Pagnozoo Company

Pagnozoo Company

Founded in 1983 , Compagnie Pagnozoo is an equestrian circus company based in Besançon, in the Doubs region , which also develops a significant program for teaching circus arts. Its identity is based on the intersection of contemporary circus, acrobatics, and the equestrian world , with particular attention paid to the relationship between the artist and the horse.

Pagnozoo's unique feature is that it combines learning circus disciplines with interacting with horses in a single program. The workshops offered to children allow them to discover acrobatics, acrobatic lifts, juggling, balancing on objects and wires, clowning, trapeze, aerial silks, and equestrian vaulting .

The relationship with the animal is an integral part of the learning: participants not only discover vaulting, but also how to approach the horse, prepare it, groom it and lead it in hand.

This approach allows for the simultaneous development of physical, artistic, and interpersonal skills. Acrobatics, balance, and aerial disciplines require coordination, body positioning, and movement control; juggling develops concentration and precision; and lifts foster confidence and cooperation. Equestrian practice, for its part, introduces an additional dimension of listening to and caring for the animal.

Equestrian vaulting naturally occupies a central place in the project. It is offered in both workshops and regular classes and can be approached progressively, from the first exercises at a standstill to working on a horse in motion. This specialization makes Pagnozoo a particularly attractive option for practitioners wishing to explore the intersection of circus arts and equestrian arts .

Holiday camps are another important focus. Pagnozoo offers introductory and advanced camps, as well as equestrian-focused camps. These allow children to practice several disciplines over several days and experience a true immersion in the circus tent and horse environment. More specialized, one-off camps focusing on specific techniques can also be organized.

The educational approach developed by Pagnozoo extends far beyond classes and workshops open to individuals. For several decades, the company has collaborated with schools, associations, and social and medical-social organizations to create action-oriented and cultural outreach projects. Circus arts thus become a pedagogical tool for developing motor skills, expression, creativity, cooperation, and cultural awareness.

School projects and partnerships

For schools, various projects offer the opportunity to discover both circus arts and the workings of a professional company. These programs may include:

• Site visit and exploration of the stables and the big top
• Meeting with the artists and the horses
• Participation in workshops
• Attending rehearsals or performances
• Courses built on several stages spread throughout the school year

This close connection with the professional world is one of Pagnozoo's greatest strengths. Students do not practice in a multipurpose room disconnected from live performance: they evolve within a true circus creation space , frequented daily by artists, technicians and performance horses.

The Pagnozoo Company also develops a significant professional creation and distribution activity. Its artistic universe draws its poetry from equestrian art and the intimate relationship that unites artists with horses.

His creations combine, in particular , vaulting, acrobatics, dance, theatre, music and equestrian work , in a research that prioritizes image, sensitivity and the relationship with the animal as much as technical performance.

Some creations

• Bolero
• Take me away
• The Shadow of the Zebra
• The Grotesque and Serious Rides
• Horse dreams
• Metamorphoses (created with the Lawen Company)

This professional activity also allows students and participants in educational programs to be directly confronted with contemporary creation. Some programs thus combine circus practice, backstage exploration, observation of a rehearsal, and a professional performance.

Pagnozoo also develops a particularly family-oriented and intergenerational approach. Parent-child sessions allow younger children to participate with an adult in a fun and supportive environment. Informal gatherings are also organized under the big top to open up the space and encourage interaction between residents, artists, and participants.

The workshops and training courses do not necessarily require prior riding experience. The teaching methods are adapted to the level of the participants so that everyone can progress in a safe environment and gradually discover how horses work and the various artistic possibilities offered by equestrian circus.

A unique place

Today, Compagnie Pagnozoo is a particularly unique place in the circus landscape of Besançon and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté . At once a professional equestrian circus company, a school for amateur practice, a place for workshops, a space for creation and an actor in artistic and cultural education , it creates permanent bridges between professional artists, amateur practitioners, children, families and schools.

The Pagnozoo Company thus offers a true immersion in contemporary equestrian circus , from the first workshops for young children to advanced training courses, including classes for teenagers and adults, school projects and the discovery of professional creations.