Circus training for teens starts Sept. 12

MIDDLETOWN » Circus training for young people is alive and well in Middletown, the selfstyled circus capital of Connecticut. Starting Sept. 12, young people ages 12 to 19 will have the opportunity to receive professional training in circus arts through a unique program with a nearly thirty-year history. Circophony meets Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6:30 to 9 p.m., Sept. 12-Nov. 16. The program culminates with a “Fall Circus Showcase” on Friday, Nov. 17, and Circophony members will then have the chance to audition for Circophony’s Spring Production.

All classes take place at Oddfellows Playhouse, 128 Washington St., Middletown.

The fall training program is open to all teens, regardless of circus experience, who are willing to commit to the ten week, five-hour per week program. Training will include many aspects of circus and performance, including acrobatics, tumbling, juggling & object manipulation, balancing & equilibristics, unicycling, stilting, strength & flexibility, physical comedy, clowning and ensemble performance.

The program does not include aerial training, but Circophony members are regularly provided with opportunities to enroll in specialized workshops, take field trips to professional circus performances, and participate in Regional and National Youth Circus Festivals through the American Youth Circus Organization.

Circophony is a collaboration between the Middletown-based Theater Company ARTFARM and Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater. The program is directed by ARTFARM Executive Director Dic Wheeler, who started the Children’s Circus of Middletown in 1988 and has been teaching, directing and performing circus and theater around the United States, Europe and South Asia since 1980.

Tuition for the ten-week program is $250. To enroll, go to www.oddfellows.org. For more details about the training structure and content, contact Dic Wheeler at info@art-farm.org, or visit www.art-farm.org.