Cirque School

What Cirque School does

Cirque School is a recreational circus arts training center headquartered in a 6,000 square foot vintage warehouse at 5640 1/2 Hollywood Blvd in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2009 by Aloysia Gavre (a former Cirque du Soleil aerialist) and Rex Camphuis (a former TV production coordinator at WB and ABC), the school operates one of the most comprehensive recreational circus arts programs in Southern California, offering approximately 40 weekly classes across progressive skill levels (101-104) in disciplines including aerial silks, trapeze, aerial hoop, aerial straps, aerial rope, contortion, handstands, flexibility, and acrobatics. The company serves adult recreational fitness enthusiasts, youth aged 8-14, emerging and professional circus artists, visual artists (via Cirque Life Drawing workshops), and corporate clients via team-building and production rental engagements with major film, television, and animation studios.

The underlying "technology" is physical rather than digital: hanging ropes, trapeze bars, aerial fabrics, and a proprietary teaching methodology developed by Gavre that integrates Pilates-based warm-ups with circus skill instruction. The company runs on a multi-stream revenue model including pay-as-you-go recreational classes ($35-$45 per class), three-class intro packages ($75), private lessons ($100-$120 per session), specialty workshops, corporate/private events, film/TV production rentals using the warehouse facility, branded merchandise through an e-commerce store, and youth summer camps. Distribution is primarily on-site at the Hollywood facility with registration via the MindBody platform, supplemented by virtual workshops and a domestic e-commerce storefront. The companion professional performance company Troupe Vertigo (co-founded 2009) operates separately and tours nationally with symphony orchestras, providing a student-to-professional pipeline that distinguishes Cirque School within the niche of US circus training institutions.

The business is privately held by its founders with no disclosed external institutional investment. Beyond the single physical location, the company has cultivated an entertainment industry adjacency — working with Disney Television Studios, Fox & Titmouse, Netflix, Bravo, Marvel Universe Live, and productions including Pitch Perfect 2, Water for Elephants, and Pippin — generating episodic production rental and coaching revenue. The company also operates partnerships with HealthFit Pasadena for injury prevention and with the Community Coalition of South LA for community outreach, and founder Gavre sits on the founding board of the American Circus Alliance.

Name

Cirque School

Legal name

Cirque School

Website

https://cirqueschoolla.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cirque School is a Los Angeles-based recreational circus arts training center offering progressive classes in aerial, trapeze, and acrobatics for adults, youth, and emerging professionals, supplemented by corporate events, film/TV production rentals, and the Troupe Vertigo professional performance company.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Recreational Circus Arts Training

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), Fine Arts Schools (611610), Technical and Trade Schools (6115)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Theatre Education, Training & Conservatories (MPAGABAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Performing Arts (Acting, Improv, Theater) (EDAAAGAE)

Keywords

• Circus arts training
• Aerial silks instruction
• Trapeze classes
• Acrobatic fitness programs
• Recreational circus education

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Recreational Classes: Per-class and package-based circus arts instruction including aerial silks, trapeze, hoop, straps, contortion, handstands, and acrobatics at various skill levels from beginner to advanced
2. Private Lessons: One-on-one and small group instruction with individual coaching, available as solo ($100), duet ($110), or trio ($120) sessions
3. Production Rentals & Services: 6,000 sq ft vintage warehouse available for film/TV production, casting, auditions, photo shoots, and professional circus artist casting and consultation
4. Merchandise Store: Branded apparel and accessories including hoodies, t-shirts, leggings, hats, beanies, water bottles, and stickers sold through e-commerce
5. Private Events & Team Building: Custom circus-themed events for corporate team building, birthday parties, bachelorettes, and special occasions with dedicated coaching and facility access

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Cirque School is a recreational circus arts training center operating a 6,000 sq ft Hollywood warehouse where it delivers 40 weekly progressive classes (Levels 101–104) in aerial silks, trapeze, aerial hoop, aerial straps, contortion, handstands, flexibility, and acrobatics for adults and children. The school also sells private lessons, private events and team-building workshops, film/TV production rentals, specialty workshops, student showcases, Cirque Life Drawing workshops, and branded merchandise. It is the companion training arm of the professional circus-dance-theater company Troupe Vertigo.

