Fontys University of Applied Sciences
Circus and Performance Art (BA)
- Eindhoven, Netherlands
- Tilburg, Netherlands
BA
DURATION
4 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
15 Aug 2026
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
EUR 2,601 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* statutory tuition fees Full-time| institutional fee : € 12.840
Key Summary
About: The BA Circus and Performance Art at Fontys University of Applied Sciences trains performers in contemporary circus and physical theatre. You’ll study with international teachers in a professional hall with modern facilities, work interdisciplinary across the Fontys Academy of the Arts and learn 14 disciplines in a four-year programme.
Career Outcomes: The programme prepares you for career opportunities across circus, variety shows, street performance, site-specific work, circus theatre, visual theatre, events and parks. You can work as a performer, creator, choreographer, company member, director or teacher, and pursue freelance, company or international careers in live performance, touring and production.
Are you fascinated by contemporary circus? At Circus and Performance Art we educate young people with talent and motivation for the profession of circus artist. With our team of international teachers, we offer a four-year study programme in a unique environment.
You can read all about the disciplines and the teachers in the school's website.
Why this study in the Netherlands?
- International qualified (guest-)teachers from the work field
- Exceptional training opportunities in a professional hall with modern facilities
- You can work interdisciplinary with other studies of Fontys Academy of the Arts
- The academy in Tilburg is very internationally oriented, which boosts your international career as a circus artist
- We teach 14 different disciplines
Year 1
The study programme in the first year consists of the following courses.
- Circus technique
- Group work
- Dance
- Physical theatre
- Performance Art
- General physical preparation
- Floor acrobatics
- Trampoline
- Anatomy
- Circus in context
- Training methods and planning
- Dramaturgy
- Security, safety, rigging
- ·Research and performance project
- Group performance
An average study year starts at the end of August and runs until the second half of July. Normal school activities will last 40 - 42 weeks, including examination and production periods.
Year 2
The study programme in the second year consists of the following courses.
- Circus techniques
- Group work
- Dance
- Physical theatre
- Performance Art
- General physical preparation
- Floor acrobatics
- Trampoline
- Biomechanics
- Circus in context
- Training methods and planning
- Dramaturgy
- Security, safety, rigging
- Research and performance project
- ·Group performance
An average study year starts at the end of August and runs until the second half of July. Normal school activities will last 40 - 42 weeks, including examination and production periods.
Year 3
The study programme in the third year consists of the following courses.
- Circus techniques
- Dance
- Physical theatre
- General physical preparation
- Floor acrobatics
- Trampoline
- Dramaturgy
- Research and performance project
- Group performance
- Management and organization
- Free part
An average study year starts at the end of August and runs until the second half of July. Normal school activities will last 40 - 42 weeks, including examination and production periods.
Year 4
The study programme in the fourth year consists of the following courses.
- Circus techniques
- Dance
- Physical theatre
- General physical preparation
- Floor acrobatics
- Security, safety, rigging
- Research and performance project
- Group performance
- Work placement
- Management and organization
An average study year starts at the end of August and runs until the second half of July. Normal school activities will last 40 - 42 weeks, including examination and production periods.
What you will learn
We offer a 4-year, full-time study program with a pioneering, distinctive artistic shape. The international study program provides a globally recognized academic bachelor diploma of professional education as a Circus artist and has a qualified team and a clear mission. We also offer exceptional training facilities.
The study program focuses on:
- Educating you as a versatile, highly-skilled circus artist who will find employment as a performer and creator in various branches of the professional field of contemporary circus and circus-related performing arts
- Developing your physical, technical, and creative talent to the highest attainable level
- Giving individual, distinct, and clear-cut shape to your artistic profile
- Stimulating both your aptitude and passion for individual and collective performance work
- Encouraging and facilitating intensive contact with the professional field from the start of your study
Students with a nationality of any EU/EEA country, Switzerland or the UK can use the study financing options offered by the Dutch government. Read more about it on duo.nl.
Students with a non-EEA nationality applying to this programme may be eligible for a partial scholarship for their first study year via the NL Scholarship. Read more about it on NL scholarship | Fontys.
The education at Circus and Performance Art enables you to start a professional career in various fields of contemporary circus and in other performing arts. It provides you with the aptitude to meet the requirements of an incessantly evolving art form on a professional level. You will work in the field of circus, a large professional field that has evolved considerably, and that nowadays embraces various structures: circus, variety shows, street performances, site-specific work, circus theatre, visual theatre, amusement parks, events and more.