Here's a stronger, sales-focused version you could use on your website, brochures, or enquiries:

Why Choose eclipseArts for Your Children's Party?

At eclipseArts, we believe the best parties don't just entertain children—they inspire them.

For almost 30 years, we've been delivering unforgettable circus parties, workshops, and family events across Bristol and the South West. Our parties are packed with excitement, laughter, and hands-on activities that get every child involved.

What Makes eclipseArts Different?

🎪 Everyone Joins In
Children don't sit and watch—they become circus performers themselves. From juggling and plate spinning to tightrope walking and hula hooping, every child gets the chance to learn amazing new skills.

🌟 Build Confidence While Having Fun
Our activities help children develop coordination, concentration, perseverance, teamwork, and self-confidence, all while having an incredible time.

🎭 Professional Circus Expertise
Your party is led by experienced circus practitioners who have performed and taught at festivals, schools, community events, and celebrations throughout the UK.

🤹 Something Truly Unique
While many parties follow familiar formats, a circus skills party offers an exciting and memorable experience that children will be talking about long after the day is over.

🎉 Suitable for All Abilities
Our activities can be adapted to suit different ages, abilities, and group sizes, ensuring every child feels included and successful.

🏆 Trusted Since 1996
With thousands of successful workshops, parties, and events delivered over nearly three decades, you can book with confidence knowing you're in experienced hands.

📍 Based in Bristol, Serving the South West
We regularly provide parties and workshops throughout Bristol, Bath, Somerset, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Devon, Dorset, and South Wales.

The eclipseArts Promise

Every child leaves having learned something new, achieved something they didn't think they could do, and had an amazing time doing it.

Short Version for Flyers or Social Media

Why choose eclipseArts?

• Nearly 30 years of experience

• Unique circus skills parties

• Every child actively participates

• Builds confidence and coordination

• Suitable for all abilities

• Professional, friendly instructors

• Trusted across Bristol and the South West

• Fun, memorable, and educational

Don't just throw a party—give children an experience they'll never forget. 🎪✨

This version is designed to focus on benefits that parents care about most: engagement, confidence-building, safety, experience, and memorable experiences.

Why Learning Circus Skills Can Transform Your Confidence, Fitness, and Creativity

In today's fast-paced world, finding an activity that improves physical fitness, builds confidence, and sparks creativity can be challenging. That's where circus skills come in. From juggling and aerial arts to acrobatics and balance training, circus activities offer a unique and engaging way to develop both body and mind.

At Eclipse Arts, a leading circus and performance arts organisation in the UK, people of all ages and abilities have the opportunity to discover the exciting world of circus skills through professional training, workshops, and community programmes. Visit eclipsearts.co.uk to explore their wide range of classes and events.

What Are Circus Skills?

Circus skills encompass a variety of disciplines that challenge coordination, balance, strength, and creativity. Popular circus activities include:

• Juggling
• Aerial hoop
• Silks and trapeze
• Acrobatics
• Tightwire and balance skills
• Diabolo and spinning props
• Hula hooping
• Physical theatre and performance arts

Unlike traditional fitness activities, circus training combines exercise with play, making learning enjoyable and motivating.

The Physical Benefits of Learning Circus Skills

Improve Strength and Flexibility

Many circus disciplines require participants to engage multiple muscle groups simultaneously. Aerial arts, acrobatics, and balancing techniques help build core strength, upper body power, and flexibility.

Enhance Coordination and Balance

Whether you're learning to juggle or walk a tightwire, circus skills challenge your hand-eye coordination and body awareness. These improvements can carry over into everyday activities and other sports.

A Fun Alternative to Traditional Exercise

One of the biggest reasons people stick with circus training is that it doesn't feel like a workout. The sense of achievement gained from mastering a new skill keeps participants motivated and engaged.

The Mental and Emotional Benefits

Build Confidence

Learning circus skills often involves stepping outside your comfort zone. Every new trick mastered creates a sense of accomplishment that boosts self-esteem and confidence.

