Circo de los Niños

This post is a long time coming but in reality the training for the Circo del los Niños  program continued until a few weeks ago.

The Circo de los Niños program in San Pancho is how we pretty much spent the first three months of the year.  What is it?  It is best described from their website.

In 2011, Cirque du Soleil co-founder and Creative Guide Gilles Ste-Croix and his wife Monique Voyer approached Entreamigos ( a community center and educational program) with the idea of creating a circus show with the children of San Pancho. With help of some friends from Canada, Cirrus Cirkus, Cirque du Soleil’s program Circo del Mundo who donate some equipments, and the help of 100’s local volunteers, the first Circo de Los Niños Show was presented on March 2011 as a fundraising for Entreamigos.

In the summer 2014, we requested the use of an old warehouse in the village from The Nayarit Government to set up the Circo de los Niños program. Entreamigos had previously housed the project since 2011, but the space had become too small with all the new circus equipment. After an elaborate refitting, the new Bodega Circo opened at the end of October. New teachers were hired to implement a revised teaching program and 67 students registered for the first cycle.

The kids joined the program in January and trained for 3 months for the big production that occurred just before spring break.  Everyone of all skill levels is welcome.  For three to five days a week the kids reported to the new training facility for practice.  They learned tumbling, trampoline, acrobatics, trapeze, slack line and more.  The hierarchy of who does what is decided on who has been in the program for the longest and developed a certain level of skill.  In other words, for the kid's first production the kids did not do too much while the kids who had been in the program since it's creation a few years ago featured prominently in the show.  Lots of work for very little stage time but that is the nature of things.  If you want to do the coolest things and a place in the spotlight then you have to pay your dues for a while.  A good lesson and obvious when you see some of the kids flipping through the air and some having a hard time doing a somersault.  I think Alex loved the costumes and glam of the whole thing while Trace was a little frustrated he needed to be hanging around and waiting to practice the part of the show he was involved with but was glad to be there with his buddies every training session.  When there was action to be had he enjoyed it.  The photos here are from a variety of amazing photographers and clearly some of our own.  

The cast.

Alex backstage.

Trace gets his makeup.

Volunteers keep the kids busy while waiting backstage.

Rehearsal.  Trace in the foreground.

Alex backstage stretching.

Trace backstage.  Yes, this is our son.

Alex backstage at the wardrobe area.

The Circo bodega entrance.

Alex after the final show.

Trace after the final show.

Entertainment outside the venue while waiting to be seated.

Amazing costumes.

Stilt walker outside the performance.

Alex with new and old friends backstage.

Lights, smoke, costumes.

The Circo de los Niños website gallery has an amazing collection of pro shots of the performances that ran for a total of four days so be sure to check those out.  They will certain give you an appreciation of the scope and size of the production beyond the handful of photos of our kids here.  Once the performances were over and the kids, parents and amazing volunteers had a chance to catch their breath, training resumed for the remainder of the school year.  With no performance looming at the end of the training period, the kids were full on training for two months learning even more skills.  Trace preferred the acrobatics since it related well to his love of Capoeira and Alex like the trapeze and silks.

Trace on the slack line, working hard.

Alex acrobatic training.

Trace and his buddies on the silks.

 ...and so it goes in small town Mexico.  I have said it before but the amount and quality of programming offered to kids in the local area is amazing.  It could easily just be limited to surfing and soccer.  To be able to train in a facility like this, get quality coaching and be involved in a production on this level is ridiculously fantastic!  Our kids did not stand still very often the past six months but deserved it when they did.  Training will start up again once school starts and I am sure they will be eager to return to the Bodega Circo and learn new things.