Get to Know Some of Our Counselors
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli Last week we introduced some of the amazing coaches that we have here at Smirkus Camp, but there are many other people who make our days magical. Our counseling staff are the ones who wake the campers in the morning, put them to bed at night, remind them to wear closed-toed shoes and their aerial pants. But the counselors also spend much of their days following around the campers, watching them move through their rotations and assisting them in any way they can. Unlike most of our coaching staff, our…
Meet A Few Camp Coaches!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli This summer at Smirkus Camp, we have an amazing coaching staff filled with experienced circus artists from around the world. Our Head Coach, Tyler Jacobson, regularly tours around the country with Cirque Dreams Holidaze and can also be seen alongside our Activities Coordinator, Mariah Fraker, performing with Cirque Us. Tyler is a true multidisciplinary master, performing contortion, hand balancing, aerial hoop, hula hoops, aerial silks, and diabolo, while also teaching the campers all of those same skills! As Head Coach, Tyler oversees the progress of the camp…
A Smirkus Welcome to Intermediate and Road Show!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli We are now in the fifth week at Smirkus Camp, just beginning the Intermediate Camp two week session, and the start of the five week Road Show session. We wrapped up last week with our All Levels two week camp’s showcase on Friday which went far above any of our expectations for an All Levels program. The kids executed amazing performances filled with beautiful aerial acts, impressive juggling routines and some hilarious clown gags. It was a full week of intensive rehearsals to prepare, and it’s easy to say that it all paid off….
At Smirkus, Dress Up is Every Day
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli Aside from all the circus classes and rehearsals the kids have been attending and doing here at camp, they have been having an absolute blast participating in some of our other fun activities and traditions at camp. Some of these include well known games and sports like soccer and dodgeball, but others are more camp specific with activities like Gold Rush, Staff Hunt, and Dutch Auction! Last evening we held the Smirkus Camp version of Halloween, where staff members hid throughout the camper dorms as the campers…
Get to Know Our All Levels 2 Week Camp!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli What a start we’ve had to our All Levels 2 week session! Despite the dreary weather, the campers and staff have been bright in spirit, and high have high hopes of the days to come. Our Head Counselor Alevia and our Assistant Camp Director Ezra took charge in leading the drop-off day ice breakers. They successfully entertained everyone as the kids got to know each other through games like rock-paper-scissors evolution, and passionately discussing hot topics such as chocolate vs. vanilla and the baked beans vs. the refried…
Spend the Day with Smirklings!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli Smirkus Camp is officially up and running for the summer! Our second weekend at camp was the Smirkling for a Day camp. The campers and their families arrived to our campus bright and early with an 8:00am dropoff, ready for a full day of circus. We started the day in our acro tent Natalie with a full group warm up, to get everyone’s body energized and ready for the day’s activities. Once the campers were warm, they moved from tent to tent in their smaller rotation groups taking classes and learning some important…
Summer Starts with Smirklings!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli We’re less than a week into Smirkus Camp and what a time we’ve already had! We started off with quite the rainy welcome day to our Smirkling Overnight session. Parents dropped off their kids who were bubbling with excitement in anticipation of their two days at camp. For many campers, this was their first time sleeping away from home. The coaches and counselors took charge, getting everyone settled into their dorms, then started with some icebreakers and group games to warm everyone up on this damp and chilly afternoon. After warm ups, everyone moved into the…
There’s A Lot Going on at Advanced Camp!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli The last few weeks during our Advanced session were amazing! And Road Show session campers headed out on the road to perform over 20 shows. On July 23, when the Advanced campers arrived we did some fun games to get everybody acquainted with one another before heading into our busy week! Our days were structured with rotation groups as per usual, the individual session campers had their own group, and the ensemble was broken into three different groups while Road Show remained on their own schedule. Campers went tent to tent doing different exercises…
Shows, Shows and More Shows!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli Our Intermediate and Skills Intensive session was jam-packed with incredibly productive training sessions, tiring rehearsals and two fabulous shows. The focus of our second week was put towards creating a showcase that was presented on the final Friday to family and friends. Coaches brainstormed with the intermediate campers to decide a theme for the show they were working to create, ideas such as Outer Space, Western, even a Beyoncé theme were considered but we ended up building the show around the theme of Adventure. This opened up a great pool of ideas including an Indiana…
Creation and Show Time at Camp!
Editor’s Note: This post was written by Camp Photographer & Communications Assistant Will Ciardelli Another end to another exciting week! The unofficial theme of this week was Show Creation where campers switched gears from learning new skills to act creation! Instead of our usual rotation group based classes, we switched to rehearsal blocks. After campers chose their acts, they met in their groups and put their creative energy into the act creation process. This was a first for many of our campers which offered a vital experience for our budding circus artists and performers. Although it’s a difficult job, our campers worked incredibly hard…