Just Opened

Philadelphia School of Circus Arts

by Julia Terruso

5900A Greene St., 215-849-1991, phillycircus.com

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Shana Kennedy's husband gave her an unconventional wedding gift: He built her a 23-foot aluminum trapeze rig to practice and teach circus arts. The rig has since traveled from their Germantown home to weddings, festivals and other events throughout the area, and now it will have a place at her newly opened Philadelphia School of Circus Arts.

"We are the only circus school in the entire mid-Atlantic region. Among the circus community, people are thrilled," says Kennedy. The school will feature classes, parties, private lessons, professional development and performance space. Finding a suitable location was not easy for Kennedy, who searched for three years to find the high-ceilinged, 3,200-square-foot former furniture warehouse near Germantown. An open house two weeks ago included kids trial classes; adult aerial, unicycle and tight-wire classes; and free performances. Similar sessions will run throughout the year, and no experience is required to sign up. "I'm hoping it's going to be a facility that can not only help ordinary people to try something interesting," says Kennedy, "but also for performers who want to train and develop skills."

It's a set of skills she's witnessed a growing appreciation for during the past 20 years. "It used to be seen as a carnival thing," she says. "Cirque du Soleil has changed the landscape of circus. Now it's seen as something that people do — a discipline, like dance or theater."