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NEWS

【Report】The social circus program for the business society “Yukku & Lee The Spiral World”

2019 09/14 Sat

On August 11 2019, we held a social circus program for the business society, “Yukku & Lee The Spiral World”.

“Yukku & Lee: The Spiral World” 
This is a program to lern new type of communication that a diverse group of people with unique physical and communication skills gather and exercise together with circus method, and lern to understand each other and free yourselves.
With support from professional staff such as physiotherapists and circus artists, by moving your body and mind together with various members, it provides a communication experience that cannot be experienced elsewhere.
This program have developed by NPO SLOW LABEL and Dentsu Parainitiative.

 

This time the social news site “”NewsPicks“, held this program for members of ACADEMIA.

The six facilitators of this program “the guides” are members who have been beparticipated in SLOW LABEL’s social circus program as participants with disabilities . This time they have challenged the program facilitators for the first time.
The most important and notable point of this program is that people with disabilities work as the facilitators.
This program has been created by circus artist Keisuke Kanai, SLOW LABEL performing director, and other SLOW LABEL specialists, accompanists, and access coordinators.

They seemed to be fine just before the show. Dispite of that many corrections occurred the day before the show, they were able to confirm through close communication with all the members of this team.

 

Now it ’s time to start.
Participants came in a line with eye masks.

 

1. SILENT TRAIN
Wearing an eye mask and wander the invisible tracks.
Anxiety and expectation
Unknowingly, you are straying into “the spiral world”…..

 

When the participants sat and remove the eye mask, the aerial performance was unfolding in front of them.

The participants were drawn into “the Spiral World” at once.

2. WARMUP MUSHUP
Warm up with mimes.
The mime is the basis of communication.
When you notice, the scarf stopped motion.
The feeling of turning around accelerate…….

Relaxing the body, doing high five, moving with scarves and then relieve tensions.

Next, the circus training corner that they can try performances using circus tools such as juggling balls, spinning dishes, peacock feathers, hats and so on.

 

3.CIRCUS CIRCUS CIRCUS

Challenge the circus juggling with the guidance of the guides.
Finally, everyone is a great circus member.

First, the guide showed how to play the juggling tools.

After the demonstration, the participants challenged the tools they wanted to try.
The guides have  practiced circus tools that suit themselves so that they can teach their skills to the participants. Circus tools became  good mediator, and communication between the guides and the participants gradually deepened.

Everyone tried various tools and the presentation time at the end of this corner was also exciting.

 

4. MIRACLE CIRCLE

Hold the rope ring with all the participants and maintain balance while tilting the body. It is a program with a high level of difficulty that needs mutual trust.

It is dangerous for anyone to relax, so everyone have to trust each other and feel your responsibility.

It was a challenge for participants to wear eye masks.

Because they couldn’t use their vision, they needed to focus on other sensations and had the feeling of trusting other members. However, thanks to the results of communication in the previous program, the ropes was holded evenly. The participants were able to go to the next stage of trying the bond of trust with this program.

 

5. DIVE TO LIVE

We all work together to catch our colleague who fall backward from high.  Make your mind.  Your courage and concentration are tested.

Ofcause safety measures are thorough, but in the social circus program, this feeling that  it is dangerous and  a little courage is necessary is very important.

This situation leads to the feeling that a sense of tension and responsibility, a feeling of challenging the goal a little higher,
an attitude to accomplish things in cooperation with the people around, a refreshing feeling when you achieve it and a positive attitude that you want to do more.

Today’s members were extremely trustworthy, those who fell down showed courage, those who supported them all felt together, and the work was a great success.

The guide with disabilities also tried to fall down. No matter how many times she have practiced, her fear doesn’t not disappear.

 

6. SOLEIL

The climax is the work named “SOLEIL”.

Hold the rope extending radially from the ring and move the ball on the ring. It is a program that asks for cooperation between participants.

Everyone was powerful, actively talking to each other and proceeding with this work!

It was great teamwork!

The program is finally over. Voice work, including cooldown.

7. SONG OF HEARTS

Close your eyes, make a voice, and make a harmony while listening to the voices of others.

8. COOLING TIME
Cool down while listening to retrospective words by circus artist Keisuke Kanai. How far have you become transparent in the spiral?

The circus was once a family business. The circus has very dangerous techniques.Wife, husband, and children also support and partner when they perform at height. Circus members from outside can also become part of the family by living together. Those who did not know eachother are doing a circus tour by creating strong bonds like their families.

This program is a social circus experience program that incorporates the essence of the circus of such an era, creates a relationship of trust that cannot be built with words alone, and mobilizes imagination and creativity to communicate with each other.

 

The last is a commemorative photo!

 

9.SUMMER MEMORY

Take commemorative photos with all the participants! You are there completely different from 100 minutes ago.

Everyone took a picture with circus tools and they made facial expression of “various emotion”. The program ended while this original theme song was playing. The fun time was quick.

After the production, the guide and staff team gathered and did feedback.

Everyone said comments such as “I’ve done so well!” and “I want to try this again.” It was a space filled with senses of accomplishment.

This time, all the guides with disabilities tried to facilitate the program.All of the guides could take the role of leading the participants by raising the level of “learning to be taught” that they have experienced at SLOW LABEL performances and circus schools.
It was an experience that felt confidence and growth.

 

After the workshop, there was a talk session with Yoshie Kris (SLOW LABEL director), Norihiko Sasaki (NewsPicks Studios CCO) Propicker Shinichi Tanaka (NewsPicks Pro Picker), and  Nana Okui (NewsPicks Pro annauncer).

At this talk session, they discussed the intentions of this program and what is necessary to create a more inclusive society, with questions and answers from participants.
For more details on the talk session, see the NewsPicks article!

[NewsPicks article link (Japanese)]
[Part 1] What is the featured program “Social Circus” to experience diversity?
[Part 2] “Current Tokyo is not kind”. Creators with disabilities talk about how to change society

The program has been in development for over a year. Many volunteers also helped with the development. Thank you very much! We will work to create opportunities for many people to experience the “Yuk and Lee The Spiral World” and to explore new possibilities with everyone who participates in SLOW LABEL programs.  Thank you for your support!

(SLOW LABEL)

 


SLOW CIRCUS PROJECT
The social circus program for the business society
“Yukku & Lee The Spiral World”

Director
Yoshie Kris

Program Director
Keisuke Kanai

Guide
Hiroko Sato (aerial artist)
Ken Kanokozawa (accompanist)
Yui Saito (accompanist)
Ken Igarashi, Kengo Fujisaki, Hazuki Kubota, Hisayoshi Takashima

Music
Kohske Kawase

Costume
Miki Nakamura

Production Assistant
Miki Goto

Access Cordinator
Kaori Hirooka

Project Manager
Kozue Nomura
Kaoru Miyabe
Sawa Tsukahara

Staff
Yusuke Ide
Yohei Saito

 

CREATIVE TEAM

Creative Director
Hiroki Morishita(WR Inc.)

Copy
Hiroshi Ando

Visual Design
Chie Kakinuma

Music
Kohske Kawase

Costume
Miki Nakamura

Photograph
Takehiro Hiramatsu

Program joint development
Dentsu Para Initiative

 

SLOW CIRCUS PROJECT

 

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