Carnival Workshop Descriptions!
Friday Session 1 (14:30-15:30)
Aerial 1 “Double silks, double badass!”
Duo silks (Suzie and Gemma)
Level: high intermediate
Prerequisites: experience of duo work, confident to base and/or fly with another person, cross back straddle on silks and crochet invert.
2 people on 1 silk! Come and experiment how to base and fly on silks! We’ll look at two of our favourite poses which look badass for photos! Our first one is basing in cross back with the flyer above in a handstand. The second one is basing in a footlock, in a mermaid style pose making a loop with one section of fabric for the flyer to create shapes on. These poses will include how to get in and out of these when thinking of creating a sequence.
Aerial 2 “Cloudy with a chance of smiles”
Beginner Cloud (Jo)
Level: beginner
Prerequisites: none
In this playful workshop you will be introduced to the sunny world of cloud. Expect to sway, roll, twist and smile!
Aerial 3 “Hoop Hoop Hooray!”
Beginner hoop (Megan)
Level: beginners
Prerequisits: a smile and a love of circus! No hoop experience necessary.
Whether you’ve never done hoop before or its been a while, come and have a try at a basic sequence where we’ll start below the bar and work our way up to the top bar. We’ll add in variations of poses depending on how confident you’re feeling.
Floor 1 “Not sure how to describe this beyond, trying not to fall off half a bike”
Unicycle (Graeme)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
What’s the difference between a well dressed man on a unicycle, and a poorly dressed man on a bicycle?
…Attire
Floor 2 “Flounce like Flynn”
Sword Fighting (Nick)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
A taste of learning the sword fighting skills seen on stage and screen, from fancy footwork to avenging your father!
A mix of sword movements and sets to test your “metal” and to learn something different to add to your performances.
Friday Session 2 (15:45-16:45)
Aerial 1 “Staged”
Floor-ial using silks(Gemma and Lorna)
Level: all
Prerequisites: none
In this class we will look at ways to start aerial acts on the floor or indeed finish aerial acts. If game, you can bring a prop, or use a prop we will bring, to enhance your style, and we will create opening scenes so good, you won’t actually have to climb an inch (well you might have to do something, but mainly you will be lolling about the floor). Music will feature.
Aerial 2 “Double the fun cloud!”
Cloud (Jo)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: Flyers (those being lifted) none, although you may find the cloud pinchy. Bases: strong straddle, the ability to hold someone’s weight. Attending the intermediate cloud will be beneficial as we learn a base position in that workshop.
Work in pairs to make insta worthy shapes and swing like a kid.
Aerial 3 '“Come fly with me, let’s fly let’s fly away”
Duo hoop (Suzie and Caitlin)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: Be happy to base and/or fly in poses and be happy to be up close and personal with someone else. Must be confident in all the basic hoop moves as we’ll be adding about half of another person’s weight to these moves: Delilah 1 hand, hox 2 knees, Amazon, Man on the Moon, back balance (can have a leg on hoop and hold on), front balance (can hold on to hoop) etc.
2 people, 1 hoop! Come and learn a flowy sequence with a partner x
Floor 1 “Duck and cover”
Partner juggle (Graeme and Darren)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: 3 ball cascade with juggling balls for about 10 secs.
What makes juggling even more fun? Doing it with a partner!
Floor 2 “Oh sit down! Oh sit down! Sit down next to me . . .”
Chair dance (Shirley)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Come and learn some beginner-friendly chair dance moves which we will put together into a routine (with the option of performing it on Saturday night!) A low impact whole body workout, particularly targeting abs and thighs! We will be moving over and around the chair and floor and different levels of strength and flexibility will be catered for! Bring your shimmy and your sense of fun!
Friday workshop 3 (17:00-18:00)
Aerial 1 “Test out your silky skills”
Beginner Silks (Casey)
Level: beginners
Prerequisites: none
Come and learn the basics of silks! We’ll look at climbs, footlocks and straddles/inverting. If you can do these already, we’ll look at what you can do next!
