Circus Harmony

OUR MISSION:

Circus Harmony teaches the art of life through circus education. We work to build character and expand community for youth of all ages, cultures, abilities and backgrounds.  Through the teaching and performing of circus arts, we help people defy gravity, soar with confidence, and leap over social barriers, all at the same time.
 

OUR HISTORY and METHODS:

Circus Harmony is a non-profit social circus organization that uses circus arts to motivate social change.  We are also St. Louis’ only complete circus school and pre-professional circus training location. We are both an arts education and a youth development organization. By inspiring individuals and connecting communities with our circus education and entertainment programs, we have a positive impact on the St. Louis area and beyond. The life lessons learned through circus – strength, flexibility, perseverance, collaboration, and resilience – are more important now than ever.

Since our inception in 2001, Circus Harmony has gone from ten students to over 1400 students and from presenting 40 shows a year to over 500 shows a year. Over 65% of our students come from low-income families. We have developed youth circus troupes which consist of Jewish, Christian, Caucasian, Hispanic, African-American and Asian children from inner-city and suburban areas throughout St. Louis. Our performance troupe, the St. Louis Arches, is comprised of children of diverse backgrounds. In 2007, we started our first Peace Through Pyramids partnership with the Galilee Circus--- a Jewish/Arab youth circus from Israel! In 2015, we brought our Peace Through Pyramids program to Ferguson and have now expanded to five other communities and Puerto Rico! In 2019, we were the recipient of the Missouri Arts Award for Arts Education!

Circus Harmony offers classes from beginner to advanced levels in a wide assortment of circus arts for all ages. Currently, our students range in age from 3-93 years old. In addition to the year-round classes we offer at City Museum, we teach at a number of off-site locations in the St. Louis metropolitan area. We perform weekly in our space at City Museum, annually with Circus Flora and at a variety of other venues throughout the St. Louis metropolitan area and around the world. 

Circus Harmony graduates have gone on to perform with internationally renowned companies like Cirque du Soleil, Circa Contemporary Circus,  Les 7 Doigts de la Main, Midnight Circus, Circus Flora, The Flying Wallendas. We are the home of Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey’s youngest-ever female human cannonball as well as both a gold and bronze medal winner from the International Jugglers’ Association. We also have graduates teaching in St. Louis public schools, working as electricians, and attending colleges. We train our students to be successful in circus and in life.

Our programs teach valuable life skills like perseverance, focus, and teamwork. Learning circus with others teaches trust, responsibility, and cooperation. Perhaps the most important experience we give our participants is the opportunity to meet and interact with children from different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds than their own. We believe the path to peace is a path of cooperation and communication. Teaching children from different neighborhoods how to stand on each other's shoulders may seem like a strange way to take this path. But it's the technique we use! Circus Harmony promotes peace through pyramids, joy through juggling, and harmony through handsprings! 

Jessica Hentoff, Artistic/Executive Director Charlotte Byram, Operations Manager