2023 American Youth Circus Festival
August 24-27, 2023
Seattle, WA
Hosted by SANCA

We are so excited for our first in-person national youth circus festival since before the pandemic! Four days packed with circus workshops, activities, and community showcases, bringing together circus youth from all over the country.

Registration

Registrants MUST BE CURRENT AYCO/ACE members! Youth membership is $35.

Tickets are on a sliding scale – choose the price that suits your situation:

Youth ticket, Reduced rate – $265 (for those who would otherwise not be able to attend at full cost)

Youth ticket, Regular rate – $315 (full value ticket)

Youth ticket, Donation rate – $365 (help make it possible for to others attend at the reduced rate!)

Minimum age is 6yrs old (historically, most youth attendees have been 10-14 years old).

Adult workshop leader rate – $60. Please do not register until you have been accepted as a workshop leader! When you are accepted, you will be sent a discount code. We will not be able to refund registrations made without the discount code.

Chaperone: $130
Every youth under 18 must have an on-site adult chaperone. Chaperones can be responsible for more than one youth, and groups are encouraged to have a workshop leader be the group’s chaperone. There is no adult participant ticket this year. Because of limited space, there will not be much room for one-on-one chaperones. Chaperone tickets include festival meals, showcase admission, and transportation from SANCA to the showcase venue and back.

Refund policy: Refunds are available for any reason up to 1 month before the event (written request to info@americanyouthcircus.org by July 24th at 11.59pm Pacific Time) minus a 10% admin fee.

Waiver

All attendees, workshop leaders, and chaperones must sign the event waiver!

Schedule

Accommodations

Housing accommodations are not a part of your festival ticket. We have two recommended options:

Georgetown Inn

This small hotel is walking distance to SANCA. We have arranged a group discount for a limited number of rooms. When you call to make your reservation, you must say you are with SANCA in order to receive the discount! There are rooms available with one queen-sized bed ($174/night) or with two queen-sized beds ($204/night). Breakfast is included. To book, call (206) 762-2233. (Please note that a late cancellation fee for cancellation after August 10th will be charged). These rooms are expected to fill quickly.

Seattle University Dorms

Rooms are also available at the Seattle University dorms, there is a block reserved for AYCOfest attendees. Rooms are in Bellarmine Hall. Bathrooms are shared with other rooms on the same hall.

• $65.65 per person, per night private room
• $45.85 per person, per night shared double occupancy room

Breakfast is included, for a required additional charge (breakfast Friday, Saturday, and Sunday is $34.05 (plus tax)).

Finally, there is an additional required non-refundable administration fee for each booking through Seattle University’s form – so if you book your whole group at the same time, there is only one booking fee for the whole group!

When booking, please book everyone for a group at the same time and indicate on the registration form if there are people you would like to be together in a double room. (If a registrant has an uneven number of members in their group and the majority have double occupancy reservations, any extra persons without a roommate will also be assessed the lower double occupancy rate. If a registrant who is at or over the age of 18 signs up for a double room but does not provide a roommate name, the reservation will be changed to a single occupancy reservation and higher rates will apply.)

Please note that booking requires creating a separate account through the Seattle University booking system – but this means you can log back in and finish a booking, update your reservation, or make a payment later.

There will be a shuttle bus service available for an extra charge in the morning from the dorms to SANCA, and in the evening from either SANCA or the showcase venue back to the dorms. The shuttle bus registration & fee collection will be through AYCO, in a registration form that will be available here on this website as soon as possible! Thank you for your patience.

Youth Safety Travel Protection Policies

When organizations bring youth to an AYCO/ACE event, it is important that you have travel policies in place that focus on youth protection and follow them consistently. The ACYO/ACE Health and Wellness Advisory Committee has models such as this one on the Health and Wellness Resources List that organizations can reference in creating their own specific policies. Circus organizations’ youth travel protection policies should address such areas as: adult and youth being one-on-one together at any time while traveling, rooming, and how to report inappropriate behavior or abuse.

COVID Policies

Wearing a face mask is optional but recommended. We also encourage participants to take a rapid test before check-in on Thursday morning. If you are positive for COVID-19 or exhibiting symptoms, you should not attend. We also encourage attendees who are traveling on major transport (by air, train, or bus) to mask while traveling.

Workshop Leader Application

This is your chance to share your gifts with the national community, gain exposure, and influence the development of circus in the USA. Deadline: Monday, May 29th at 11.59pm Pacific Time.

Showcase Application

Are you a youth festival attendee and you’d like to share your artistry? Apply to be in the AYCOfest Showcase! Group acts representing attending organizations especially encouraged. Deadline: Thursday June 1st at 11.59pm Pacific Time.

Volunteer Application

We are looking for volunteers who are responsible, reliable, and interested in circus arts. Whether you are interested in circus learning, social circus, teaching, entrepreneurship, or creative development, the AYCOfest is the place to be. Enthusiasm and energy are a must! Young adults ages 18-26 prioritized as we want to support the next generation of circus educators! Extended Deadline: June 1st 11.59pm Pacific Time.

---

Watch below for a peek inside the 2019 AYCOfest, our last in-person before the pandemic!