Aerial 2 “Ropey Cloud”
Ropey cloud (Jo)
Level: high intermediate
Prerequisite: Must have a solid flag and roll down on rope or silks and have a basic understanding of front back beats and bell beats.
This is one for the Thursday night rope crew. Beats, flags, roll downs and sliding. Have a go at putting some of your ropey skills onto cloud and discover how it changes it!
Aerial 3 “This hoop is the wrong way round!“
Tippy hoop (Shirley)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: some aerial hoop experience (can come to sitting/standing on a hoop). Happy being upside down.
Tippy hoop is rigged on a horizontal axis rather than vertical so it tips! Come and learn the basics of this fun and dynamic apparatus that may challenge your brain as much as your body! We will be working above and underneath the hoop and in the strops on some pretty shapes and cool transitions.
This will be the same workshop as last year but there will be a new, more challenging sequence that involves inverting in the strops for those who have done some tippy and are feeling confident with the basics.
Floor 1 “Clowning about”
Clowning (Nick)
Level: all
Prerequisites: none
A look into the world of clowning. Forget the squeaky shoes and red nose and learn how to tumble and how mastery of basic movements can make you funnier and more effective than watching a pair of shorts trying to do trapeze!
Saturday workshop 1 (09.30-10.30)
Aerial 1 "Two plonkers up a rope! "
Duo Rope (Megan and Darren)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: confident in catchers and s-lock at height as you’ll have another person’s weight in these positions or be able to climb and put a footlock on.
What’s better than one person up a rope? 2! Darren and Megan will teach you the basics of doubles rope, flying and basing!
Aerial 2- “Harnessed”
Harness (Casey)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: be able to hold a plank / dish
Layers encouraged around the middle and hips
You will work in pairs wearing harnesses attached to a rope. You will work together moving both in the air and on the ground. Partners can work with bouncing and spinning.
Aerial 3 “Rainy day trapeze”
Trapeze with an umbrella! (Emma)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: confident with getting on the trapeze at height and confident with basic moves like: hox, pike under the bar, mermaid, Amazon etc as we’ll be doing this holding the brolly!
If you’ve been lucky enough to see Emma perform, you’ll know she’s got great characterisation and incorporates props seamlessly into her acts. Come and learn a trapeze sequence and play with an umbrella on the trapeze from her “Rainy day trapeze” act.
Floor 1 “Learn to juggle”
Ball juggle (Graeme)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Learn the concepts of basic 3 ball cascade pattern and start learning to juggle, or if you can do this already we can look at the different techniques of basic 3 ball juggling and ways to improve it.
Floor 2 “Strictly Carnival”
Lyrical dance (Joss)
Level: all levels
A beginners lyrical dance class, starting with a stretch and warm up then learning some basic lyrical moves, putting it altogether to make a routine and perform in small groups. No previous dance experience required, all welcome.
Saturday workshop 2 (10:45-11:45)
Aerial 1 "Fat bottomed girls* let’s get those asses upside down! [Sung to Queen]"
Straddles/inverting (Shirley)
Level: beginner
Prerequisites: *Open to bottoms of all sizes and genders
As someone who is built for comfort, not aerial, inverting has always been a challenge for me. In this workshop I will break down the aerial invert and look at the different muscle groups that work together to get us upside down. We will look at general difficulties with inverting and depending on the group we can look at individual challenges and learn from each other. I will suggest some conditioning exercises to incorporate into training and I will also teach a way to get into catchers without inverting at all.
Aerial 2 “Harnessed”
Harness (Casey)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: be able to hold a plank / dish
Layers encouraged around the middle and hips
You will work in pairs wearing harnesses attached to a rope. You will work together moving both in the air and on the ground. Partners can work with bouncing and spinning.
Aerial 3 “Wait, this is NOT a cloud!”
Trapeze (Jo)
Level: beginner
Prerequisites: none
Whether you’re new to trapeze or it’s been a while, come and learn the basics. This is Jo’s first love in circus, so come and learn why!
Floor 1 “Juggling and volleyball”
Club passing (Graeme)
Level: intermediate/advanced
Prerequisites: must attend club passing group on a Monday.
