“We want to be popular but we can’t do it, it’s not profitable”: the circus world faces a mountain of difficulties

“It’s tiring, we don’t sleep anymore, we give everything we have,” sighs lightly Annabelle Bonhomme, from the Effiloché circus in Saint-Laurent-Les-Tours. The circus is on the rise, yet the circus performers are breathless. The tightrope walker opened her circus school in this small village near Saint-Céré almost 17 years ago. In an old agricultural shed that she renovated, she offered circus lessons with all the appropriate equipment: carpet, trapeze… Recently, she even had a big top installed in the garden to give shows and festivals. However, two years ago, she stopped giving lessons. And it’s not for lack of enthusiasm.

“136 students, all classes full. But it was too much. It was a difficult decision to make. We closed the school to concentrate on the shows. I’m 41 years old, if I want to continue doing the big gap on the wire, it’s now or never”, continues the artist. The latter is a circus professional: “and not in animation. And that ended up taking over”. It’s also for a very specific reason: at the Effiloché circus, they are exhausted. “We can’t do everything at the same time,” regrets Annabelle. She continues: “We do everything: shows in nursing homes, for young audiences, wandering… And on top of that, we take on all the hats: accounting, subsidies, communication, sale of shows, administration … And what’s more, I have to continue training. We are not lazy people, but high-level athletes.”

“I’ve been looking for someone for 17 years”

To help her, an administrator had been hired. But the latter ended up leaving. And here’s a big point in the circus world: finding staff. “Salaries are 85% of our expenses. When it’s on a subsidized contract, it’s fine. But the problem in these cases is that they are not trained. It’s difficult to let them run the courses in front of the children in complete safety And then, there are few breeding grounds in the Lot No one wants to move here for that. I’ve been looking for someone for 17 years,” continues the circus artist.

Jérôme Cordoba, founding member and volunteer of the Cas du Cyrque circus school, goes further: “It’s a lot of part-time work. We work 48 hours a week, three or four hours a day, on weekends. end, in the evening. Many get tired. He adds: “There are four circus schools in the Lot. Two years ago, there were a dozen of us teaching professionals in the Lot. That creates microterritories. And for families, you easily have to do an hour of road to come to class. Winter is another world, the road is even more difficult. We want to be popular, but we can’t do it anymore.

“Everything is collapsing”

And anyway, hiring someone means working at a loss. There is a general lack of resources. And grant files are an obstacle course. “It’s super difficult to get them. They all have specificities, it takes hours,” says the director of the Effiloché circus. Jérôme Cordabo adds: “everything is collapsing. With all the inflation, everyone has drawn on their reserves. Except that at some point, it reaches 0.” The latter would like more support from the public authorities. “The Lot is not just about nuts and wine. People are happy to live here because things are happening. This summer, I had a family from Avignon who called me. They wanted to move here but wouldn’t do it if there wasn’t a circus school. We have to think about tomorrow’s generation,” continues the circus artist.

To develop her activity, Annabelle Bonhomme installed a big top behind the circus school. “We are less at a loss than when we had to rent it, but it is fragile. Every two years, we have to have it approved: 700 euros. Electricity, 800 euros. Fire extinguishers between 400 and 600 euros. “to install, you easily have to pay more than 2,000 euros”, lists the circus artist. And if the latter has a dedicated room, this is not the case for everyone. “There is a big lack of available space. Without a dedicated place, this creates more tasks for the facilitator: the truck is full as an egg, it has to be loaded, unloaded… And without damaging the equipment which costs an arm!”, regrets Jérôme Cordoba. What he wants: a real dedicated and central place for the entire circus sector.

Despite all this, Annabelle Bonhomme remains positive: “we have many projects, we are hanging in there. It’s a great human adventure, we are creating social bonds. It’s important.”