Vulcana Women's Circus
Developing creativity and empowerment through circus.
Vulcana Women’s Circus works with the circus traditions of inclusiveness, strength, excitement and daring to transform and empower individuals and communities. They run workshops for adults and children and develop community projects with the focus always on creativity and empowerment through circus.
2015 Pitch
Funds raised: $36,700
TFN facilitated $36,700 for Vulcana in June 2015. These funds enabled Vulcana to work with local schools and service organisations to engage children considered ‘at-risk,’ and to support 43 places in the Vulcana Kids program for some of the most vulnerable young people in Brisbane. With these funds, Vulcana engaged a project coordinator and circus trainers, bought equipment, rented venues and paid for transport.
The impact...
Playtime is one of the basic joys, and rights, of being a child. It gives kids a chance to unwind, to be themselves and, simply, to have fun. Playtime is also about more than enjoyment. It gives children the chance to learn about themselves, their boundaries and to discover when they feel safe to take risks. Play is especially important for children who have experienced trauma or marginalisation in their lives. Vulcana Women’s Circus gives children the chance to explore themselves, to deal with stress and to take risks in the creative experience of circus. Most importantly, Vulcana says, their organisation allows kids to “develop the confidence to try.” A core value of Vulcana is also prioritising women in leadership roles and as role models. The organisation holds that empowered women are essential in building and shaping strong communities.
Qualitative data collected by Vulcana has indicated a direct impact on circus participants in terms of confidence, team work, communication, body awareness and identity. One school principal stated that, since starting the program, young people at their school are more focused in class and have something to be proud of among their friends. Vulcana recounts the story of one child learning about consent during a Vulcana class. Her social worker later recounted that it had never occurred to her that she is allowed to say ‘no.’ Coming from a family domestic violence situation, this was an incredibly empowering moment. Vulcana continues to realise moments like these for many children and other people who take joy in playtime.
Read their Impact Report
Learn more about Vulcana Womens Circus.
Supporting Sustainable Development Goals:
