RegArts de Cirque

RegArts de Cirque is an amateur circus association and school located in Rodez , Aveyron. Created on February 7, 2007 , its objective is to promote and disseminate artistic, cultural and sporting practices through education, creation and exchange.

The association benefits from the Youth and Popular Education accreditation and develops its activities around the regular practice of circus arts, workshops, the creation of shows and numerous projects carried out with schools, leisure centers and social structures.

Regular classes

Regular classes are available from the age of 4 .

The youngest children start with the Early Learning group for 4-5 year olds . 6-7 year olds then have access to a multidisciplinary workshop adapted to their age.

From the age of 8 , several possibilities exist to continue and deepen the practice.

• Multidisciplinary groups welcome 8-12 year olds and allow them to discover the different major families of circus arts.
• A specific " acro/aerial " course is also offered from age 8 for students wishing to further develop these disciplines.
• Teenagers have their own class while a group of older teenagers and adults allows them to continue practicing beyond the children's groups.
• The school also offers a group dedicated to unicycling , intended for experienced unicyclists and organized around meetings and specific training sessions.

The subjects taught

RegArts de Cirque's teaching is intentionally multidisciplinary .

Juggling

Juggling plays an important role in the activities offered. Depending on the workshops and projects, participants can manipulate balls, diabolos, rings, scarves and various juggling accessories.

Balances on objects

Balancing on objects constitutes another major category of practice. The school uses, in particular, balance balls , tightropes , and various other equipment to develop balance, coordination, and body control.

The unicycle

Unicycling is a particularly popular activity. Beyond its use in circus arts, RegArts has a dedicated group of experienced unicyclists.

Stilts

Stilt walking is also among the disciplines practiced by the association.

Acrobatics

Ground acrobatics is another important aspect of the teaching. It can be approached alone or in groups, particularly through acrobatic lifts .

Aerial disciplines

Aerial disciplines have specific practice conditions at the Monteil high school gymnasium .

This space allows for trapeze and aerial silk work and offers a height more suited to disciplines requiring more space.

Two places to practice

This two-location organization allows the school to adapt its spaces to different practices.

• The Maison des Associations in Rodez welcomes, in particular, the youngest groups.
• The Monteil high school gymnasium allows for further development of aerial arts, unicycling, stilt walking and forms of juggling requiring height.

A pedagogy without competition

RegArts' pedagogy is based on practice without the notion of competition .

The workshops aim to develop motor skills and coordination, but also self-confidence , imagination and mutual support .

The diversity of circus arts allows participants to experiment with different techniques and gradually find the disciplines that suit them.

Cooperation plays an important role in this approach.

Students are encouraged to practice together, observe others, help each other, and participate in collective creations.

This dimension is particularly evident in the shows prepared by the school.

The shows

RegArts de Cirque regularly organizes a show bringing its students together around a common theme.

The different disciplines worked on during the year are then integrated into a creation allowing children, teenagers and adults to present their work in front of an audience.

Over the years, the shows have explored very different worlds: stories, cinema, circus history, music, non-verbal communication, relationship to time, and even the subversion of scenes from everyday life .

These creations go beyond simple technical demonstration and integrate learning into an artistic approach .

Internships and special projects

The school also organizes internships during the holidays and at different times of the year.

Some internships are multidisciplinary while others allow you to deepen your knowledge of a technique or develop a particular project.

RegArts develops courses in particular around unicycling , juggling , slacklining , tightrope walking or acrobatic lifts .

Some projects take the form of small artist residencies .

Practitioners can then work for several days in the same place before presenting a final presentation or a show.

The association also develops intergenerational projects in partnership with retirement homes.

These activities allow students to practice and create in the presence of residents before putting on a performance.

The "Complices Circus" workshops

For younger children, RegArts organizes " Circus Partners " workshops during the holidays.

These parent-child sessions are intended for children aged 2 to 6 years accompanied by an adult.

Organised in small groups, these workshops offer a first shared discovery of circus arts and constitute a complementary approach to the weekly classes which start at age 4 .

Interventions outside the walls

RegArts' activities extend far beyond the courses organized in Rodez.

The association regularly intervenes in schools, colleges, high schools, leisure centers, holiday centers and social centers .

The projects are developed in collaboration with partner organizations and can take various forms:

• one-off event
• initiation
• educational cycle
• discovery class
• improvement
• preparation of an act or a show

RegArts can accommodate groups in its own premises or move its equipment directly to the venue.

School interventions allow the diversity of circus arts to be used as an educational tool .

Juggling, balancing and acrobatics can contribute to the development of motor skills , coordination , self-confidence , creativity and cooperation .

The association has significant experience in this type of project and has worked with numerous schools and municipalities in Aveyron.

A wider audience

Its scope of intervention is not limited to young audiences.

RegArts also indicates that it can intervene in retirement homes and hospitals .

Intergenerational projects organized with establishments hosting elderly people illustrate this desire to use circus arts as a means of meeting and exchange between different audiences.

Presence in local life

The association also regularly participates in the cultural and community life of Rodez and its surrounding area.

His students can take part in public activities , demonstrations and local events .

Unicyclists, jugglers, acrobats and stilt walkers can thus be associated with events organised in the city or in the surrounding municipalities.

A project that goes beyond a simple leisure course

RegArts de Cirque is therefore developing a project that goes beyond the operation of a simple recreational course.

Weekly practice forms the core of the activity, but it is complemented by internships, shows, parent-child workshops, school projects, intergenerational actions and public events.

A child can start with parent-child workshops from the age of 2 during the holidays, join regular classes from the age of 4 , continue in multidisciplinary groups and then choose to deepen acrobatic and aerial disciplines from the age of 8 .

Teenagers and adults can continue to practice and experienced unicyclists have a specific group.

Juggling, acrobatics, lifts, balances, tightrope walking, unicycling, stilts, trapeze and aerial silks thus constitute a particularly diverse ensemble.

Based in Rodez since 2007 and holding the Youth and Popular Education accreditation , RegArts de Cirque is an associative school of amateur practice which combines technical learning, artistic creation, cooperation and openness to different audiences in the territory.