Fireflies | Light Up Rochdale This Autumn

by Charma Force | Sep 30, 2025 | News and Updates, Performances & Events, Project Updates

This autumn, Skylight Circus Arts and Culture Co-op are bringing something truly special to Rochdale. Fireflies is your chance to learn the incredible art of fire spinning and then step into the spotlight at the town’s spectacular Ignite Fire Festival this November.

Guided by the mesmerising Travelling Light Circus, participants will take part in a series of exciting workshops. You’ll build skills step by step in a safe and supportive space, before coming together to create a dazzling group performance for Rochdale’s most fiery event, Ignite Fire Festival!

Fireflies is more than just a fire spinning and performance. It’s about trying something new, being creative and finding connection in the community, all while working with incredible professional fire performers!

Whether you’re looking for a new adventure or a way to be part of Rochdale’s thriving cultural scene, this project offers something unforgettable.

Get in touch with Skylight Circus Arts for more information & how to book your place today!

Key Details

FREE
Open to over 18 years only
Booking essential with limited places available
No experience needed, just enthusiasm and energy!

Dates, Times & T&C's

Fireflies Project 2025 Details

We’re so excited that you want to join us for this year’s Fireflies project.

Over 7 weeks you’ll take part in 8 sessions and 2 fire performances. You’ll be taught by the amazing Travelling Light Circus who will guide you through everything you need to know about the art of fire torch spinning and then together you’ll take those skills to the Ignite Fire Festival to perform as a group.

Important Information

You need to commit to all of the sessions and be available to perform on both performance days. If you have to miss one session, please let us know in advance as it may affect the performances. It’s best for everyone if the whole group attends every session as we work towards a brilliant fiery performance!

Dates & Times

Activity	Date	Time	Location
Session 1	Monday 6th October	Session Times 7:15pm – 8:45pm	All workshops are held at: Skylight Circus Arts St Chads Fold Sparrow Hill Rochdale OL16 1QT
Session 2	Monday 13th October
Session 3	Monday 20th October
Session 4	Monday 27th October
Session 5	Monday 3rd November
Session 6	Monday 10th November
Session 7	Monday 17th November
Final Rehearsal	Thursday 20th November
Performance 1	Saturday 22nd November	tbc – after 5pm	Rochdale Town Centre Square
Performance 2	Sunday 23rd November	tbc – after 5pm	Rochdale Town Centre Square

To join Fireflies, contact Skylight circus arts by completing this form and we’ll get in touch. Alternativly, pop us an email info@skylightcircusarts.com

Hello from our Youth Forum!

by Charma Force | Sep 26, 2025 | News and Updates, Our Team & Community

We are Skylight’s Youth Forum, a group of passionate young people brought together by our love for circus. We first connected through different youth groups at Skylight, and now we meet regularly to share ideas and make our voices heard. Our members are aged between 13 and 19 and bring a wide mix of skills, from juggling to trapeze and everything in between.

As the next generation at Skylight, we think about the future of circus and what it means to us. Our meetings, held on the last Friday of every month, give us the chance to plan, create posts for the blog, and curate Skylight’s social media. For us, circus is more than just a hobby, it is a way to learn, grow, and connect. Being part of the Youth Forum means we get to enjoy the best of both worlds, performing in the spotlight and shaping what happens behind the scenes.

Youth Circus Star Raises Funds With A Sponsored Bike Ride

by Charma Force | Sep 2, 2025 | News and Updates, Our Team & Community, Support & Donations

From Passion to Action

A Youth’s Message on Supporting Skylight Through a Sponsored Bike Ride

At Skylight we are constantly blown away by the dedication and creativity of our young people.

This summer one of our Youth Circus members decided to take on a challenge outside the our circus home here at Skylight, swapping diabolos and bouncy stilts for a bike and setting off on a sponsored ride with his family to raise money for Skylight.

Here’s a little message from Charlie, who wanted to share why Skylight means so much to him…

I decided to do a sponsored bike ride to raise funds for Skylight Circus Arts because I have been a member for a couple of years and they have helped me gain my confidence, they have helped me make friends but they have also accepted me for myself. Skylight saved me when I was at a low point in life and when I was struggling to accept I had autism, they encourage me to be the best I can be and provide a fun safe place for me to learn new things and socialise with adjustments if needed, and I feel it’s nice to show how much myself and family appreciate all members and staff at Skylight by raising funds for future events or equipment.

