Program overview

Day One Program

Wednesday 8 October

Registration: 8:30am - 9am
 
Session 1:
9:00am - 10:45am

Welcome to Country: Wurundjeri Elder

Introduction of Summit: MC’s Aurora Kurth and Lachlan MacDonald

Welcome Address: NICA CEO Simona Jobbagy and CALS co-editors Dr Joe Culpepper & Dr Melanie Stuckey
 

Opening Keynote: Arts for Wellbeing
What does it mean to use the “arts for wellbeing”, or to be a “healthy artist”? What are the opportunities for artists, arts companies, arts administrators or directors and CALS?
Speaker: Dr Janine Stubbe

Presentation: Improving Mental Health in Circus through the Lens of Perfection
Speaker: Dr Fleur van Rens

Performance: Good Grief!
Exploring how an aerial canvas can inform physical movement for the purpose of storytelling and catharsis work.
Artists: Rachel Hunt & Nichola Vecchiato 

Discussion Panel: Dr Janine Stubbe, Dr Fleur van Rens, Rachel Hunt & Nichola Vecchiato

Morning Tea & Networking: 10:45am - 11:15am

Session 2
 11:15am - 12:30pm

Panel discussion: The Future of Circus Research
Fostering the growth, dissemination and appreciation of research as the means to (a) preserve the heritage of circus past, (b) contextualise the breadth and depth of circus present and (c) identify strategies to serve circus future and secure its place and relevance in a rapidly changing world.
Speakers: Prof. Peta Tait, Dr Mark St Leon & Dr Margaret Kirby 

Panel discussion: Surveillance of Injuries and Research in Circus
Shaping future research to enable the circus industry to thrive.
Speakers: Dr Stephanie Greenspan, Dr David Munro, Dr Melanie Stuckey & Dr Joanna Nicholas

Presentation: alt-circus - experiments in circus futuring
Speaker: Mitch Jones

Lunch & Networking: 12:30pm - 1:45pm
 

Session 3
 1:45pm - 3:30pm
 
 Presentation: The Power of Words
Coaching cues and communication for optimising artist motivation and performance.
 Speakers: Dr Joanna Nicholas

 Presentation: Circus Styles
Teaching circus dramaturgy.
 Speakers: Katie Cawthorne & Mitch Jones

 Presentation: Flying Off Script
 Non-linear pedagogy in aerial arts.
 Speakers: Adam Woolley, Rachel Hunt, Nichola Vecchiato & Ayesha Tansey  

 Discussion Panel: Dr Joanna Nicholas, Katie Cawthorne, Mitch Jones, Adam Woolley & Rachel Hunt 

 Afternoon Keynote: The Journey of an Idea
 On the integration of creativity and movement sciences to enhance performance, health, and wellbeing.
 Speakers: Dr Veronique Richard & Patrice Aubertin 

 Afternoon Tea & Networking: 3:30pm - 4:00pm

Session 4 
 4:00pm - 5:30pm

Presentation: The (Re)appearance of Animals in Contemporary Circus
Analysing how animal (re)presentation can be used as a means to bring about different dramaturgical effects.
Speaker: Dr. Franziska Trapp

Presentation: Wildlife Dramaturgy
Reimagining conservation through circus and story.
 Speaker: Gigi Pinwill
 
 Presentation: Weaving Contemporary Circus Costumes
 A creative process out of lines.
Speaker: Marine Bourguignon

 Discussion | Q&A with panel: Dr Franziska Trapp, Gigi Pinwill & Marine Bourguignon
 

Presentation: The Need for a Specialised Training Program for Directors of Circus and Physical Theatre
Speaker: Kate Fryer
 

Wrap Up: 5:20pm

Day Two Program

Thursday 9 October

Session 1
9:00am - 11:00am

Introduction: Aurora Kurth and Lachlan MacDonald

Opening Act: Jace Gonçalves and Jaran Latona-Phasuk
Directed by Kate Fryer

Keynote: Out of Lines
Working ‘in lines’ offers the luxury of safety and repetition: a place to experiment, stumble, fail, and return to train again tomorrow. But nothing compares to the moment you take a skill out of the lines - when it’s entirely up to you.
Speaker: Marty Evans

 Panel Discussion: ‘What is Circus?’ Perspectives of Current Circus Students
Circus is expansive: ever evolving in language, practice, and possibility. Defining it raises more questions than answers. Can conflicting perspectives coexist without diminishing one another? This panel begins with student questions and opens the floor to the audience. What are your big questions, and how might we explore them together at the Summit? As a community, we will consider how to hold space for difference with curiosity, generosity, and care.
Speakers: Carter Kirkland, Bridie Callahan, Saskia Gallasch, Laiken Jackson
Mentored by Katie Cawthorne and Mitch Jones
 

Morning Tea & Networking: 11:00am - 11:30am

 Session 2
 11:30am - 12:30pm

Panel Discussion: Advocacy for Circus in the Arts Sector
Arts education programs around the world are facing funding cuts - at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels alike. What are the benefits of having access to arts education? What can artists and educators do to best advocate for the importance of these programs?
Speakers: Anni Davey, Reggie Richardson, Nikki Jeffies, Cath Hedge & Tegan Carmichael
Facilitator: Justin Green

