Circus - Arts & Sciences

Our platform « Circus - Arts & Sciences », presents the Centre for Research and Higher Education of Circus Arts at the Paul-Valéry University, Montpellier 3 (France) that is the only one of its kind in Europe

Since 1995, a series of research works as well as theoretical and practical classes at the Paul-Valéry University Montpellier 3 (France) established the emergence of a brand-new field of study — scientific research in circus arts.
The RiRRA 21 (EA 4209) Research Centre very actively promoted this still largely unexplored field by hosting and developing unprecedented cross-curricular research works.
Just like the circus, a multicultural and composite performance, our distinctiveness stems from our scientific diversity. Researchers in performing arts, fine arts, music, literature as well as aesthetics collaborate and periodically invite creators, artsits and experts from other human and social sciences fields such as arts, history, sport sciences, education, biology, medicine, and cognitive sciences, engage them in circus arts and to seek their contribution to many study sessions, symposiums and publications. Hence, the education offered in circus arts throughout the whole curriculum (Licence, Master, Doctorate, with a dozen defended or ongoing theses to this day) makes our University a centre for research and higher education in circus arts that is unique in Europe.
Those works are also given visibility through the awarded (Label CollEx) circus collection of the inter-university library with 2000 books, 2000 periodicals, hundreds of artefacts and online access via Foli@ to digitized posters; through a circus filmography now opened through a participatory approach; through the publication of scientific books on circus arts by the Presses universitaires de la Méditerranée (PULM – Collection cirque); and online articles in our Circus Sciences journal.
Highlighting further those works by online publications and digital data on our Circus - Arts & Sciences platform helps expand access to the area of digital humanities promoted by our institution. It also enables to consider particularly the artists' life conditions the ethics in circus arts — history, public health, ethology and performing arts — and the social history of circus, thereby asserting the scientific nature of our university centre for research dedicated to Circus arts.

Scientific Board

  • François Amy de la Bretèque (Film Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Valérie Arrault (Visual Arts, Montpellier 3)
  • Annick Asso (Contemporary Literature, Montpellier 3)
  • Marco Antonio Coelho Bortoleto (UNICAMP - Faculdade de Educação Física, Campinas, Brazil)
  • Denys Barrault (Medecine, Société française de médecine de l’exercice et du sport)
  • Luc Boucris (Scenography, Grenoble-Alpes)
  • Guillaume Boulangé (Film Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Charléne Dray (Cirque, Montpellier 3)
  • Alain Frère (Musée du Cirque, Tourrettes-Levens)
  • Philippe Goudard (Circus Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Dominique Jando (Circopedia, San Francisco)
  • Gérard Lieber (Theatre Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Louis-Patrick Leroux (Concordia University, Canada)
  • Alix de Morant (Choreographic Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Yvan Nommick (Musicology, Montpellier 3)
  • Natalie Petiteau (History, Avignon Université)
  • Thérèse Perez-Roux (Educational Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Philippe Perrin (Sport Sciences, ORL, Nancy)
  • Pierre Philippe-Meden (Circus Studies, Montpellier 3)
  • Béatrice Picon-Vallin (History of Theatre and Stage Direction, CNRS, Paris)
  • Gabriele Sofia (Etnoscenology, Grenoble-Alpes)
  • Magali Sizorn (Sport Sciences, Rouen)
  • Marie-Ève Thérenthy (Literature, Montpellier 3)
  • Karel Vanhaesebrouck (Dramaturgy, ULB, Brussels)
  • Nathalie Vienne-Guerrin (Elizabethan Studies, CNRS, Montpellier 3)
  • Emmanuel Wallon (Political Sciences, Paris X)

Editors : Philippe Goudard, DSIN, RiRRa 21 and Conseil des composantes Montpellier 3