Circostrada is the European Network for Circus and Street Arts. The Cirostrada Lab (CS Lab) takes place once a year and is for Circostrada members and external participants from various sectors. It takes place over three days and is hosted and co-organised with a network member. This year’s CS Lab#5 was co-organised with Manchester-based XTRAX.
The purpose of CS LAB#5 was to question how we can support our teams in these unprecedented times, while at the same time using it as an opportunity to question our practice and explore ways to instigate lasting change in our organisations and the wider sector.
Three online keynote sessions took place focusing on three different sub-themes linked to the topic Leadership in Times of Crisis, open to a wider audience, followed by three small group discussions reserved for Circostrada and XTRAX guests, addressing the topics of leadership, equality and advocacy in the Outdoor Arts and Circus sectors.
Keynote #1 | How can we best manage our teams and organisations in times of crisis?
Speaker: Hilary Carty, Director of the Clore Leadership Programme | Moderator: Vicki Amedume, Artistic Director of Upswing Aerial
With the current pandemic exacerbating social inequalities, how can we ensure greater gender equality, diversity and inclusion in decision making now and in the future?
In the aftermath of this crisis, how will we need to advocate in order to sustain our organisations and our sector?
Watch Keynote #1.
Keynote #2 | Developing diverse and inclusive leadership practices
Speaker: Vicki Amedume, Artistic Director of Upswing Aerial | Moderator: Bettina Lindstrum
The street arts sector is by its nature one of the most democratic of art forms. However, there is still a lack of diversity across our organisations, programmes and audiences. What is stopping us from being a fully representative sector, and how can we achieve greater gender equality, diversity and inclusion? How can we challenge the underlying structures of our sector to make the necessary changes for a more representative sector?
Watch Keynote #2
Keynote #3 | Advocacy for change
Speaker: Michael Hoar | Moderator: Maggie Clarke
Effective leadership and powerful advocacy are essential to allow our organisations to grow and flourish. Across Europe, the street arts sector still suffers from a general lack of recognition at an institutional level, so how can we successfully advocate for better recognition? At times of economic instability for the artistic sector, it is critical to develop advocacy strategies which will support the survival of the sector in the aftermath of the crisis.
Watch Keynote #3
Founded in 2003, Circostrada is the European Network for Circus and Street Arts. It was created with the core mission of furthering the development, empowerment and recognition of these fields at European and international levels. Over the years the network has become an important anchoring point for its members and a key interlocutor in the dialogue with cultural policy makers across Europe.
The Cirostrada Lab objectives are to:
●Stimulate creativity by experiencing creative workshops and increasing collective intelligence.
●Test innovative working processes and develop new prototypes to tackle future challenges.
●Develop new approaches in terms of economic models.
●Contribute to the competitiveness of the members and their capacity to adapt to change through workshops.
●Inspire fellow colleagues to step out of their daily routines and learn new skills.
●Experiment with methods to design the content of the seminar through a collaborative internal Work Group.
Crying Out Loud is a founding member of Circostrada and regularly participates in its meetings, labs, seminars and discussions.
