The situation of circus in the EU Member States

This report presents a study on the circus sector in the European Union. The study is intended to be a legacy of the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018 and follows up on the first inventory study on the sector commissioned by the European Parliament in 2003. The study focusses on collecting, creating and presenting quantitative and qualitative information to report on the current situation of the sector in the European Union.

Based on descriptive analyses, an analysis is provided and recommendations have been developed related to the socio-economic profile of the sector, the educational situation of children whose parents work in the sector, its innovative potential and the (potential) usage and improvements of EU-funding provisions for the sector. As is the case for a number of cultural and creative sectors, data on the sector is severely lacking. Therefore several data collection methods were used, including literature review, surveys, focus groups, on-line surveys among circus companies and professionals, and expert interviews, to provide the most accurate picture of the sector. To get a good understanding of the sector, where a relevant distinction is made between the so-called traditional/classical circus companies and the contemporary circus companies circus types.