Escuela de Circo Carampa – Madrid

The Carampa Circus School is one of the leading contemporary circus schools in Spain and a historic structure in European circus training.

Founded in 1994 , it is located in the Casa de Campo in Madrid , where its activities take place under two fully equipped big tops for teaching the different circus disciplines.

For more than thirty years, Carampa has simultaneously developed professional training, amateur teaching, initiation of children, artistic improvement, creation and dissemination of contemporary circus.

This diversity allows the school to welcome very different audiences.

• Children can discover circus arts from the age of four .
• Teenagers and adults can take regular courses in various disciplines.
• Those wishing to make circus their profession, on the other hand, have access to genuine intensive professional training.
• Finally, already trained artists can deepen their technique and develop their own creative projects through the PROTA program.

This continuity is one of Carampa's great strengths.

The school can support a person from their first circus discoveries to professional practice and artistic creation.

Professional training

Vocational training constitutes the historical core of its activity.

The current professional course takes place over two years .

• The 2026–2028 cohort begins in October 2026 and completes its program in May 2028.
• Each year represents approximately 1,150 hours of training.
• The pace is particularly intensive with approximately 35 hours per week .
• Students mainly work from Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Some activities, rehearsals or practices may also be organised during the weekends .

This organization therefore corresponds to a genuine full-time training program .

The program aims to build versatile artists .

The first part of the training is based on several fundamental disciplines.

• Acrobatics is one of these pillars.
• Dance helps develop movement, musicality, and body awareness.
• Theatre focuses on interpretation and stage presence.
• Physical preparation accompanies technical progress.
• Students are also trained in safety techniques essential to professional practice.

Circus specialization complements this foundation.

The main categories offered are juggling , aerial disciplines and balancing .

Students can gradually deepen their knowledge of one or more specializations.

However, training does not stop at physical skills.

Carampa seeks to train artists capable of understanding their professional and artistic environment.

The curriculum therefore includes various theoretical courses.

• The history of the circus allows us to place contemporary practices within their artistic evolution.
• Anatomy helps students better understand their own tool of the trade: the body.
• Theatre theory and dramaturgy accompany artistic development.
• Courses dedicated to production also allow students to address the concrete realities of the professional sector.

Pedagogy is also part of the program.

Students discover the principles of transmitting circus arts and carry out teaching practices.

This skill is particularly useful in a sector where many artists complement their stage activity with teaching.

A deliberately multidisciplinary approach

Carampa has a deliberately multidisciplinary approach.

The goal is not to produce only technical specialists.

The school aims to train artists capable of interpreting different forms of contemporary circus and participating in collective creations.

Students are also encouraged to develop their own artistic proposals.

Presenting in front of an audience is therefore an important component of their training.

• Regular performances provide students with opportunities to experience the stage.
• The end-of-cycle shows represent a particularly important moment in this progression.
• They allow for the combination of technique, dramaturgy, interpretation and creation .

A gateway to higher education

The training also provides excellent preparation for students wishing to pursue further studies at a higher circus school.

Former students of Carampa have joined numerous international institutions.

• The National Circus School of Montreal
• ESAC Brussels
• Codarts in Rotterdam
• Fontys Academy for Circus and Performance Art in Tilburg
• And various French schools .

Other former students went directly into professional careers.

Carampa thus constitutes simultaneously a professional training program and an important gateway to international circus higher education .

An international dimension

The school itself has a strong international dimension .

Over the years, it has welcomed students from many countries in Europe, America and other parts of the world.

This diversity helps to create a particularly open environment.

Carampa also played an important role in European networks dedicated to circus education.

The school has notably held presidency and vice-presidency positions within the European Federation of Circus Schools for several years.

His teaching experience is therefore recognized far beyond Madrid.

The PROTA program

Vocational training is, however, only one part of the school's activity.

Carampa is also developing an advanced program called PROTA , for "Profundización Técnico Artística".

This course is aimed at circus artists who already possess a technical and artistic level comparable to that of a student completing the two years of professional training at Carampa.

The principle is different from the initial curriculum.

PROTA seeks to support the transition from performing artist to creative artist .

• Each participant arrives with an idea for an act or show .
• A personalized plan is then created based on their needs.
• Three main axes structure this training: artistic development , physical development and in-depth study of one or more technical specialties .