Floor 2 “Character creation for (aerial) performances”
Creative (Andrea)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
In this workshop, you will learn how to spice up your performance by creating a character that tells a story. How do you find inspiration? How do you turn yourself into a character? How can you visually plan your look? Join this workshop for all this and other shenanigans!
Saturday workshop 3 (12:00-13:00)
Aerial 1 “A ropey love affair”
Rope (Megan)
Skill level: beginner
Prerequisites: none
Ever wondered why Megan predominantly does rope? Why it’s her happy place? Why Gemma is always cheesing ear to ear while up a rope?
Well now’s your chance to get answers! Come join Megan’s beginners rope workshop where youll start from the very beginning with 2 feet on the floor. If you’re able to get off the ground, I’ll challenge you to greater heights!
Aerial 2
none
Aerial 3 “Shorts are optional*”
Doubles Trapeze (Jo & Darren)
Level: Intermediate
Prerequisites: Able to mount the trapeze without your feet on the ground, willingness to be stood on sat on or hung off. Willingness (if basing) to hold the weight of another person.
In this workshop Jo and Darren will teach some fabulous shapes while you’re on the trapeze as well as fun ways on and off the trapeze with a partner.
*ask Jo about this in the workshop
Outside
Slackline (Emma)
Level: all
Prerequisites: none
Come and learn the technique of slackline! The (slightly) easier version of tightwire. The slackline is tied between two trees.
Floor 1 “Half a bike”
Unicycle (no teacher- free play)
Floor 2 “You can, Can Can!”
Can can dance (Shirley)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Come and learn some beginner-friendly can can steps which we will put together into a simple 2-minute routine (with the option of performing it on Saturday night!) This will be an aerobic workout but with the option of low or high impact moves. Don’t worry, we will pace ourselves! Cushioned trainers are recommended; if you have a full skirt, please bring it (hopefully, we will have a few to play with by then).
Saturday workshop 4 (14:00-15:00)
Floor 1 “Aim high!”
Acrobalance with everyone
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Come and be introduced or reacquainted with acrobalance! This session will take you through some of the fundamentals of acro, and some harder progressions where you will balance on top of each other in poses of threes and fours. We will then try and make larger shapes by joining these up with other groups, with the goal being great pictures for instagram!
Sunday workshop 1 (10:00-11:00)
Aerial 1 “Wrappy silks”
Silks (Casey)
Skill level: intermediate
Prerequisites: climb, clean invert multiple times and roll downs (doesn’t need to be good- just an understanding).
We are lucky to have Casey from Edinburgh teaching silks which is her specialty! Come and learn her signature style which involves complex wraps and alternative entries and methods.
Aerial 2 “You spin me right round baby!”
Duo strops (Suzie and Gemma)
Skill level: intermediate
Prerequisites: Able to invert from the ground multiple times. Bring long-sleeved trousers and tops, maybe leg warmers too. Looks lovely on a spin if you can tolerate it but not essential!
We will be spending time exploring the possibilities of rigging strops with our partner. We’ll explore various shapes we can make using the strops starting with sitting in it, lying back, standing with it in our armpits, then move on to a lunge or split sequence. We’ll aim for you to leave with a flowing sequence or 2!
Aerial 3 ”Come with me, and you’ll see, under the sea!”
Aerial net (Brendan)
Level: beginners
Prerequisites: none
Want to know how mermaids and mermans would look like if they were caught and forced to perform for us land folks? Me either. But I would love to show you some cool movements on the net. Come join me for chaos and fun!
Aerial 4
Slackline (no teachers- free play)
Floor 1 “Not sure how to describe this beyond, trying not to fall off half a bike”
Unicycle (Graeme)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
What’s the difference between a well dressed man on a unicycle, and a poorly dressed man on a bicycle?
…Attire
Floor 2 “Time to unleash your inner dancer”
Belly dance (Caitlin)
Level: all levels
An introduction to belly dancing with a variety of music styles. We will be learning some basic belly dance moves and technique. We will not be learning a routine (a chance to give your brain a break). This workshop is about feeling good in the movement and dancing together.
