Get to know our ESC Volunteers: Vanja

Where are you from?

I come from Serbia, a town called Novi Sad.

What is your training or background in circus or the arts?

I’ve been practicing and learning how to teach circus in Novi Sad, in Kreativni pogon (meaning Creative drive), for about a year before coming here. It was a good friend of mine who invited me to see the circus school one day, and nothing’s been quite the same ever since. Seems like I’m a generalist for now. Which makes sense because I’ve always been like that. In arts as well, there was that time when I got really into street dancing for a couple of years. I was always wearing those oversize baggy clothes. And a time I learned painting and sculpting at university. I was studying animation. That was kind of fun. And a time I started playing music on the streets. One time, I tried an acting workshop but I was always laughing to much so I had to give it up.

What made you want to volunteer at Galway Community Circus?

Destiny? 😊

I don’t know… well, Ireland was calling to me, see, with all its fiddles and bodhrans and the sound of those dancing shoes… and on top of it all, the magic fairy forests! I couldn’t resist.

It was an amazing opportunity to both work and learn in a community circus, and one that is an inspiration to our own circus, and to finally answer that long overdue call.

Who is your sending organisation? Tell us about them.

My sending organisation is the Volunteers’ Centre of Vojvodina. They raise awareness about voluntarism and are working on waking up altruistic thoughts in young people. They have helped me a lot, especially in the process of getting ready. I have had probably a million questions about the paperwork and Francesca answered all of them!

What do you love about working with Galway Community Circus?

I love how different all the people are. They are all huggers though. Perhaps hugs are the key to everything?

All the classes are so different too. Some groups are good acrobats, some are great storytellers, some are dreamers, some could play games till the sun comes up..

And it’s very inspiring to see the youth organise entire events by themselves.

I’ve also never seen Toddler Circus before coming here. They’re probably going to grow up into fearless superheroes and save the world.

What project(s) are you working on at the Circus and what results (of those projects) do you hope to achieve?

I’ve been an assistant tutor for the classes in this term, did some outreach classes, helped organise performances, Scratch Nights, the Mayhem Youth Circus Festival… as an individual project, I did research on circus pedagogy. I hope to just keep on teaching and practicing circus.

What do you love about Ireland?

The music culture. Dancing. The skies. The moss-covered trees. And that Irish style banter, gosh.

I like how the fiddle players’ fiddles start turning white from resin after all that playing.

What are a few important things you have learned (or are learning) while volunteering with GCC?

How to be better at the whole “life” thing.

And also maybe, if you find that you’re temporarily a bit bad at life, how not to freak out.

What is one thing you love about circus in general?

I love how it resembles nothing else.

Why do you think a programme like European Solidarity Corps is important?

Because people are in great need of experiential learning.

Would you recommend that other people apply to volunteer at organisations through the ESC programme? Why?

Yes, of course. Shake your lives up a little bit, see what falls out.

You can learn more about the European Solidarity Corps here or visit the European Solidarity Corps page on our website for more information.