Inside a 26,000-square-foot gothic church in Germantown is the Philadelphia School for Circus Arts, the nation’s only accredited circus school in the United States, writes Cassie Burkhardt for The Philadelphia Citizen.
The school is the evolution of owners Shana Kennedy and Kitsie O’Neill, who initially began hosting outdoor classes in Kennedy’s backyard during the early 2000s.
After that, her husband Greg, who is a renowned juggler and trained engineer, made space in their home for year-round indoor juggling and aerial training.
Before long, students started to hear about the classes and the school grew from there. They’ve been in their current Germantown location since 2017.
There, you can find just about every kind of circus equipment. This includes a trampoline, unicycles, juggling pins, acrobat mats, and a variety of aerial equipment, such as silks, rope, and the trapeze.
The Philadelphia School for Circus Arts also features an intensive, accredited, three-year college program for beginner circus performers. The program is taught by professional coaches.
The goal is to make the circus accessible to as many people as possible.
Philadelphia’s history with the circus dates all the way back to April 1793 when it was the host city to the first-ever American Circus.
Read more about Philadelphia School for Circus Arts and the city’s history with the circus at The Philadelphia Citizen.
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