Circus professionals finally get their own place in Barcelona

Barcelona (ACN).- Circus professionals have finally got a place in Barcelona where they can develop their creativity to the full. At last, they can finally leave the Big Top installed in the Parc del Fòrum and use the city’s first “Creation factory” just a few metres away, right under the Forum’s photovoltaic panels. In this 3,000 m² factory, the artists have at their disposal a large training facility, four creation rooms and another room specialized in ‘mise-en-scène’.  The sector has been demanding such a space for some time now and their voice was been finally heard. From now on, they have a brand new circus school.

Under the Parc del Fòrum’s photovoltaic panels, Barcelona City Hall has turned a disused piece of land into the city’s first ‘Creation factory’ open to the public to allow companies to show off their work. The “Circus’ Headquarters” is a new space made to fulfil the artists’ needs. In this 3,000m²  showroom, whether they are members or not of the APCC (Circus Professionals Association of Catalonia) circus professionals can rent any available room in the factory, which is designed in the same fashion as other European cities. With affordable prices and being a circus artist as the only requisite, any circus company can make use of this “Circus Headquarters”, which also disposes of a 400,000 euro budget, destined for economic aid and grants.  

According to Barcelona mayor Jordi Hereu, the unveiling of the “Circus Headquarters” is “an act of justice” for a group of artists who have always been considered inferior to the rest of the Performing Arts. That is why this factory is considered “an important challenge” for the city. Hereu also encouraged the artists to show all their creativity, now that the City Hall has made all the necessary means to develop this activity. The Councillor for Culture, Jordi Martí, expressed the need for linking this space to Catalonia’s long circus tradition. He also claimed that once this space is open, it would be mandatory to keep such a place going, so artists can keep showing off their creations.  

Circus professionals were pleased with the opening of this kind of installation. Josep Antoni Hernández, APCC’s chairman, reminded that circus has always been “far” from the rest of the Performing Arts, and claimed that a Circus School of Higher Education should be opened soon in Barcelona, so all circus artists can complete their education abroad. Furthermore, the Headquarter’s manager, Marta Borreguero, considers that this space will become a “reference in Europe” for similar centres on the continent.