Circus puts spin on youth empowerment

SOUTH African circus Zip Zap is re-imagining circus arts as an educational tool to inspire young people.

Through its outreach and youth programmes, physical skills such as co-ordination and balance, and life skills such as teamwork, resilience and dedication, are taught in the hope of bringing about unity.

By using circus arts as a practical medium, CEO and co-founder of Zip Zap Circus Laurence Esteve said the idea was to reinvent the circus scene because circuses were not always represented in a respectable manner.

“Over the past 30 years, we have seen and heard how the general public react to the word ‘circus’. Many associate circuses with clowns and big tops, not always in a respectable manner. We had to formalise our idea into a legal structure, and that’s when we started to imagine who would need the circus,” he said.

“The youth programmes are more like a sport or an art club. Children and young people join the club because they feel attracted to the activities. The same applies to Zip Zap. Families watch a show, and children want to do that. The four programmes range from beginners to professionals, just like any other extra mural activity,” Esteve said.

He said the outreach programmes were for specific groups of people in partnership with a field operator who had identified a specific issue to be resolved.

“We then collaborate with the partner to conceptualise a programme to help solve the issue, such as the Ubuntu programme. We run circus workshops at the clinic for kids living with HIV, bringing in a fun element to the children to bring them back,” Esteve said.

Programmes manager, Vanessa Fortune, said Zip Zap had re-imagined a circus in that it offered children a safe space to have fun, grow and explore in a unique, fit-for-purpose facility, which might ordinarily have excluded them, as circus activities and fun games were the vehicles to promote social cohesion by encouraging learning through play.

“Participants are exposed to the novelty of the circus and are able to explore technically and creatively. Initially, they are exposed to all circus disciplines (juggling, diabolo, aerial scarf and hoop/lyra, trapeze, trampolining and mini-trampolining, acrobatics), which provide opportunities to identify personal preferences,” she said.

Fortune said that as the participants progressed through programmes, they were able to specialise in disciplines and hone skills in these areas.

“Through circus arts, we encourage participants to persevere and push themselves beyond personal limitations in pursuing their goals. Activities are geared to growing aspects of teamwork, trust and care. A case in point is teaching participants to build human pyramids which require working together. Children learn the value of diversity and begin to appreciate the importance of individuality. Engaging with others provides opportunities for children to learn from others, share with others, and respect others. These are at the core of cultivating and maintaining strong, positive relationships,” she said.

The programmes are offered free of charge. For more information, visit www.zip-zap.co.za