The Story of Fort Collins Circus Center
In a town full of public art pieces, public pianos, and displays of physical and visual arts everywhere, you’d expect to see some form of circus arts too! Jessica Schultz and Lindy Zuroski agreed so they founded the Fort Collins Circus Center.
The story of the Fort Collins Circus Center starts all the way back in 1999. Schultz found herself teaching gymnastics, dance, and yoga in Colorado. She and Zuroski initially crossed paths in Fort Collins.
“I met Lindy at an acro yoga and flow arts meet-up in Old Town, Fort Collins and she whispered in my ear that Fort Collins needed a circus center. We were on the same page,” Schultz said.
“I was teaching aerial arts to ages 7–13 years at the time, renting out the back of a warehouse building by the hour, when new building owners agreed to let me take on a longer-term lease of 1250 ft² of the building. Lindy, also passionate about the burgeoning of a circus center, believed in the vision and me, thus contributing to the grand opening by October 2018,” Schultz said.
Fast forward to the beginning of 2019, the circus center boasted eight aerial rigging points. Everything was going right for the business and the two owners were even planning to expand, but that’s when the cursed year of 2020 rolled around.
“We worked hard to stay connected to our community that spring and were finally able to host summer camps in July 2020. Back in business! And from August 2020 to July 2021 our community returned and grew larger than before,” Schultz said.
By August 2021, Schultz and Zuroski had signed a lease for an additional 1250 ft² and added two more truss systems. The circus center’s current count was up to 16 aerial points, two Chinese poles, five Cyr wheels, unicycles, stilts, a Rolla Bolla, seven different varieties aerial apparatuses, hula hoops, and juggling equipment.
Today, the Fort Collins Circus Center is a versatile space for all things creative. Colorful murals of acrobats and aerialists cover the walls. A typical day contains classes, camps, and rehearsals, but occasionally they transform the space to host shows put on by students and professionals alike. They also offer day-long circus camps, summer camps, birthday parties, private lessons, and group lessons.
“We travel with two portable aerial rigs to local events and parks in and around Fort Collins during the warm months of the year to bring the circus to the hearts of many. We have a teen performance troupe, Evolution Circus,” Schultz said.
Schultz and Zuroski aim to maintain their education within the circus world. With new trends and apparatuses emerging every week, it can be hard to keep up.
“We have visited the Las Vegas Circus Center, and next on our list is the San Diego Circus Center. We hope to bring Evolution Circus to the next American Youth Circus Organization convention in 2023,” Schultz said.
In the long run, these two women want Fort Collins Circus Center to remain a safe space for athleticism, education, and entertainment. They take great pride in guaranteeing that their space is safe, open, and accessible to all people of all ages and all levels of ability by offering scholarship opportunities.
“We, at Fort Collins Circus Center, want to create social circus programs to allow for at-risk youth and low-income families to participate and benefit from what the circus arts have to offer. Circus is a medium for risk-taking, self-expression, collaboration, and finding one’s place in the world and the society in which they live,” Schultz said.
Fort Collins Circus Center offers classes and camps for people of all ages all year round. If you are interested in getting active in a fun and exciting way, check out their website for sessions that fit your schedule.