 Lunch & Networking: 12:30pm - 1:30pm

 Session 3
 1:30pm - 2:30pm

Panel Discussion: Cost of Living
In the 2023 Summit, Creative Plus Business’s Monica Davidson spoke about the importance of having the “work horses” (shows that bring in the money) and the “unicorns” (shows you do for the passion). At the moment, everyone is feeling the pinch of the cost of living crisis, from artists to venues to audiences alike, and at times we see even the workhorses struggling. How are we handling this as a sector? How are we making space for our unicorns?
 Speakers: Bonnie Blewitt, Jace Gonçalves, Nat Athenden
 Facilitator: MJ Warfield
 

Afternoon Tea & Networking: 2:30pm - 3:00pm

 Session 4
3:00pm - 5:15pm

Panel Discussion: Circus as Megafauna: Where are we going?
Circus died out as the ecosystems they once dominated changed, making their role less relevant or unsustainable. Shifts in climate and vegetation reduced the availability of the large-scale habitats and food sources they depended on. As new, smaller species adapted more efficiently, the ecological niche once filled by megafauna circus faded away.  In times of collapse, (economic, ecological, or social) there is a tendency to sideline what appears extravagant, outdated, or impractical. Like the megafauna of the Ice Age, circus is often viewed as a relic of a bygone era: large in scale, resource-intensive, and out of step with the sleek efficiencies of the modern world. Is this the truth or a dangerous misreading?
Speakers: Helene Embling, Jeremy (Jez) Davis, Deb Batton
Facilitator: Mike Finch

Living Books: Structured networking and knowledge sharing.
Featured books:

Dr Jesse Jensen-Kohl: Sounds Like Oz [Video Essay]: the Role Live Music Played in Shaping the Identity of Circus Oz
Nikki Jeffries: Social Circus
Dr Luke Hamlin: Cultural Policy
Alice Cadwell: Patternmakers Report: Circus can improve young people's mental health and foster social connections & Impact report: Spaghetti Circus
Wendy Jasper: The Work Behind the Creative Work
Carli Page: Making Aerial Arts Accessible
Zoe Joiner: Supporting the Next Generation of Circus Artists
Bonnie Blewitt & Stevee Mills: Circus that Catches Anyone
Dr Jon Burtt: Circus for Social Change
Jonathan Morgan: Circus and engineering
Charice Rust: From Graduate to Running a Circus Company
 

5:20pm: Day Two Wrap Up

Day Three Program

Friday 10 October

New Attendee Registration: 8.30am - 9:00am

 Session 1 
 9:00am - 11:15am

Introduction: Aurora Kurth and Lachlan MacDonald

Opening Act: Lucia Richardson

 Circus Centre Melbourne: 
 The much-anticipated Circus Centre Melbourne is launching in October. Manager Steph Cox provides the sector with an update and a glimpse into the future.
 Speaker: Steph Cox

 Panel Discussion: Circus Touring as Pollination
 In a time when international touring is increasingly unsustainable - financially, emotionally, and environmentally, this presentation proposes an alternative: a reciprocal touring model rooted in exchange, shared risk, and regenerative relationships.
 Speakers: Lauren Eisinger, Harley Mann, Heidi Irvine
 Facilitator: Kate Malone & Debbie Wilks (Cluster Arts)

Presentation: Beyond Our Boundaries project
 Address by: Gary Cowan, CEO of the National Foundation for Australia-China Relations
 

Morning Tea & Networking: 11:15am - 11:45pm

 Session 2
 11:45am - 12:45pm

 Panel Discussion: Circus Insured
 What are the challenges facing practitioners in finding insurance? What are the challenges faced by insurance agencies? How do we find common ground?
Speakers: Frank Minniti, Hannah Trott, Silvan Frei, Amanda Lynch
 Facilitator: Steph Speirs

Lunch & Networking: 12:45pm - 2:00pm

Session 3
2:00pm - 3:00pm

 Panel Discussion: Access and Inclusion
 As a sector, we are fond of saying that circus is for everyone - every body type, age, ability, identity. But in practice that often isn’t true. What can we collectively do to adjust our mindsets, and innovate what we imagine as a circus performer, to move towards the diverse and inclusive industry that we want to be?
 Speakers: Abbie Madden, Aimee Davies, Lauren Watson, Siân Brigid
 Facilitator: Wendy Jasper

 Afternoon Tea & Networking: 3:00pm - 3:30pm
 Street Performer: Siân Brigid

 Session 4
 3:30pm — 5:30pm

Panel Discussion: Circus Parenting
 It takes a village to be a working circus performer with kids. How can the circus sector be more supportive for performing artist parents?
 Speakers: Jascha Boyce, Tom Davis & Steph Cox
 Facilitator: Christina Cox

Closing Keynote: Expanding Horizons
 A fresh perspective from NICA's new head of circus studies, and a look at what’s on the horizon for circus education, and the Australian circus sector.
Speaker: Juliana Neves

Closing Act: Sammy George, Georgia Pozorski and Bridie Callahan

Final Reflection: Aurora Kurth and Lachlan MacDonald

Networking & Drinks: 5:30pm - 6:30pm