Greetings from the latest of the volunteer circus trainers, Ivan and Eluned. Ivan here, I'll be looking after the Sapana Circus blog for the time being. Two weeks ago, I arrived in Kathmandu, all the way from Sunny Brisbane, after hearing about the opportunity to work with Sapana and being truly inspired by their story. I had little idea what I was getting myself in for, although I did know that with one week to learn the ropes before Zoe made her way back to the UK, I would really have to hit the ground running. I was pleased to discover that another volunteer trainer, with extensive experience in dance, aerials and social circus, was arriving that same weekend. It has been a hectic two weeks. As well as bothering Zoe with constant questions up until she left, we have been meeting the rest of the EBT team, learning how to find our way around nameless streets, haggling with the bus and taxi drivers, moving from the office into our temporary home up in the beautiful hills of Godawari, and creating a training schedule around the many performances and opportunities that are popping up, and all the while trying to make each circus class as productive, engaging and fun as possible.
Last Monday I asked the Sapana performers to show me some of the pyramids they've learned so far. They grumbled and made excuses for a while, and so I asked if perhaps they'd like to do some more handstand conditioning instead. Presto!
Once they'd warmed to the idea, we started trying some different shapes, and I showed them a few advanced acrobalance positions which they picked up almost instantly. As a circus trainer, it's such a rare blessing to work with students that have so much talent and raw potential, and are at the same time so humble and friendly. We have a lot of work to do to get ready for the upcoming shows, but I feel confident that the Sapana crew will knock the audience's socks off.
On top of the performance in Dubai this coming October, Sapana will also be performing at the British Embassy on the 14th of September, with the help of Cambridge based group Rickshaw Theatre. There are several other smaller opportunities in the pipeline, so it looks like we're going to be really busy. Luckily, the next two months will see a number of incoming circus volunteers, two of whom are friends and fellow graduates of the National Institute of Circus Arts in Melbourne, Australia.
Last Monday I asked the Sapana performers to show me some of the pyramids they've learned so far. They grumbled and made excuses for a while, and so I asked if perhaps they'd like to do some more handstand conditioning instead. Presto!
Once they'd warmed to the idea, we started trying some different shapes, and I showed them a few advanced acrobalance positions which they picked up almost instantly. As a circus trainer, it's such a rare blessing to work with students that have so much talent and raw potential, and are at the same time so humble and friendly. We have a lot of work to do to get ready for the upcoming shows, but I feel confident that the Sapana crew will knock the audience's socks off.
On top of the performance in Dubai this coming October, Sapana will also be performing at the British Embassy on the 14th of September, with the help of Cambridge based group Rickshaw Theatre. There are several other smaller opportunities in the pipeline, so it looks like we're going to be really busy. Luckily, the next two months will see a number of incoming circus volunteers, two of whom are friends and fellow graduates of the National Institute of Circus Arts in Melbourne, Australia.
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