Charlie, Youth Circus Participant

From Passion to Action A Youth's Message on Supporting Skylight Through a Sponsored Bike Ride

Hearing Charlies story celebrates why we do what we do here at Skylight. Building confidence, bringing together community and celebrating creativity are at the heart of what we do and it means so much to hear how Skylight has been part of his journey.

How does support like this help?

Charlie raised a whopping £270.50, the money raised will go towards our classes, equipment and further opportunities to help us to continue to support more young people just like Charlie. Every mile he pedalled has a direct impact on helping others experience the happiness, belonging and purpose that circus brings.

Thank you!

From all of us at Skylight, an enormous thank you to Charlie for commitment, kindness and generosity. You’re an inspiration to us all. Not forgetting a big thank you to his parents, for always supporting and shouting about the work we do here at Skylight… and of course for helping us to pack up and carry all of our circus equipment after every workshop you find us at! You truly are a wonderful family with big hearts! Lastly, thank you to all that supported Charlie in raising funds for us here at Skylight.

Make A Difference Today

If you’ve been inspired by Charlie’s story and want to join him in creating pathways for future generations here at Skylight, please suppport us by sharing our work with your friends, families & networks.

Support Us

Why Arts and Culture should be at the heart of community events

by Charma Force | Aug 26, 2025 | News and Updates, Our Team & Community, Performances & Events

Community events aren’t just about a day out, they’re about belonging. About feeling part of something bigger and realising you matter.

At Skylight, we’re passionate about how circus has the magic to bring people together, from all walks of life! We recently attended Rochdale’s Feel Good Family Picnics and the event was a perfect reminder of why that matters so much.

The heart of Skylights community

As always Skylight’s youth and adult circus participants showed off their circus skills across four days, inviting their friends and families to join in too! From ages 8 – 88 our Skylight community all came together to show off, with mums, dads, aunts, grandads, grandchildren and the next door neighbours cheering them on.

Did you have a go?

We also ran circus and aerial workshops so everyone could have an opportunity to come together and experience the joys of circus. Our aerial workshops were that popular we added additional workshops just to try and squeeze everyone in! It was brilliant to see both the little kids and the big kids launching diabolos and spinning hula hoops together.

“I’ve not done any circus in years, I used to come to Skylight as a kid and loved it, now I’m here with my two kids and they’re well impressed their Mum can juggle!”

– Member of the public

“I loved performing at the parks, it’s my favourite thing over the summer holidays. I just love that all of us from Skylight are together, like we’re a little family and we get to show everyone our circus skills.”

– Youth Circus Participant

A flashmob you say?

A highlight for many of our youth and adult circus participants was the flashmob. Now, we’re a circus school, but our Youth Forum really wanted to create a something that brought everyone together. With a bit of help from choreographer and circus tutor Gil Burns, they created a sequence of moves and a drop of acro-balance and the flashmob was created. Some of the youth circus volunteered to go into our other classes to teach it to everyone else so we were ready to go.

On the first day, there was a secret excitement in the air, as we gave little nods to our performers as they casually tidied equipment away. Suddenly the music kicked in and one by one they started dancing, proudly and together. Youth circus, adult circus, our younger youth circus, even our Silver Circus all joined in, families in our circus workshop looked on, slightly confused, but smiling.

Feel Good Rochdale Skylight Circus 2025 (1)

Each day their confidence grew and by the end of the week even some of the crowd were joining in. It worked not only because it was simply loads of fun, but it was special, the youth circus brought everyone together. Not forgetting that logistically it was great as it magically cleared the workshop area ready for their upcoming circus acts. That’s what we call creative problem solving.

“It was lovely being part of the flashmob, the youth circus were great helping us lot learn it, it was like our circus secret each day!”

– Silver Circus Participant & Performer

Throw back to 2008 with Charma Force – Skylight Staff

I’m often running around here there and everywhere at these events and it’s only when it’s over I can stop and reflect on just how special Skylight is. Rochdale’s Feel Good events have taken place in various formats over the years. They’ve always been great, even the wet ones! I love the excitement of the performances, the workshops and seeing the Rochdale community love circus just as much as we do!

