The beginning of the coronavirus pandemic threw the entire circus industry off track, including long-time performer Neisha Murphy. As the variety show star reevaluated her needs, she also reconsidered what was important to her and to the greater circus community. She has made it her mission to ask the artists alongside her what matters most to them. The Nonessential Project unpacks what it means to be labeled “nonessential” during COVID times. CircusTalk is excited to shine a light on artists’ COVID stories as we repost some of Neisha’s episodes.

The 4th interview up is Dynamo Mum, Circus Director and Trainer Jane Davis. Jane Davis has been teaching circus since 2001, and loves to teach circus skills to kids and adults of all ages, across lots of different skills and ability levels. She is as happy teaching a two year-old her first forward roll as she is teaching professional aerialists advanced lyra and trapeze. Her teaching background has been extensive, and she been fortunate enough to teach all over Australia and New Zealand. Jane was the founding director of Monoxide’s Circus School from its inception as Half High Circus in 2005 through to 2012, when she resigned as Monoxide’s Director to stay at home with her baby daughter. Since becoming a Mum, she’s kept teaching, working at various times with most of the local circus companies; Burgh, Monoxide and WOW. Throughout her circus teaching career, she has been passionate about her own professional development as a trainer, doing courses such as gymnastics coaching courses, and attending conferences on teaching circus (e.g. Catapult, Head to Head, ACAPTA Conferences, Youth Circus Day, Flying Fruit Fly Training Courses etc). She is also passionate about directing high quality circus performances, and has had the privilege of working collaboratively with a range of circus schools and arts programs to create shows, as well as working independently to direct shows. She has worked with youth companies such as Beyond Empathy, Fling! Physical Theatre, and Flipside Circus to create collaborative shows with Circus Monoxide’s Circus School, and have also been assistant director on Monoxide’s Big Top Tours, and Superb & Broken.

Main image credited to original video.