General Information
Madskillz Vancouver is hosting its 8th annual Flow, Juggle and Spin festival June 22-25th, 2017 with all ages workshops and games at CircusWest on the PNE grounds.
Day Passes – Adults: $35, Kids 12 & Under: $17.50
Full Festival Pass – Adults: $100, Kids 12 & Under: $50
See the Ticket page for earlybird pricing.
Evening Shows
This year will feature evening shows at the Russian Hall: Thursday’s community Prop Battle, Friday’s Emerging Artist Showcase with some of Vancouver’s best up and coming talent, and the Renegade Show, a 19+ event where artists try out their more risqué acts, not yet ready for the main stage; and on Saturday, our Gala Show featuring some of Vancouver’s finest performers and a few special international guests.
These shows will delight, confound, and amaze the crowd with spectacular feats of prop manipulation, circus arts and more!
LOCATION: The Russian Hall 600 Campbell Ave.
Thursday Prop Battle: $15
Doors at 7pm, Round 1 of Prop Battle at 8pm (approx)
Friday Emerging Artist & Renegade: $15
Doors at 8pm, Emerging Artist Showcase at 8:30pm, Renegade 10:30 (approx) to Midnight.
Saturday Gala Show: $20
Doors at 8pm, show 8:30-11:00pm (approx)
Kids 12 & under half price. Renegade show is 19+up after 10:30pm.
Daytime Workshops, Jam, Raffle & Games
Circus West
Garden Auditorium, PNE Grounds near Hastings & Renfrew
Friday: Doors at 11am, Workshops 12-6:45, close at 7pm
Saturday: Doors at 11am, Workshops 12-6:45, close at 7pm
Sunday: Doors at 10:45am, workshops 11-2:30,raffle and games, close at 5pm
Directions to Circus West:
Driving? Go north on Renfrew from Hastings and turn right using Gate 6 into the PNE grounds. Continue down Miller Dr., past the race track and turn into the large parking lot on your right. From here you should be able to turn right out the far side of the parking lot, taking the next left into the parking lot behind CircusWest. Parking space is very limited, be prepared to walk from one of the more distant lots, or use the lot across Hastings from Gate 15.
Bussing? Take Transit to “The PNE”, get off at the corner of Renfrew and Hastings, then use Gate 1 to stroll to the Garden Auditorium building – the entrance faces the administration building next door!
History
Year One: June 11-13, 2010
Our first year saw attendees gather at the WISE hall on Friday for work
shops and the traditional Renegade show later that evening, then we headed out to the Student Union Building at UBC for Saturday and Sunday. Workshops filled the Ballroom and other spaces throughout the venue, including table juggling in the courtyard!
The Rio Theatre hosted our Gala show on Saturday night, where we filled the seats with festival participants and members of the general public who were ready to be entertained by our lineup of local and international guests. Read the Vancouver Sun article here.
Again, only Better! June 22-24, 2011
We found our perfect match for a daytime venue at CircusWest on the PNE grounds. Already used for circus tra
ining, their space and layout suited our needs perfectly, and three days of workshops and Open Gym time filled the gym, stage and hallways.
Friday night’s Renegade Show took place in the hotel across the street from the PNE forums, and while we had tried to prepare our hosts for the style of entertainment expected at a Renegade Show, concerns expressed by hotel guests cut our evening slightly short! Saturday’s Gala show at the Russian Hall included some spectacular carnival-style sideshow acts along with our beloved prop manipulators and flow artists.
Third Time is the Charm: June 22-24, 2012
This year we added a new venue: the Sideshow Studios! Several members of the Madskillz crew had gotten together to lease this wonderful space, and it now features special events and weekly prop jams throughout the year. Friday night started with a potluck dinner and socializing time for festival partic
ipants, followed by a brilliant Youth Showcase that featured a number of performers from the CircusWest school, and then our beloved Renegade show was able to go wild and crazy at Sideshow.
Back at CircusWest for workshops, this year’s record number of attendees filled the space to its farthest corners for classes and Open Gym time. Saturday’s Gala Show was 19+ event at the WISE hall, and we ran into unfortunate technical glitches in our attempts to livestream the event back to CircusWest for our younger participants. Lesson learned, we now prioritize all-ages venues!
Year Four, on the floor! June 20-23, 2013
New features in 2013 included a Fire Gala on Friday at the plaza in Athletes Village followed by a dance and prop battle at Sideshow, and then a pancake breakfast on the PNE grounds with an open air jam in the morning sunshine!
Thursday night kicked off the festival with a potluck dinner and social before the lovely Emerging Artists Showcase and the hysterical adults-only Renegade Show. Saturday’s Gala Show at the Russian Hall featured spectacular performances from local and international artists, and the late night afterparty saw attendees playing into the wee hours at CircusWest. The event wrapped up with Sunday’s games, raffle draws and a long running session of volleyclub by the jugglers.
More recent history coming soon!