Join us at Circus Factory for a Ground Based Course to develop yourself and your practice.

Over 4 days we will facilitate workshops on partner and solo acrobatics, handstands, dance and creative exploration aimed at anyone wanting to improve or better integrate floor skills into their practice.  Open to those with and without experience.

Under the guidance of a high-skilled and internationally renowned team, we will partake in training from 10.00AM to 5.00PM each day. This intensive 4-day training will significantly upskill your technical level but also help flex your creative muscles with workshops focussed on expression, acrobatic exploration and improvisation.

Schedule for the Course

*See tutors for each session below

9.30 – 10.00 | Doors open – Free warm up time
10.00 – 11.30 | Session 1 (S1)
11.30-13.30 | Session 2 (S2)
Lunch
14.30-16.30 | Session 3 (S3)

Day by Day Schedule

Monday
S1 – Nick – Handbalancing, Technical Focus
S2 – Josh – Flow Partner Acrobatics
S3 – Alise – Stillness in Motion

Tuesday
S1 – Nick – Handbalancing – Technical Focus
S2 – Alise – Stillness In Motion
S3 – Josh – Hand to Hand

Wednesday
S1 – Alise – Stillness in Motion
S2 – Nick – Handbalancing – Artistic Focus
S3 – Josh – Interrupting Momentum

Thursday
S1 – Nick – Handbalancing
S2 – Josh – Dynamic Partner Acrobatics
S3 – Alise – Stillness In motion

Friday
Open Collaboration and Training time.
Privates also available to be booked in between 9.30 and 17.00.

You can book each session as a drop in or join the full course.

What will the Course Cover?

Hand to Hand with Joshua Frazer

Stillness in Motion with Alise Madara Bokaldere

Hand Balancing by Nick van der Heyden

Hand to Hand with Joshua Frazer

About the training

We will look together at the foundations for Hand to Hand; Technique, Safe Practice and building Strength & Trust. Having spent years training and working professionally as part of a hand to hand partnership I know intimately the challenges and joys of practicing as a duo. This workshop will cover both the technical and experiential elements of hand to hand, including: Hand to Hand, Foot to Hand, Communication, Roles & Responsibilities. You don’t need a partner, I encourage all participants to base and fly, and no previous experience is required. For those with previous experience, extra material will be provided to match your level.

Partner Acrobatics (Flow)

This workshop will be an exploration of two bodies working fuidly together. We will look at what it is to move together through inversions, rolls, and lifts without making them hard work. We will look at where to implement tension, softness and correct placement in partner acrobatic work. The session will start with some foundational starter phrases and then open up to developing your own unique vocabulary.

Partner Acrobatics (Dynamic)

Classic acrobatics, how do we fly together? This workshop will look at the dynamic aspect of partner work including: Pitching, Icarian Games, Release from Hand to Hand/Foot to Hand. We will work together as a group to safely learn the foundations of generating energy, and synchronicity in timing for dynamic partner acrobatic work.

Interrupting Momentum

This is a creative exploration workshop, the aim of which is to discover new acrobatic possibilities when an external force is introduced to an acrobatic motion after its initial impetus. Participants of the workshop should ideally already have a decent awareness of their body in space, as we will be opening our bodies to the unexpected, the need to react quickly, to re-find one’s orientation in the moment. However progress will be gradual and controlled with safety as a priority.

About Josh Frazer

A performance artist (Acrobat/Base/Cyr Wheel/Unicycle/ Duo unicycle) who graduated from the National Centre for Circus Arts, London in 2016 and has been creating collaborative circus art ever since.

He is a co-founder of the Living Room Circus company and has performed Internationally with companies such as Circa, Garsington Opera, Fauna Circus, ConTakt Circus, Metta Theatre, A Movement of Humans and Ockhams Razor.

He has an interest in creating diverse, innovative and original work that challenge audiences and keeps the art form of circus growing and changing. 

Learn more about Josh Frazer

Stillness in Motion: Mastering Presence and Intention in Performance by Alise Madara Bokaldere

Open to circus and dance artists of all disciplines and levels

About the Training

Join contemporary dance artist Alise Madara Bokaldere for a workshop crafted for movement artists, focusing on the art of expressive minimalism. “Stillness in Motion” explores the potent use of stillness—not only as the foundation for movement but also as a technique to enhance stage presence. We’ll engage in movement both within and outside of our respective disciplines, allowing you to uncover and later incorporate fundamental principles into your own artistic practice.

In many art forms, stillness plays a crucial role—music is enhanced by pauses, words require spaces to be comprehensible, and movement works similarly. Forgetting to stop takes away from our ability to focus on the motion.