Develop Resilience

Circus training teaches persistence. Not every skill is mastered immediately, and participants learn to embrace mistakes as part of the learning process. This mindset can be valuable in all areas of life.

Reduce Stress and Improve Wellbeing

Physical activity combined with creative expression can help reduce stress levels and improve mental wellbeing. Many people find circus classes to be a positive escape from daily pressures.

Encouraging Creativity and Self-Expression

Circus arts blend athleticism with creativity. Participants are encouraged to explore movement, performance, and personal expression in a supportive environment. This creative outlet can be particularly beneficial for children, young people, and adults looking to build confidence in expressing themselves.

Circus Skills for All Ages

One of the greatest advantages of circus training is its accessibility. Classes can be adapted for different ages, fitness levels, and abilities. Whether you're a complete beginner or an experienced performer, there is always a new challenge to explore.

Organisations such as Eclipse Arts have helped countless individuals discover the joy of circus arts through inclusive programmes designed to make learning fun, safe, and rewarding.

Why Choose Eclipse Arts?

Eclipse Arts has established itself as a respected provider of circus education, workshops, performances, and community engagement projects. Their experienced instructors create welcoming environments where participants can safely develop new skills, improve fitness, and gain confidence.

Whether you're interested in recreational classes, professional development, school workshops, or community events, eclipsearts.co.uk offers opportunities to experience the many benefits of circus training.

Final Thoughts

Learning circus skills is about far more than performing tricks. It's a powerful way to improve physical fitness, develop resilience, build confidence, and unlock creativity. As more people seek engaging and meaningful activities, circus arts continue to grow in popularity across the UK.

If you're ready to challenge yourself, meet new people, and discover what you're capable of, explore the opportunities available at eclipsearts.co.uk and start your circus journey today.

Final Installment of eclipseArts Circus A-Z

Night shifts.  We often have to work overnight, usually outside clubs spinning fire whilst people wittily shout, ‘YOU’RE ON FIRE!’ at us again and again and again. 

Original props.  The most recent prop we have invented is the fire ribbon.  It’s a piece of wick, two and a half metres long, based on a Chinese ribbon.  No one has been brave enough to light it yet but when we do we will post footage here, assuming we survive the experience.  

Passing.  Passing involves throwing juggling props between two or more people, whilst maintaining a pattern.  You can attempt passing: balls; rings; clubs; poi; hula-hoops; sandwiches; kittens. Balls are easy, hula-hoops are hard.

Quarter-pole.  A quarter-pole is a circus tent pole, the intermediate pole between central pole and side polls, used in massive big tops like what we don’t own or need.  YOU try coming up with a word that begins with ‘q’ though! 

Ropes (Corde Lisse if you’re feeling fancy).  If you can manage to haul yourself up a rope, you can make pretty shapes while you’re up there, or at least our colleague Kris can and will (if you pay him).

Silks.  Also an aerial skill, apparently a bit harder on the muscles than ropes are, although performed well silks are so graceful you’d be forgiven for thinking it looks easy.  Kris can do this too and he will (if you pay him).

Tight-wire.  We have a free standing tight-wire.  I have seen several small girls who know how to walk a gymnastic beam experience immediate success; I like to think they leave our workshops and head straight to the Grand Canyon, armed with nothing but raw ambition and ballet pumps.  It is far more common to fall off before managing even one step though - humbling and exhilarating simultaneously.   

Unicycles.  We have recently invested in a giraffe unicycle.  That means it’s taller than I am!  (I’m 5’6 and it must have an inch or two on me).

Velcro.  Velcro is the answer to fast paced costume changes if you are performing, sweetie-dahlings.

Xciting xperiences xspecially for you!  Xceptional, xilirating xcapades.  (I’m so, so sorry.)  

Yoga: great for strength; great for flexibility; perfect circus conditioning.

Zoology.  Is it cruel or is it cool to use animals in the circus?  Should we train our chickens?  We don’t use any animals but Laura does occasionally dress up as a stilt-walking cheetah.

eclipseArts Circus H - M

Hula vs hoop.

