SENECA INTENSIV – Preparatory School for Contemporary Circus

SENECA INTENSIV is a non-profit arts training institution located in Berlin's Marzahn district. Since 2007, the organization has been developing educational programs dedicated to movement arts, bringing together contemporary dance, circus, physical theatre and interdisciplinary practices.

Among its various courses, SENECA INTENSIV offers a preparatory year specifically dedicated to contemporary circus, called Bildungsjahr Zeitgenössischer Zirkus.

This intensive ten-month course is aimed at people wishing to deepen their technical and artistic skills, prepare for entrance auditions to higher circus schools or dedicate a year to exploring their professional orientation.

The training is based on more than 160 days of training , organized from Monday to Friday, within a stable group of participants.

The teaching combines several major families of circus arts in order to develop versatile physical preparation and to encourage each student to gradually build their own artistic language.

Floor acrobatics and acro-dance play an important role in the program. They are complemented by handstand work, physical conditioning, muscle strengthening, and flexibility and contortion exercises.

Aerial disciplines constitute another essential aspect of the training. Depending on the teaching possibilities, participants can explore the trapeze, aerial hoop, silks, rope, or aerial straps.

Juggling, duo acrobatics and group acrobatic techniques complement this learning.

The school also places great importance on dance, with teachings based on contemporary techniques, classical dance and acro-dance.

This cross-disciplinary approach allows future artists to develop their body awareness, coordination, mobility and expressive abilities beyond their specific circus specialty.

The training is not limited to the acquisition of physical skills. Artistic research, improvisation, and creative processes also occupy a central place in the program.

Participants are accompanied by professional artists and experienced educators, with the aim of simultaneously developing their technical level, autonomy and artistic identity.

The SENECA INTENSIV environment fosters exchanges between different disciplines of the performing arts. Circus students develop in contact with other participants from dance, physical theatre and interdisciplinary artistic practices.

The classes take place in several Berlin locations: the SENECA INTENSIV studios in Marzahn, the CABUWAZI Marzahn acrobatic facilities and a training hall located in Lausitzer Platz, in the Kreuzberg district.

This distribution allows the use of equipment adapted to the different technical requirements of the program.

SENECA INTENSIV also develops professional development activities, artistic workshops and additional training around production, creation and career development.

The institution also organizes public presentations, notably KONDENSAT, an event showcasing the final projects of participants in the various artistic programs.

The preparatory year in contemporary circus thus constitutes a bridge between an already committed practice of circus arts and a possible continuation of studies in a higher professional school.

It can also meet the needs of artists wishing to dedicate an intensive period to their technical development, personal research and the definition of their artistic project.

Thanks to its multidisciplinary teaching, specialized infrastructure and its location in the Berlin cultural landscape, SENECA INTENSIV represents a preparatory training opportunity for future contemporary circus artists in Germany.