Leisure and training: the circus thinks big in Renens

That’s what we call great growth. In 2018, “24 Heures” visited the already very popular Lausanne-Renens Circus School. Installed at the time in the industrial zone of Renens, it had 450 students.including 50 in the pre-professional sector. Six years later, there are 750 registered students who are devoting themselves to the joys of the circus arts – from the age of 2 – among whom 103 students are following various intensive courses.

Suffice it to say that, for this school which is celebrating its 30th anniversary, these last few years have been particularly successful. Enough to give yourself a nice birthday present: it has just moved into brand new premises which – by their size – now make it the largest circus school in Switzerland.

High ceilings

“We have been working on this project since Covid, because our previous premises were temporary and we always had waiting lists. And then we really wanted to anchor ourselves in Renens. From the start, we had a lot of support from the Municipality,” explains Yukié Vauthey, the school’s director.

It is therefore on rue de Lausanne, along the future tram line, that the school has found a setting, both “to its measure” and “made to measure”. Its new address is in fact in the basement of a building which has just been built by the developer Orllatiadapting it to the needs of the school. “When we arrived with this project, the plans for the building were already drawn. We were supported to make it a space designed for the circus, remembers Yukié Vauthey. For example, we needed at least 9 meters of ceiling height for aerial disciplines.”

The school now has 1,200 m², divided into three training rooms, the largest of which allows the practice of – almost – all circus arts. This is where an inauguration party took place a few days ago, notably in the presence of State Councilor Nuria Gorrite. “Yes, we had some great people,” smiles Yukié Vauthey. It was both a symbolic recognition and an opportunity to show that this practice requires resources. While dance and theater benefit from support in cultural policies, a specific box is still missing for the circus.

Young and future pros

In the meantime, the school has no downtime. On a Thursday afternoon, we find the main room occupied by young people enrolled in pre-professional courses, whether in parallel with the gymnasium or for a year full-time. Among them, two young girls come straight from the United States, encouraged by a Swiss friend they met in a training center in California. “She inspired us and it’s great to be able to discover the circus in Europe,” smiles Venus, who is destined to be a trapeze artist. “Thanks to its dimensions, it’s a space where you can really progress in a discipline like mine,” adds Asani, who is perfecting his skills in aerial acrobatics with straps.

Alongside future professionals, however, a good number of students are made up of little ones who dream of the circus. Eleanor, 7 years old, started it a little over a year ago, following in her big sister’s footsteps. Between two antics in the school corridors, she says: “I like everything! Especially walking on a ball and doing acrobatics on the ground.” Catherine, her mother, whispers that she just followed her daughter’s instinct by registering it, but she finds nothing wrong with it: “I see it as a very fun practice and which seems excellent for psychomotor development. Also, from experience, it is not everywhere that children are supervised in a truly professional manner, as is the case here.”

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Chloe Din has been a journalist in the Vaud & Régions section since 2015. She covers in particular the West Lausanne district as well as religious and spiritual themes.More info

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