If you ask Laura to show you some hula she will become slightly irritable and say, ‘it’s called HOOP.’ Other hoopers are fixated on the difference between circus hoop and dance hoop… the hooping community is strange and their linguistic foibles are impenetrable to the uninitiated. Try not to start a hooper chatting about it unless you have an hour or two to spare.


‘I can do it!’ 

this is what people shout in the millisecond between getting a trick right for the first time and then dropping all of their props due to being overwhelmed with excitement.


Jesters.

We work with some amazing medieval clowns. If men in tights are your bag we can find you the best unicycling, fire spinning, tumbling entertainers. They’re guaranteed to rock your court.


Kick ups.

If you perform, you need to learn kick-ups. You can kick up clubs, balls, hula hoops… so when you drop (and you will) you can employ the nifty looking kick-up and continue with your routine. Hopefully your audience will think, ‘wow that trick looked amazing!’ and forget you ever dropped.


Learning.

Often when we start teaching people how to do things they’re frustrated when they don’t get it straight away, but we think this is one of the beauties of circus skills. No one can naturally juggle, everyone has to put effort into learning, so in a way circus is a great equaliser.


Motivation.

Because you probably won't learn to contort yourself through a tennis racquet without it.

As promised, some photographs from the UV Alien Puppet Show

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eclipsearts_circus/?saved=1

A - G

So here we are with the first installment of the eagerly awaited (by my Mum)
eclipseArts Circus A -Z...

Alien Puppets.  eclipseArts are so called because of an eclipse scene in Tom’s UV alien puppet show, created in the long long ago, before LEDs.   Tom created ‘life size’ alien puppets and various members of the eclipseArts collective operated puppets or manipulated toys around them.  (I'll get some pics up soon.)

Bob Fossett.  One of Tom’s first juggling jobs was with Bob Fossett’s Circus.  For generations the Focett’s firstborn sons have been called ‘Robert’ to save the expense and effort of repainting their regalia.  The Bobs could do fun things like performing the splits on tight-ropes.  Cor!

Circus Parties and Circus Workshops.  Our bread and butter; often for kids.  We can teach and perform loads of stuff - juggling, poi, diabolo, hulahoop, flower sticks, plate-spinning, feather balancing, stilts, unicycle, tight-rope, staff and acrobalance.

Dog show!  My first real stage performance was at Cricklade Dog Show to about 12 people and also some ferrets.  I was terrified and got cramp in my foot whilst hooping on it, but thankfully I didn’t drop. Tom, however, has juggled all over…

…Europe.  Spain, Turkey, Prague, the giddy heights of Wales... the highlight of his career, however, was the dogshow; he preferred this even to working with the Chinese State Circus.  The Chinese State Circus didn’t have ferrets.

Fire!   Our fire shows could include poi, juggling clubs, hulahoop, staff, skipping ropes, a spot of acrobalance and a backflip or two.   We’re thinking about creating some original props too so watch this space…

Glastonbury.  Main stage!  Tom’s first  juggling job, working with Spectral FX.  He took the alien puppet show there a few times too.

Welcome to the first eclipseArts blog entry.

Although eclipseArts have been in the biz for fifteen years, it’s never occurred to us to write a blog before.   I mean, computers, what’s the point?  Can you spin them round your hips, throw them, set fire to them, balance on them?*  No?  Then excuse me while I go back outside with my hulahoop.

However, luddite ideals aside, the net does provide a wealth of teaching resources, online shops, friendly communities and inspirational footage to excite the imagination of any aspiring circus freak.  So we concede and here we are, arriving at the party fashionably late.

The next couple of entries will give you some idea of who we are and what we’ve been up to for the last fifteen years in an ‘A-Z of eclipseArts’.  We’ll start with Alien Puppets and finish with Zacariah Richards, the man who persuaded us to stop fearing technology.  

(* You can probably attempt all four but it would be ill-advised.  Although I wonder… juggling laptops… interesting.)