Workshop Objectives:

• Mastering Presence: Develop techniques to establish and maintain a strong, captivating presence on stage
• The Power of Stillness: Understand stillness not just as a lack of motion but as the intentional beginning of movement, which sets the stage for the significance of subsequent actions.
• The Importance of Details : Learn to elevate ordinary moments into
• Extraordinary ones through focused movements that highlight the beauty and complexity of simple actions.
• Integrating Stillness and Motion: Explore how integrating stillness
• Can enhance the expressiveness of circus performances, making even the most subtle movements resonate with the audience.

Ideal For:

This workshop is designed for dancers and circus performers, including acrobats, aerialists, and jugglers who wish to explore new dimensions of expressiveness through the disciplined use of stillness and presence. Suitable also for choreographers and directors seeking to deepen their toolbox and explore concepts of stillness.

What to Bring:

Participants should wear clothing that allows for unrestricted movement, bring water to stay hydrated, and have notebooks and pens for capturing crucial insights and inspirations during discussions.

About Alise Bokaldere 

A Latvian dancer / choreographer.  She works very closely with the details and nuanced movements in her creations, focusing on performance presence, movement quality, and concept. She graduated from The Latvian Academy of Culture in 2018, with a BA in The Art of Contemporary Dance. She was nominated for the Latvian Dance Awards 2018/2019 and the Estonian Theatre awards 2020.

She has worked both in Latvia and abroad, collaborating with Jorge Crecis, Jason Dupree, and Kanuti Gildi Saal. She worked as a part of an Estonian experimental performance collective called “The Biofilm Sisters” and is currently working with Estonian contemporary circus company “Big Wolf Company” and the contemporary performance art collective “Art For Rainy Days”. 

Learn more about Alise Bokaldere

Hand Balancing by Nick van der Heyden

Build a strong foundation in handstands, – research and play.

About the Training

“My name is Nick van der Heyden, I’m from Amsterdam and I graduated from the Academy of Circus and Performance art a decade ago with Hand Balancing as specialisation. I founded a circus company after graduating but realized soon I wanted to experience different styles and shows. I created a solo show, performed in musicals for years and 2,5 years ago I founded House of Circus, a circus company and drag house in one. ( If you want to know more about me we can grab a drink).”

Nick started teaching five years ago at Codarts Circus Arts where he teaches handstands (specialisation) and flexibility.During these workshops Nick will separate handstands in two main categories. One technical and the other more artistic.

“During Technical we will aim for a strong foundation of your handstand. We will work on lines, placement and awareness. Artistically there are no rules in my opinion and it is all about challenging, creating, playing, sharing and daring. Finding different ways to express yourself in your handstand.”

The workshop can be adapted to different levels. Some experience is a plus.

The coaches teaching the Ground Based Professional Development Course are also offering private lessons while they are here. If you would like private classes with Nick, you can email him at Nickvdheyden@gmail.com

About Nick Van der Heyden

A Dutch artist who graduated from the Academy of Circus and Performance art a decade ago, with Handbalancing as his specialisation. He founded a circus company after graduating but soon  realized he wanted to experience different styles and shows. He created a solo show, performed in musicals for years, and eventually founded House of Circus, a circus company and drag house in one.

He is the Handstand and Flexibility coach at Codarts Circus Arts.

Learn more about Nick Van der Heyden

Who is the Ground Based Professional Development Course for?

It is suitable for anyone who wishes to improve their ground-based skills for performance.

This could be:

• Acrobats (solo or duo) looking for new tricks, and to find flow and improvisation in their practice
• Aerialists looking to better connect their aerial work to the floor using soft acrobatics and floor work
• Dancers looking for acrobatic vocabulary, or more dynamic lifts and tools to use in partnering
• Anyone looking to improve their skills and acrobatic vocabulary, and to have fun doing so

Sign up to the ground based course

Date: Monday July 8th – Thursday July 11th*
Time: 10AM – 5PM  (Doors open from 9.30 for warm-up )
Location: Circus Factory
Price: 4 day Course: €300.00 / Drop in Session : €40.00 (No Discounts)
10% Students and Unwaged Discount Code at check out: CFCONC10%
10% Discount for Practitioner Members
20% Discount for Professional Members

*Friday the 12th  the space is available for skillsharing, training, and private lessons with the tutors from 10AM – 5PM

Sample Schedule for the Course

Timetable each day is divided into 3 sessions.

Time	Activity
9.30AM – 10.00AM	Doors open / free warm-up time
10.00AM – 11.30AM	Session 1
11.30AM – 13.30PM	Session 2
13.30AM – 14.30PM	Lunch
14.30PM – 16.30PM	Session 3
16.30PM – 17.00PM	cool down/chill time

Sample Tutor Schedule

Who is teaching each session is subject to change. 

Monday	Nick
	Josh
	Alise
Tuesday	Nick
	Alise
	Josh
Wednesday	Alise
	Nick
	Josh
Thursday	Nick
	Josh
	Alise

Sign up to the ground based professional development course