Circus Center

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Founded in 1984 by Wendy Parkman and Judy Finelli as the San Francisco School of Circus Arts, Circus Center is currently the foremost circus school in the United States.

[edit] Major Programs

Aerial Program
- Pre Professional Program

Clown Conservatory
- First Year
- Second Year

Chinese Acrobatics

Youth Program

[edit] Timeline

1974 - The Pickle Family Circus was founded by Peggy Snider and Larry Pisoni.

1984 - San Francisco School of Circus Arts founded by Wendy Parkman and Judy Finelli as a project of the Pickle Family Circus. School was then located at the Pickle's headquarters in an old church on San Francisco's Potrero Hill.

1986 Hannah Kahn took reigns of the school, directing it over the next 10 years.

1990 - Master instructor Lu Yi was hired with the mandate of developing the most comprehensive Chinese acrobatics program outside of China.

1993 - The school incorporated as a separate non-profit corporation. The school moved into a vacant Polytech high school gymnasium in the Haight Ashbury district.

1996 - Established the San Francisco Circus.

December, 1996 - The school staged its first student production, Zoppo!, a show that played to a sold-out house at the Cowell Theater at Fort Mason.

July, 2000 - San Francisco School of Circus Arts purchases the New Pickle Circus from the Santa Cruz-based non-profit organization that had produced the company's shows since 1993. One hundred percent of the purchase price was raised from contributed sources. From this date on, all of the organization's professional productions are staged under the banner of the New Pickle Circus. Student productions are produced under the name "San Francisco Circus".

Fall, 2000 - The Clown Conservatory program was started with a grant from the NEA as the only year-long professional circus clown training program in the United States.

2001 - The board of directors changed the corporation's name to Circus Center, reflecting the fact that the organization now encompasses more than a school.