Summer 2006 Newsletter
Dear friends of the Israel Circus School,
There is an old Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times!” Certainly July and August 2006 will be known historically as an intensely interesting time. Like millions of people in this part of the world our lives where thrown into turmoil quite suddenly and all meaning in life took on a completely different point of view. Our summer started off in the usual way with a two week intensive Circus Workshop attended by 20 students. The days of the classes during this time where filled with challenge and excitement for the participants ending with a demonstration of skills that happily surprised parents and gave the kids a yearning to develop more their circus skills.
Then quite suddenly every thing from our busy summer schedule was canceled. The percussive shock of war burst upon us all. Needless to say with heavy heart we followed the unfolding play of events looking for ways to sustain a sense of normality. Weekly classes where arranged for students that had signed up for a project of Circus and cultural exchange with youth in Berlin. Volunteer work in the bomb shelters with children earned us some brownie points. During the last two weeks of July time seemed to drag by. The one ray of sunshine in all the gloom for us was the planned trip to Berlin to be hosted by Circolibre in the east side of Berlin.
As the Israel Circus School and our partner group Circus Mragah is in the North of Israel it was exceedingly difficult to bring every one together at one time for the needed meetings and practices before going to Berlin. Finally as the time was drawing near to make our trip we convinced all the students and their parents to come for an afternoon practice, conversation and meal together at the Circus Center in Kefar Yehoshua. That morning of the meeting it was still unclear if anyone would show in the afternoon. It turned out that everybody was of the same feeling arriving with a feast in hand for an afternoon that was a great success despite the constant bombing in the north. Where else can you test your convictions except in difficult circumstances with support from all your friends? The mixed cultural Circus group took on a quiet importance that showed courage in the face of immense odds. Focus set to Berlin the youth had a point of light to aim for and we finally set off (23 of us in total) in the early hours of Monday 14th August uncertain of what we where leaving behind us. Touch down in the Shenfield airport was a little sigh of relief and as the fresh cool air swept over us on the way to the Circus the feelings of anxiety that where building for a month started to surface. Tears, little accidents, emotional exhaustion and the realization of a different environment burst forth in the group and the Germans where there with open arms to lovingly receive us. This first day was the hardest for us all.
The Circolibre project is set up for Israeli and German youth exchange using Circus as the common medium. The German and Israeli groups quickly got into the routine of training for a show, sightseeing around Berlin, shopping and talking late into the night with each other. Days passed, friendships developed quickly and the show started to take shape. The Circolibre team in Berlin created a full program of activity that helped to very successfully integrate all the participants of the project. The rich experience nourished us all and has inspired the Israeli’s to take their Circus practice far more seriously and inspired the German’s to come to visit us here in Israel. The “big show” with clowns, acrobats, jugglers, dancers and ariel work arrived all too soon and to the great credit of the mixed group the smooth team work backstage and on stage produced a magical evening that all who watched commented that it was the best show that the project had done to date.
Plans are now in the making to meet all together again in the end of March 2007 here in Israel. Bridging the gap new opportunities await the students of Circus into the future.
On the last day in Berlin all the group met in a park for a finishing circle. Every one was able to say what was good and what was bad from their experiences. All the time that people where talking I could not help myself from smiling. All I could see was another dream come true as have many of the dreams I have had since starting the journey of Circus for children here in Israel.
Another year of dreams awaits us now as the vision grows ever larger.
Thank you, David Berry (Artistic Director of I.C.S)
A.K.A Clown Dharma
