circus.

In summary

Circusschool Pretpiste is a genuine amateur circus school primarily aimed at young people. Its regular and progressive teaching allows children to discover different disciplines before deepening their practice and, for those who wish, to specialize, particularly in aerial techniques.

Through acrobatics, juggling, balancing, unicycling, silks and trapeze, Pretpiste seeks as much to transmit circus techniques as to develop confidence , cooperation , creativity and the pleasure of performing in front of an audience .