Sunday workshop 2 (11:15 - 12:15)
Aerial 1
None
Aerial 2 “Weird and wonderful”
Strops (Suzie)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: straddle from the ground with strop on your back, teddy, from straddle, hox a leg and be able to climb up, looks beautiful with a spin but can be done without. Bring long-sleeved leggings, top and layers as they can be a bit pinchy when you’re not used to them.
Come and explore rigging strops with me! They’re not just for hanging our equipment from; they are an awesome piece of equipment used to create weird and wonderful shapes! This will leave your audience guessing, how did they do that?
Aerial 3 “Hiya Hammock”
Hammock (Gemma)
Level: determined beginner upwards
Prerequisites: confident with grip
This workshop will build on your skills or if new, will introduce you to hammock (a big silk, in a big loop also called sling). You'll be learning a short sequence of moves, before putting a different spin on it with some creative prompts.
Outside
Slackline (no teachers- free play)
Floor 1 “Hoops and happiness”
Hula hoop (Suzi D)
Level: beginners
Suitable for complete beginners, covering basics in waist hooping, hand spins, extensions twisters and weaves.
Floor 2 “Swing those balls”
Beginner Poi (Brendan)
Level: All levels
Prerequisites: none
Ever wondered how many times can I hit myself with a swinging ball in the space of an hour? Come join myself and find out how not to hit yourself with poi repeatedly! In this class we will learn to avoid these fun little moments.
Sunday workshop 3 (13:00-14:00)
Aerial 1 “Fun on fabric”
Beginners silks (Gemma)
Level: Beginners
Prerequisites: none
This workshop will introduce you to aerial silks so that you can have fun on fabric. Silks is a popular aerial skill and so you will learn some of the tricks of the trade to make it look easy! Class is adaptable, so whether you have absolutely no silks experience or just a little bit, there’ll be something new for everyone.
Aerial 2
Nothing
Aerial 3 “Come with me, and you’ll see, under the sea!”
Aerial net (Brendan)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: straddle, teddy bear.
Want to know how mermaids and mermans would look like if they were caught and forced to perform for us land folks? Me either. But I would love to show you some cool movements on the net. Come join me for chaos and fun!
Outside
Slackline (no teachers- free play)
Floor 1 “What’s long and sticky? A Staff! ”
Staff (Darren)
Level: All levels
Prerequisites: be able to hold a stick
It's a big, long stick, and you can twirl it above your head, in front of you or behind you! Eventually you can set it on fire and it looks really cool! Come and learn the basics of staff spinning, looking at simple twirls and weaves.
Floor 2 “Whose line is it anyway?”
Improv (Benjamin)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Rest your muscles and stop taking yourself so seriously; laugh at your failures and celebrate your inner madness. We'll be playing improv games like you might have seen on shows like - Who's Line Is It Anyway?Suitable for anyone and everyone. Bring your silliest sense of humour, your worst singing voice, and your most over-the-top acting skills.
Sunday workshop 4 (14:15-15:15)
Aerial 1
None
Aerial 2
None
Aerial 3 “Double trouble!”
Duo lollipop (Suzie and Megan)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: confident with a straddle on hoop, hox, back and front balance with holding on, some experience of doubles if preferable, can be done with or without a spin.
Come and learn a sequence on the lollipop with a partner! As it’s the last class on Sunday, we will have different options if you’re feeling knackered!
Outside
Free floor play- (no teachers)
Come and have a go at the things you’ve learned in juggling, hula hoop, poi etc.
Floor 1 “Hoops and happiness”
Hula hoop (Suzi D)
Level: intermediate
Prerequisites: waist hooping, hand spins.
Covering behind the back passes, mandalas, forward and backwards weaves and transitions between moves.
Floor 2
Poi (Graeme)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
Enter the world of poi! 2 balls on the end of string! Graeme will aim to teach you the basics or progress you further if you know some already.
Sunday workshop 5 (15:30-16:15)
Floor 1 “Namaste”
Stretch (Suzie)
Level: all levels
Prerequisites: none
I’ll guide us through a well-deserved cool-down stretch for the body. Please bring a yoga mat if you have one. We’ll also finish with some guided relaxation.