Public Street

Presentation

RuePublique is an association and circus school based in Paris that develops a project at the crossroads of circus arts, street arts, sport, language learning and social action. Its regular classes take place in particular at the Gymnase du Buisson Saint-Louis , in the 10th arrondissement of Paris.

RuePublique 's project stands out for its deliberately cross-cutting approach. The association does not consider the circus solely as a physical or technical activity: it seeks to use it as a medium for learning, expression, encounters, and cultural openness.

One of the school's distinctive features is the integration of foreign languages into circus arts practice. EMILE (Content and Language Integrated Learning) inspires this approach.

In circus groups, English vocabulary is thus gradually integrated into the sessions. Warm-ups, for example, allow children in preschool and primary school to be introduced to colors and numbers, and then the vocabulary develops as the workshops progress.

The goal is not to transform the circus class into a traditional language course. On the contrary, the foreign language becomes a tool used naturally in an activity that motivates the participant. RuePublique also offers programs designed for bilingual audiences in English , Spanish , and Italian .

This international dimension is consistent with the association's identity, whose participants and artists have diverse backgrounds and cultures. Circus practice thus becomes a space for simultaneously developing physical skills , artistic expression , communication , and openness to others .

Courses and audiences

The regular courses offered in Paris welcome several audiences and offer programs adapted to different ages and needs.

• Children's package : intended for kindergarten children and families, organized on Sundays .
• Adult classes : regular sessions for practice and training.
• Aerial straps program : specialized training around the straps.
• Intensive courses : offered during school holidays.
• Reserved sessions : some straps sessions are dedicated to experienced aerial artists, capable of working independently or in groups.

Aerial straps

RuePublique is developing a specific program around aerial straps . This contemporary circus discipline combines strength, flexibility, coordination, balance, and creativity. The figures are performed using two suspended straps, allowing the practitioner to work in suspension and gradually build an aerial vocabulary.

RuePublique offers regular training and also plans intensive workshops during school holidays. Some aerial straps sessions are reserved for experienced aerial artists capable of working independently or in groups.

Artistic creation

The association has a genuine artistic creation dimension. It develops and distributes shows and projects related to circus and street arts.

Among these creations is "13 Ways of Looking – The Eye of the Blackbird," a show of approximately 45 minutes featuring three aerial artists, a Russian wheel performer, a narrator-acrobat, and a sound and light installation. The piece is inspired by Wallace Stevens' poem "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" and develops a world at the boundary between reality, imagination, and poetry.

The career paths of the artists associated with RuePublique also demonstrate a strong specialization in aerial arts, with experiences in:

• Trapeze
• Swinging trapeze
• Aerial duo
• Dance
• Acrobatics

Public space, skateboarding and social action

But RuePublique's identity extends far beyond indoor activities. As its name suggests, public space plays a significant role in its mission. The association organizes and supports cultural and sporting events in the streets, squares, and parks.

Skateboarding is another tool used by the association. RuePublique develops projects combining circus arts and skateboarding to create bridges between sport, culture, and public space.

This approach takes on a particularly important social dimension among young people in the 10th and 19th arrondissements of Paris. RuePublique works specifically with young people from priority education zones and seeks to reduce inequalities in access to sports and cultural activities.

A pilot project conducted in La Grange-aux-Belles combines circus arts and skateboarding. The activity allows participants to develop motor skills and athletic abilities while also introducing linguistic elements, with the aim of being open to audiences from diverse backgrounds.

RuePublique also has experience working with people in situations of extreme vulnerability. During the reception of refugees at Porte de la Chapelle starting in 2016 , interventions using skateboards and juggling equipment notably helped to create moments of interaction and relaxation.

Circus and skateboarding then become tools to facilitate contact and create a space for exchange in contexts where participants may be confronted with particularly difficult social situations.

This dimension allows us to link part of RuePublique's activity to the field of social circus, even if the association does not currently present a permanent program entitled "adapted circus".

RuePublique also develops events in public spaces, cultural activities, and ephemeral artistic forms. Its project thus combines amateur practice , specialized training , professional creation , street arts , and social action .

Identity and transversality

RuePublique is an atypical structure in the landscape of Parisian circus schools. Its identity is based less on a traditional curriculum organized solely by age and level than on the meeting of several worlds: circus, aerial straps, foreign languages, street arts, skateboarding, artistic creation and social projects.

At the Buisson Saint-Louis Gymnasium as in Parisian public spaces, RuePublique uses the circus as a tool to develop physical and technical skills, creativity, confidence, communication and cultural openness.

This cross-disciplinary nature makes it a particularly interesting structure for people seeking a different approach to circus teaching, but also for aerial artists wishing to work with straps and for projects combining circus arts, sport, inclusion and public space.