Youth Circus 2025: A Year of Joy, Skill & Creativity
2025 was another fantastic year for our Youth Circus programme, which remains at the heart of everything we do. Through circus arts, we support young people to live their best lives, building confidence, friendships, physical literacy, emotional resilience and a deep sense of belonging.
This year, we welcomed 600 weekly members and engaged 5748 people across our programmes. Together, they took part in 8 performances, 4 youth exchanges, weekly classes, open days and creative projects that sparked joy, courage and connection.
We continued to offer our core annual programme of youth circus classes along with our popular summer camps across three locations: Westside (Shantalla), Eastside (Renmore) and Tuam.
Below are some of the key moments from 2025.
Mayhem Youth Circus Festival
This year’s Mayhem Youth Circus Festival was one of our biggest and most exciting to date in terms of programming. Even when Galway’s famously unpredictable weather pushed us indoors, the joy, laughter and creativity continued!
Circus in the Park
Our big weekend of circus fun was moved from Fr Burke Park to St Joseph’s Community Centre due to the rain, and featured:
- A charming performance from our Flea Circus members
- Free mixed-skills and aerial cocoon workshops
- Funambulism (tightwire) sessions
- The Circus Explored Youth Exchange
- A high-energy Youth Cabaret with performers from GCC, the Irish Aerial Creation Centre and In Your Space Circus (Derry)
- Acrobatics workshops with Hands Down Circus
- Free public performances from Hands Down Circus and Paul Quate (Frankie Magilligan)
- Clown Marcos Queiro bringing joy and laughter throughout the day
Galway Young Artists Collective
Formerly known as the Youth Ensemble, the Galway Young Artists Collective (GYAC) premiered a brand-new piece of contemporary circus, showcasing the creativity, talent and dedication of Galway’s emerging young artists.
Ages 12-17, the GYAC trains at an advanced level in a discipline that blends theatre, dance, acrobatics and clowning. The 2025 show was developed through intensive training, artistic exploration and professional mentorship, and was directed by guest artist Angelica Santander – a Chilean-born clown and director whose work blends theatre, circus and compassion to create powerful performances for all ages.
In-Class Performances & Open Days
Throughout the festival, our youth members shared their skills and achievements with friends and family during in-class presentations and open days. It's always a joy for our youth members to show off what they've learned!
Youth Exchanges
Circus Explored (Ireland)
Held during the Mayhem Festival, Circus Explored brought together young people from In Your Space Circus (Derry, Irish Aerial Creation Centre (Limerick) and Galway Community Circus. Participants developed skills in leadership, peer teaching and creative collaboration. They trained with circus facilitator Pete Duncan and acrobatics duo Hands Down Circus. This exchange is led by ISACS and supported the Creative Ireland Programme in the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media as well as under the government’s Shared Island Initiative in the Department of the Taoiseach.
Italy Youth Exchange
In August, we welcomed our friends from Pirilampo Scuola di Circo and Badabam Circus (Italy) to Galway for a joyful Erasmus+ exchange. After an unforgettable experience in Italy last year, our young people loved showing their friends around Galway. The week was filled with dance and acrobatics workshops, games, outdoor adventures, show preparation, performances and plenty of laughter.
Slovenia Youth Exchange
In July, a group of GCC young people travelled to Slovenia for another beautiful Erasmus+ exchange hosted by Cirkus Fuskabo, joined by participants from Belgium, Montenegro and Serbia. Over six days, they trained together, swam in the river, shared cultures, built friendships and created unforgettable memories – a week of inspiration, creativity and connection in nature.
Irish Aerial Creation Day
Hosted by the Irish Aerial Creation Centre, this project gathered youth from across Ireland for an inspiring day of aerial dance, skill-sharing and artistic exploration.
Performances
Performance opportunities are central to our Youth Circus programme, helping young people build confidence, expression and teamwork.
In 2025, youth members performed at:
- Scratch Nights
- Galway St. Patrick’s Day Parade
- Annual Christmas Cabaret
- Mayhem Youth Circus Festival - including an exciting Youth Cabaret
- The Galway Young Artists Collective’s brand-new show
These performances celebrated courage, creativity and the joy of sharing circus with our community.
