Interview with Centre for Advanced Training student Francis and mum Charlotte.
Francis is a Centre for Advanced Training (CAT) student, and has been training at the National Centre for Circus Arts for nine years, since the age of three.
Tell us about how you got into circus?
Francis: My sisters used to do circus but I was too young to do it at that time. A year later, the National Centre created Family Circus, which you could do with your family. I started here almost ten years ago when I was three.
How did you find out about the National Centre?
Charlotte: We had heard about it through my sister-in-law. She happened to be working in a local cafe when she learnt about the National Centre through her customers. My daughters were both into gymnastics and we liked the idea of developing the gymnastic skills in a more exciting way. We went to visit the National Centre and enrolled them as soon as they were old enough. Francis and I would go along to the Centre to watch his sisters. As soon as classes for his age group became available, we signed up. He and I did it together for a while. Once he was older, he was able to go along to the classes himself- we’ve never looked back really.
What do like the most about coming here Francis?
Francis: I can throw myself around and nobody judges me if I do a cartwheel here, people are very encouraging and I get on well with my group.
How does circus make you feel?
Francis: Happy and springy! If I didn’t do circus then I’d probably be a couch potato. With circus, I’m a happier person.
Why do you like Circus as opposed to Dance, Theatre, Ballet and Gymnastics?
Francis: I find that dance, ballet and gymnastics are all similar in routine but with circus, you can change the way you do things. If you are doing a dive role, you can add personality to it instead of it being straight and postured.
Are you interested in a particular skill?
Francis: I prefer acro because you can just throw yourself around and do loads of flips; most of the time you don’t really get hurt. I feel like I am progressing a lot in this area.
You’ve just completed a Centre for Advanced Training intensive where you train in specialty disciplines for a week. What did you get to do there?
Francis: It was really fun; I enjoyed it. In the morning one of the teachers helped us perfect and develop some of our existing circus skills. We would round off our backflips and I tried a Barani towards the end of the week. In the afternoon, a circus group called Silver Lining came to help us make a show which we performed at the end of the week. That was really fun because it helped to bring out the creative side of everyone by putting all of our ideas into one big thing.
Was the CAT intensive week different to your London Youth Circus classes?
Francis: It was a smaller group so the teacher could focus more on individuals. It was nice to work with different age groups too. I felt that I gained more skills from watching the older class mates.
What are your ambitions for the future?
Francis: I want to do the Circus Arts degree here. My main focus is to become a stuntman – or if not, then I’ll join a circus.