Part of my role at Skylight is to look after our youth performance troupe Spotlight. A group of young people FULL of creative ideas, BIG dreams and LOTS of passion. With the youth circus taking such a big role in the creation of the flash mob, their dedication to performing and some even being part of the set-up team, it reminded me of how I got to where I am today.

As someone who came through Skylight’s youth circus, with very little confidence to perform, it was the encouragement, support and the feeling of belonging in our little circus community that helped me believe in myself. So really, that’s one of the big reasons why I’m so passionate about empowering and supporting our youth circus today.

Charma performing at Rochdales Feel Good Festival 2009 as youth circus participant

“Awesome, well done everyone, you all did yourselves and Skylight Circus Arts proud!!!”

– Parent of youth circus participant

Women performing a trick on trapeze to an outdoor audience

Photo Credit: Rochdale Borough Council

Being part of a team, feeling proud of where you’re from, seeing your friends in the crowd and teaching them circus tricks. It matters. Events like these give local people the freedom to create, the confidence to be themselves and a massive feeling of connection and belonging. That’s why we love them and that’s why we’ll keep turning up, rain or shine, to share what circus can do for a community for years to come!

A big thank you to Rochdale Borough Council for putting on such a wonderful event and inviting Skylight Circus Arts to be part of it.

A huge thank you to Postcode Lottery People

by Charma Force | Aug 13, 2025 | News and Updates, Project Updates

Thank you!

Thanks to the support of players of Postcode Lottery, Skylight Circus has been able to keep developing our weekly circus and aerial classes in the heart of Rochdale.

We’ve expand our youth programmes with Spotlight and bring circus to the elderly in our Silver Circus projects and successfully restart our much loved Sky Hi sessions for children with SEND.

“Sky Hi has been incredible for her, she absolutely loves it at Skylight. She gets the sensory output she needs and she can just be herself. Her favourite is the aerial cocoons because she loves being upside down.”

Christmas Performance - Skylight Circus Arts4

Our sessions have also supported older participants and young people across the borough, helping them build confidence, independence and a sense of belonging.

Participants have developed physical and creative skills, made friends and enjoyed performing in front of audiences, showing just how far they’ve grown.

We are incredibly grateful to the players of People’s Postcode Lottery for making this possible. Your generosity has brought joy, connection and growth to so many people in Rochdale and the impact will continue to be felt in the months and years ahead.

To get involved and experience Skylight Circus for yourself, you could join a class, bring us to your staff team with our team-building workshops for adults or a school workshop for children or young people.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see all the wonderful moments your support has made possible.

Circus Fun This Summer at the Feel Good Family Picnics

by Charma Force | Jul 24, 2025 | News and Updates, Performances & Events

We’re excited to be part of this year’s Feel Good Family Picnics, happening next week across Rochdale!

It’s a brilliant free event for families with loads to see and do and we’ll be bringing the circus magic every step of the way.

Where and When?

Tuesday 29th July in Rochdale Town Centre Square
Wednesday 30st July in Limefields Park, Middleton
Thursday 31st July in Hare Hill Park, Littleborough
Friday 1st August in Queen’s Park, Heywood

photograph of young girl learning back on a circus trapeze outside on some grass smiling

🎪 What’s On?

We’ll be running circus skills and aerial workshops for all ages throughout the day. You can try juggling, diablo, plate spinning, hula hoop and more. No need to book, just turn up and get stuck in.

We’ll also be offering aerial trapeze tasters, a rare chance to have a go on a real aerial rig! The aerial trapeze tasters are first come first served with limited spaces so arrive early if you’re keen.

Skylight Circus Feel Good - Photo Credit - Dawn Pierson (4)

See Our Community Performers in Action
Between workshops, you can catch inspiring performances from our talented Skylight youth and adult community participants, including our Spotlight youth group. Expect a mix of acro balance, juggling, aerial trapeze, silks and more with a whole lot of heart, togetherness and circus.

These are performers who attend our classes weekly right here in Rochdale and they can’t wait to show you what they’ve been working on.

Fingers Crossed for Sunshine
Last year’s events were packed with smiles, circus joy and sunshine. We’re hoping the good weather holds out again this year! Bring your picnic blanket, gather the family and get involved.

Here are a few moments from last summer to give you a taste of what’s to come