Choosing circus as part of Gaisce Award | Interview with circus volunteer Zoe Whelan

Zoe is 15 years old and has been coming to circus since she was 8, her older sister used to come along too! Zoe is an accomplished unicyclist and stilt walker and more recently she has been working on her pairs acro and hula hoop. Zoe is in TY this year and has been helping out at the Junior class as part of her Gaisce Award.

What were you first impressions or first memories of Cloughjordan Circus Club?

My first impression of Cloughjordan Circus Club was how cool this is. I can ride a bike with one wheel, juggle 3 balls and walk on meter high stilts. One of my first memories of circus was my first St. Patrick’s Day parade, I was a stilt walker, and it was amazing, I was finally taller than my dad! The parade was in Nenagh and loads of my family had come to see me. My sister was in the parade too. She was a unicyclist; I remember how great it felt to be up on the stilts taller than everyone and being able to show off my brand-new skills.

What kept you coming back?

The thing about circus that really appealed to me was the fact that each session was never the same. Each time I went I was learning a new trick or was being introduced to brand new things I hadn’t even heard of. And still to this day 8 years later I am still learning.

What is your Stand out circus moment?

My favourite circus moment was the trip to Belfast to attend and perform in the Festival of Fools. This was a weekend away trip, we had been working on our acts for months and we were finally ready to perform them. It was the best weekend, 12 of us from the teen circus went up and we were staying in a youth hostel area. Each day we would go into Belfast town and watch the street performers and for two of the days we performed our own acts. I think this was my standout circus memory because it was the first time that we had seen our skills taken to a whole new level, like we were taking part in a festival for circus!

When was your first time teaching / helping?

I started peer tutoring on the 5th of September 2022, and I volunteered for 13 Mondays after as a part of my Gaisce award.

What do you enjoy about teaching?

I really liked working with the young circus group and I got to experience circus from a teaching side of things.

What have you learned fromteaching with us?

I feel like I have learned ways of dealing with children in a teaching environment that will be very beneficial for me going forward.