Product overview

Cirque School is a recreational circus arts training center offering a comprehensive portfolio of programs centered around its progressive skill-based class system (Levels 101-104). The core offering comprises weekly classes in aerial arts, trapeze, aerial fabric/silks, aerial hoop, aerial straps, handstands, flexibility, and acrobatics. Supporting programs include Cirque Kids & Youth programming with summer camps, Troupe Vertigo professional performance company, private events and team building workshops, Cirque Life Drawing artistic workshops, production rentals for film/TV, specialty periodic workshops, and student performance opportunities. The company also operates a branded merchandise store. The structure operates as a single-service platform (circus arts instruction) with multiple program modules that serve different customer segments from complete beginners to emerging professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Recreational Circus Classes Progressive skill-based recreational circus arts classes offered at 40 weekly sessions across Levels 101-104, covering aerial silks, trapeze, aerial hoop, aerial straps, contortion, handstands, flexibility, and acrobatics for adults aged 14+ from complete beginners to advanced practitioners at the Hollywood facility.
• Cirque Kids & Youth Programming

Quantifiable outcome

• 40 weekly classes offered in multiple circus disciplines

Named customers11 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Troupe Vertigo Circus-Dance-TheatrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2009Cirque School's companion professional performance company founded by the same co-founders. Troupe Vertigo creates theatrical circus performances blending circus, dance, and theater. Based in Los Angeles since 2009, they have collaborated with over 50 national symphony orchestras and perform at arts festivals and performing arts centers nationwide.
• HealthFitminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthFit Pasadena physical therapy practice provides injury prevention workshops for Cirque School students. Dr. Jason Han, founder, previously served as on-site physical therapist for Cirque du Soleil's show Iris and leads workshops on circus-specific injury prevention.
• American Circus AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAloysia Gavre serves as Founding Board Member of this service and advocacy non-profit organization dedicated to circus performance and production in the United States.
• Community Coalition (CoCo) of South LAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCirque School partnered with Community Coalition to present Wellness Wednesdays - a series of online fundraising circus and dance classes during July to support the organization's social justice work in South LA.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sky Candy Aerial Arts: Austin-based circus studio focused on aerial arts training for adults and youth, with similar recreational class model and workshop/event supplement.
• Atlanta Circus Center: Atlanta recreational and professional circus school with progressive classes, youth programs, and performance track similar to Cirque School's structure.
• Philadelphia School of Circus Arts: Recreational circus school offering adult and youth classes in aerial, ground skills, and conditioning with a comparable multi-discipline curriculum and event-driven programming.
• Versatile Arts: Portland, Oregon recreational circus school offering progressive aerial, acrobatic, and theatrical training for adults and youth. Same niche-instruction category and curriculum design.
• New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA): Brattleboro, Vermont-based recreational and pre-professional circus training school serving youth and adults with progressive classes comparable to Cirque School's 101-104 levels.
• San Francisco Circus Center: Long-running Northern California recreational and professional circus school offering classes in aerial, acrobatics, and juggling for adults and youth. Closest geographic and curriculum analog to Cirque School.
• Aloft Circus Arts: Chicago-based recreational circus school offering aerial, acrobatics, and flexibility classes with a strong community and event-rental component, paralleling Cirque School's mix.
• Trapeze School New York: Multi-location recreational flying trapeze and circus school founded by aerialists. Competes in the same alternative-fitness-and-circus instruction category with similar beginner-to-advanced class structures.

Broad incumbents

• École Nationale de Cirque: Montreal-based government-recognized national circus training institution with conservatory and recreational programs. Higher-end broad incumbent setting the benchmark that Cirque School's professional pathway (Troupe Vertigo) is benchmarked against.

Regional players

• The Groundlings: Long-standing LA performing-arts training school for improv and comedy. While not circus-specific, it is a regional peer sharing the Los Angeles adult recreational performing-arts education market and enterprise team-building buyers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/cirqueschool
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cirque-school

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cirque School