Artists can work in acrobatics, trampoline, physical preparation, group acrobatics, theatre, dance, acrodance and creation.

The available specialties cover a large part of the Circassian vocabulary.

• A one-on-one confrontation is one of the possibilities.
• Verticals have their own specialization.
• Balancing acts on objects include, among others, ball, wire, flexible rope, rola-bola and unicycle.
• Aerial disciplines include fixed trapeze, hoop, rope, silks and straps.
• Juggling can be further developed with balls, clubs, rings, hats or diabolo.
• The seesaw and the mast are also among the specialties offered.

PROTA includes both theoretical and professional training.

Artists can work in functional anatomy, biomechanics, nutrition, pedagogy, lighting, sound, safety, makeup, or career guidance.

Artistic mentoring accompanies the development of the project.

• The 2026–2027 program runs from September to May.
• Several levels of intensity are offered, which can represent up to twenty hours of supervised classes per week in addition to independent work.

This advanced training significantly strengthens Carampa's role as a center for professional development and creation.

Amateur activity

The school also maintains a significant amateur activity .

Evening classes allow teenagers and adults to practice different disciplines without joining the professional curriculum.

The selection is particularly extensive.

• Acrobatics is offered at different levels.
• Vertical courses have their own specific programs.
• Juggling welcomes both beginners and practitioners wishing to perfect their technique.
• Aerial disciplines occupy an important place: silks, rope, fixed trapeze and hoop are among the apparatus offered.
• Acrobatic lifts are taught.
• The mast is also present.
• Other courses may be devoted to clowning , contortion , hula-hoop or Icarian games .

This offer allows adults to build a highly personalized practice.

The school for children and young people

Carampa also has a proper school for children and young people.

The Circus Club is an annual program for introducing people to circus arts.

It welcomes children and young people from the age of four .

The goal is to gradually discover the main circus families.

The approach is intentionally playful and non-competitive .

Circus arts are used as a means of developing coordination, concentration, balance, creativity, and expression.

The child also learns to better understand their capabilities and limitations.

The relationship with others constitutes an essential part of this pedagogy.

The exercises help to develop confidence, listening skills and respect .

This philosophy explains Carampa's significant activity in the field of educational circus .

The Aula de Circo program

The school notably hosts classes directly under its big top.

The Aula de Circo program offers introductory sessions allowing school groups to practice different techniques.

Balancing, juggling, acrobatics and the trapeze are used as teaching tools.

The CIRCOLES program

Carampa also intervenes directly in schools through the CIRCOLES program.

Children and teenagers then discover circus arts in their own school.

These activities are offered from the age of four .

The participatory and non-competitive nature of the circus is one of the foundations of the project.

The goal is not necessarily to train future artists.

It is also about training people capable of understanding, practicing and appreciating circus arts.

A unique identity

This vision pretty much sums up Carampa's general identity.

The school advocates for technically demanding training when it addresses future professionals.

But she also sees the circus as an educational, cultural and collective tool accessible to a much wider audience.

This link between professional excellence and accessibility is one of the distinctive features of the institution.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure plays a significant role in this dynamic.

Carampa works under two big tops set up in the Casa de Campo .

These spaces are specifically equipped for circus arts and allow the practice of disciplines requiring height, rigging and specialized equipment.

They also host shows.

Carampa programs companies from other Spanish regions and different countries every year.

The school thus also becomes a place for dissemination .

Students and pupils evolve in a space where teaching directly intersects with creation and representation.

NetJuggler SEO Levels

According to the NetJuggler directory, Carampa therefore deserves several levels of listing.

1. It is first and foremost an amateur circus school welcoming children, teenagers and adults.
2. It is then a genuine full-time professional training program .
3. Its two-year course prepares students both for entry into top higher education institutions and for initial professional integration.
4. PROTA then allows already trained artists to deepen their specialty and develop their own creative language.
5. Finally, its educational activities make Carampa an important structure in the field of educational circus .

Founded in 1994 , awarded the Premio Nacional de Circo and internationally recognized for its educational experience, the Escuela de Circo Carampa is today one of the historical references for circus arts training in Spain.