VOLT Scratch Night Panellists Announced
We are excited to present the panellists” for our VOLT Scratch Night 2023, presented in partnership with Circus City!
VOLT is Bristol’s regional circus scratch night, creating an opportunity for circus artists in the South West to share work-in-progress pieces in a professional environment with the opportunity to receive live, constructive feedback.
The panel will look through the strong cohort of applications received to decide who will perform at the scratch night on Thursday 12 October. Keep an eye on our website and social media pages for artist announcements soon!
Nicole A’Court-Stuart – Artistic Director of Circus City
“I’m Nicole, I am a freelance producer and Artistic Director of Circus City. We love having VOLT as part of the festival as it’s a space for that first, exciting, energetic meeting point between artistic research and audiences, which is somewhere in the journey of all the polished work in the programme. I love hearing about early stage work and artistic process, particularly from performance makers local to the south-west who are expanding how we think about circus, so I am really happy to be part of VOLT panel this year.”
Zannah Chisholm – CEO of Circomedia
“I joined Circomedia as CEO this month and it’s great to get stuck in immediately with an event where artists ask audiences for feedback about new ideas and work. Artists applying to VOLT see it as a chance to connect with Bristol’s thriving circus scene. For Circomedia, VOLT showcases the curiosity of artists and engages audiences with the creative process of making a show. We look forward to the conversation and debate that VOLT sparks and the acts that evolve from it.”
Richard Headon – Artistic Director of Desperate Men
Richard has performed, written, devised & directed numerous shows & festival events both in outdoor/indoor theatre & the world of circus.
As a regular collaborator with Cirque Bijou, he has co-created huge projects like Battle for the Winds (London 2012 Cultural Olympiad) and bespoke performances as in the case of The Circus Café at Camp Bestival.
He has taught at Circomedia and created work with The National Centre for Circus Arts. Richard is especially excited to be a panel member for VOLT. He is really interested & intrigued to see ‘what’s coming next?’ and the elusive weave of narrative & circus skills.
Genevieve Davis – Circus City Producer
“On the VOLT panel I’m excited to see a wonderful smorgasbord of works in progress and ideas on where the work may go next.”
ZANNAH CHISHOLM ANNOUNCED AS CIRCOMEDIA’S NEW CEO
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Zannah Chisholm as our new Chief Executive Officer.
Zannah, who joined the Circomedia team as Interim CEO in July, has an extensive background in the arts having spent over 10 years at Pavilion Dance as CEO and Artistic Director as well as a Regional Producer. She took the helm at Circomedia on 1st August 2023.
I’m thrilled to be joining the team at Circomedia. The love of the organisation is really clear – from all those who expressed their delight when I first joined as Interim CEO, through to the passion and commitment of the staff and wider Circomedia family. I’m looking forwards to leaning into the future of contemporary circus to nurture new generations of circus artists, and seeing where our imagination will take us.”
BBC INTERVIEW 18 JULY
We were delighted to feature in the BBC’s recent coverage of higher education on Tuesday 18 July.
Rod Laver, Higher Education Course Leader summarises the interview:
“Circomedia is made up of committed and talented staff and students who work incredibly hard to produce challenging work that feeds into the exciting and diverse world of contemporary circus and related performing arts.
We have strong retention rates and students who are realistically prepared for the challenging modern marketplace they will be entering which is the case across many professions.
We would welcome the chance to show Rishi Sunak how physically and academically challenging our degree is. Our students understand what our course entails through open days and audition. They choose us and we choose them very carefully. They consider our degree high value, and we value them highly in return.”
Freya Sofia, Contemporary Circus student adds “It’s [studying at Circomedia] been the best decision of my life, I’ve been able to connect to my truth and what I really want to do”
Sign into BBC iPlayer and watch here (8min 23 sec in).
Could you be our next CEO?
Circomedia are looking for a world-class leader to help us continue our mission to create the next generation of contemporary circus in Bristol, the UK and the world.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to be able to juggle, fly or perform (we have lots of phenomenal people that already do that!), but we do need you to lead the way for us to do what we love. This is a rare and unique opportunity to lead a renowned circus arts charity in the centre of Bristol, which is revolutionising the world of contemporary circus.
For more information, including how to apply, please visit our jobs page at www.circomedia.com/jobs. The application deadline is 5:00 pm on Tuesday 4th July 2023.
Circomedia Welcomes Zannah Chisholm as Interim CEO
We are delighted to welcome Zannah Chisholm as our new Interim CEO. You can find out more about Zannah’s background here.
“I’m delighted to be working at Circomedia in Bristol as Interim CEO to support the organization through transition as Nic retires from the role in June. It is a real privilege to work with such a unique organisation and group of industry experts who are striving to create the next generation of circus performers, creators and directors.”
The Board are currently in the process of recruiting our new CEO – please visit our jobs page to find out more.
Nic Young Retiring as Circomedia CEO
After nearly 8 years of dedication, leadership and commitment to Circomedia our wonderful Chief Executive Nic Young has made the decision to retire from the role and will be leaving the organisation in late June. Nic has been a crucial part of leading Circomedia as well as ensuring our survival as an organisation through a global pandemic. The Board would like to recognise Nic’s achievements as CEO and thank him for what he has brought to the organisation. The Board are now making preparations to find a new leader for Circomedia.
Claire Williams (Circomedia Chair)
