The Circus Academy Comes to Town

If you’ve ever dreamed of running away and joining the circus, a new academy in Sydney lets you indulge that aspiration without having to run away.

Composer and producer Chloe Charody and her business partner violinist Sonja Schebeck have taken their experiences from their circus opera The Carnival staged in London’s West End and opened Charody Productions’ Circus Opera Academy in Sydney. It is hard not to notice a trend that requires an increasing visual element to performances previously considered staid; the advent of opera in the cinema asks that singers be fit, if not blessed with movie star looks. Charody says “With the continual expansion and development of new theatrical genres, musical styles and performance techniques, the next generation of classical musicians and opera singers must be given the best training possible in order to become future leaders and innovators in the entertainment industry.”

The academy represents the aim at Charody Productions of combining the art of opera and classical music performance with disciplines of circus and physical theatre, adding to the increasingly wide skill set demanded of performers in the 21st Century. This combination of styles has certainly pleased audiences of her productions.

“We are still however at the very beginning” adds Charody. “Our academy is our principal platform in training and developing the next generation of opera singers and classical musicians whom will have the opportunity to work for our company in the future. It’s a long road, but we are committed to developing this genre to its fullest potential and presenting it directly to the youth.  We are especially committed to giving young classical musicians and opera singers the opportunity to stretch themselves as performers in the 21st century.”

The Charody Productions Academy launches this August at the Suzie Q Pole Studio, North Parramatta, and the Entertainment Quarter, Fox Studios.

For further information please see www.charodyproductions.com