Class clowns encouraged at Derry circus school

In Your Space Circus is taking over the Old Cathedral School on Derry's walls

A performance arts group is aiming to breathe life into a heritage building in Londonderry by turning it into a circus school.

In Your Space Circus (IYSC) works with more than 120 people a week.

It has been awarded £140,000 by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to transform the Old Cathedral School.

The Victorian-era building is to be leased by the neighbouring St Columb's Cathedral and the group intends to develop it into a circus arts venue.

IYSC's programmes involve circus skills, street theatre, visual arts, music, costume-making and theatre.

The former school was designed by John Guy Ferguson in 1891

Its director Cath McBride said: "We have been searching for a suitable home for the past 10 years, which has been challenging due to the unique requirements of circus.

"We feel privileged to have become the custodians of one of Derry's most stunning heritage assets.

"We could not be more delighted with this opportunity."

What is a circus school?

The terminology "circus school" may conjure up an image of Homer Simpson enrolling to Krusty's Clown College but in reality it is a phrase that entered the mainstream during the late 20th Century when contemporary circus rose in popularity.

In Europe contemporary circus was strongly influenced by the Nouveau Cirque movement that began in the 1970s in France, with groups such as Cirque Plume and Cirque du Soleil playing a significant role in redefining the circus arts by introducing a more artistic and theatrical approach.

Modern circus incorporates a wide range of disciplines - acrobatics, aerial arts, juggling, clowning, diablo, unicycling, trapeze, stilt-walking, dance, music and theatre - with circus schools opening as dedicated learning and rehearsal spaces, often with specialised facilities.

The movement has flourished across Ireland since the early 1990s, with numerous organisations forming in places like Belfast, Dublin, Cork, Galway and Wexford to offer alternative activities for both young and old.

Some institutions even offer full-time degree programmes, like Circomedia in Bristol or the National Centre for Circus Arts in London.

The Grade B+ listed Old Cathedral School was designed by John Guy Ferguson in 1891 as a schoolhouse attached to the St Columb's Church of Ireland Cathedral and was built in the Flemish Gothic style.

It is one of just five buildings that directly exits on to the old Derry city walls and it had functioned as a school until the early 1990s before falling into disrepair.

Robert McGonigle, the parish administrator of St Columb's, said the investment was a "very important milestone" for both the cathedral and IYSC.

"The Old Cathedral School has gone through quite a few years of uncertainty since completion of phase one of its restoration," he said.

Structural engineering firm Taylor & Boyd refurbished the building's exterior

"It is with great expectation that we have agreed this lease with IYSC as our tenant... we're confident it has the potential to secure the future of the building."

The Old Cathedral School is one of a number of heritage projects to benefit from the lottery fund this year.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund said it wanted to nurturing talent and attract artists from outside the city, with the project marking a "a significant milestone in the history of IYSC, allowing the organisation to reach its full potential".

Additional contributions to the project have been made by Arts & Business NI and the Architectural Heritage Fund.