/ CROSS CHANNEL CIRCUS ARTS ALLIANCE

Building on the success of the Out There Festival and our growing reputation for international collaboration, we're now partnering in an exciting cross-channel circus project.

 

The 'Cross Channel Circus Arts Alliance' (CCCAA) will provide SeaChange with the opportunity to develop the art of contemporary circus both in the region and oversees.

 

Following the fourth edition of the Out There Festival this year, which attracted 60,000 visitors, this latest major European circus partnership will help our ambition of building Great Yarmouth into a UK centre of excellence.

 

The three-year project partners eight organisations in southern England and northern France, and will bring SeaChange nearly €500,000 to develop circus on a local, national and international scale. The dual focus of the partnership is to deliver high quality contemporary circus to audiences, and support production, touring and training opportunities for local artists and professionals in the circus industry.

 

The project will allow SeaChange to draw upon Great Yarmouth's rich circus history, as the home of the UK's only remaining purpose built circus venue - the historic Hippodrome.

 

The CCCAA project will ensure annual world-class contemporary circus shows at this incredibly special venue through a 3 year collaboration with the Norfolk and Norwich Festival.

 

The first of these will be a stunning performance from Compagnie XY in May 2012, whose show Le Grand C combines breathtaking acrobatics, music, dance and the art of the human pyramid into an unforgettable experience of modern circus.

 

The project will also find performance outlets through the newly renovated St Georges in Great Yarmouth from 2012 and we will continue to grow the quality and quantity of performances at the Out There Festival.

 

The CCCAA will also allow SeaChange to support emerging circus artists and new companies to develop their work and showcase it across the partnership, and to other festivals and promoters. We'll be heavily involved in organising Creative Professional Development sessions for these artists in the UK and France, as well as promoting exchanges and training for professionals working in the industry, developing their knowledge and expertise in the field and contributing to a larger European network.

 

 

Funded by the Interreg IV A England (Channel) France programme, the Cross Channel Circus Arts Alliance (CCCAA) will run from 2011 to the end of 2014.

 

The project partners are:

 

Activate Performing Arts (Dorset, UK)

Lighthouse (Poole, UK)

Farnham Maltings (UK)

SeaChange Arts

La Brèche (Basse-Normandie, France)

Conseil Général de la Mance (Basse-Normandie, France)

Cirque Jules Verne (Amiens, France)

La Renaissance (Basse-Normandie, France)