About Downside-Up

The Downside-Up Circus is a performing arts collective founded in 2009 by several dedicated and enthusiastic Hampshire College students.  Combining a shared passion for the circus arts and a commitment to social change and sustainability, Downside-Up is our answer when people ask us what we are going to do when we graduate college: run away with the circus, of course!

Mission Statement

+ The Downside-Up Circus likes to look at the world upside-down. We are optimists, but we are also pragmatists. We aim to use the circus arts to promote positive connections between people who may otherwise pass each other on the street without so much as a fleeting glance.

+ We are committed to facilitating community-building, creativity, exploration, collaboration, and enlightening entertainment through various circus projects, workshops, productions, and events.  Our events are open to the public and reflect our love of exploration and innovation.

+ For us, circus is a way for us to reimagine our world and our place within it by fusing together different performance arts and skills (dance, acrobatics, music, theatre, aerials, juggling, clowning, etc.)

Vision Statement

+ The Downside-Up Circus wants to bring people’s hearts and souls together to celebrate and spread joy through performance, creativity, and community building.  A performer is shaped by the audience, and we hope to embrace our audience as a truly essential part of who we are, with the goal of being able to offer something back in return. It is only through interaction that we can begin to understand each other and we encourage sharing stories and creative expression as a way to foster empathy and solidarity among otherwise separate groups of people.