Excellent circus performances are the showpiece of circus arts with regard to the cultural facilities and festivals' current capacity as well as on an international level: successful companies tour around the world and cause our area to be known. The Circuscentrum fulfils the conditions to enable the creation of meaningful productions.

Through info sessions and personal conversation, we provide the necessary details for you to advance both artistically and practically.

• Info sessions. In cooperation with the Agentschap Sociaal-Cultureel Werk (Agency for social-cultural work), the Circuscentrum regularly organises informational sessions on the Circus Decree. You can find the details of a next session on our website an newsletter.
• Personal advice. Both starting and established circus artists can be in need of personal advice. The Circuscentrum gladly offers its know-how to aid your production. You can have your ideas of drafts screened for artistic quality and originality, technical feasibility, practical business matters, set-up and promotion. We can help you apply for a subsidy as well.

Make an appointment with someone from our team.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/wieiswie

As one of De Expeditie's partners, the Circuscentrum rents a working space for circus companies. This way, the Circuscentrum can support starting circus companies if they meet a number of requirements.

The artist or company that wants to make use of the studios, requires a meaningful relationship with the circus scene in Flanders. This connection can be Flemish artists/companies, foreign artists/companies that are settled in Flanders or international companies including one or several Flemish artists. New productions take priority over adaptations of older productions.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/expeditie

Since 2011, the Circuscentrum offers 'Small Maintenance Sessions' that aim at uniting artists, directors and professionals for an artistic greasing of the wheels.

A performance is always experienced in a personal way, and a drop of fresh oil can enrich or change this experience or circus arts as a whole. Reputable individuals from other arts circles view a circus performance and discuss it with the artists.

The first 'Small Maintenance Session' took place during the 'Festival van Verwondering' 2011, with Jos Houben and Arne Sierens reviewing 'Cucinema'. In the second 'Small Maintenance Session' (at Theater op de Markt 2011), Nicolas Vlasyslav and Dominique Roodthooft discussed the new performance by Cie Un loup pour l’homme, 'Face Nord'.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/kleinonderhoud

Flemish circus arts deserve good promotion, in Belgium as well as abroad. The Circuscentrum promotes circus through several channels:

• CircusMagazine: coverage of circus companies, productions by circus studios, new productions and interesting premieres. Circulation: 3800 copies quarterly.

• e-newsletter & website: coverage of premieres, interesting schedule of performances in the upcoming weeks, classifieds for circus artists,...

• Yearbook of circus companies: a beautiful outline of professional, touring Flemish circus companies, (inter)nationally distributed to programmers.

• Direct mailings to press and programmers.

• Partnerships: The Circuscentrum cooperates with respected partners from the cultural scene, therefore increasing the circus arts' visibility and importance.


>> www.circuscentrum.be/publicaties
>> www.circuscentrum.be/partners

Through the production support, the Circuscentrum aims at more and better non-professional circus productions and offers an opportunity for young talent to grow into a fully fledged company. This support gives you a chance to develop your production in its entirety: when approved, there is promotional and financial support as well as with regards to content. All the incentives you need to upgrade your performance artistically and give it every chance of success. Attention: professional circus artists better appeal to the Circus Decree.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/productieronde
>> http://www.circuscentrum.be/circusbeleid

By means of single or recurring projects (cf. Youth Circus Festival, 5 Days of Circus, Courantdag), the Circuscentrum offers circus artists a chance to perform. During educational activities, too, circus artists are regularly involved.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/projecten
>> www.circuscentrum.be/opleidingen_circuscentrum

The Circuscentrum develops a strategy to keep a watchful eye on nomadic circuses or big top circuses. The 'traditional' nomadic circuses (that travel from town to town at one's own risk) have a hard time economically due to an altered social context. Recreational activities are omnipresent and a company is up against fierce (international) competition.
It is not without worries for a traditional nomadic circus to pitch one's tent somewhere and gather an audience. Although those nomadic circuses that only play on request by programmers and organisers, often are confronted by difficulties with location.

The Circuscentrum organises a yearly or biyearly meeting with the nomadic circuses and gathers many objections and suggestions. Therefore, the Circuscentrum forms an active part of the 'European charter' working group by HorslesMurs that works towards an agreement between towns and circuses, so that circuses get a fair deal on the one hand, and towns know exactly what to expect on the other hand. Moreover, the Circuscentrum is writing a Flemish charter together with the nomadic circuses and the VVSG (Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities) specifically addressing the current situation in our region.

By way of conclusion, we also provide specific information for circuses leading a nomad life. You can find this in the Information for nomadic circuses compilation.

>> www.circuscentrum.be/en/Circus_Artists/Nomadic_Circuses/

The Circuscentrum, being a promoter of interests, works offstage in many cases. By way of close contact with programmers, policy makers, the media and actors from other artistic scenes, we try and put the circus arts higher on the cultural agenda. Moreover, the Circuscentrum is the official link between the Flemish authorities and the circus scene.

Internationally, the Circuscentrum acts in several networks such as Circostrada and Jeunes Talents Cirque Europe. At important European circus meetings and festivals, the Circuscentrum represents the Flemish circus scene.

>> Read more