Take Care: European Conference on Mental Health and Well-being in the Circus and Performing Arts Sector | CircusDanceFestival 2025 | 7th of June 2025, Cologne (DEU)

How can artists better care for their mental, emotional, and physical health by fostering healthier habits and stronger collaboration?

Two keynotes, three workshops, and a final panel, all exploring topics such as mental health, working conditions, health habits, and queer identity. The objective of the Conference was to unite physical, mental, and ethical perspectives, while creating a space for people of all generations to share their experiences and ideas.

This conference marks the launch of the Take Care project—the first-ever EU project dedicated to supporting mental health and well-being in the circus arts sector.

📅 Saturday 7th of June 2025, 9:00-15:30
📍 Latibul @ CircusDanceFestival, Cologne (DEU)

Programme

➡️ Check out this page on Around About Circus for details on the session content and speakers.

Resources from the conference

KEYNOTE: Circus & Science: an overview of health research and monitoring in circus performance

Rogier van Rijn, PhD.

▶︎ Presentation

▶︎ Keynote
KEYNOTE: CARE as a verb, not only as a noun: what have we been actually practising?

Gaia Vimercati and Amanda Homa

▶︎ Presentation

▶︎ Keynote
WORKSHOP: Creativity and nutrition – oh my guts !

Krisje Beaumond

▶︎ Presentation
An Insight: Take Care Mental Health Conference through the Bodies of the Initiative Feminist Circus

This article on the media Around About Circus offers an insight from the perspective of the Initiative Feminist Circus into the Take Care Conference organised at the CircusDanceFestival on 7th June 2025.

▶︎ Read the article here

Acknowledgments

Take Care is a European project co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Commission, and led by FEDEC - International network for professional circus education, with the following partners: Around about circus (DEU), Circus Dance Festival (DEU), Codarts (NLD), Filip Jacobson (DEU) and Miikkael Kukkula (FIN).