SOS Children’s Villages & Cirque du Soleil Launch Innovative Program for Youth in Vancouver
VANCOUVER – On July 4th, SOS Children’s Villages and Cirque du Soleil are bringing their SOS Social Circus program to at-risk youth in the Vancouver area, in partnership with the trainers at the Vancouver Circus School.
“Cirque du Soleil has always been actively engaged in the communities. And after running our program Cirque du Monde for 21 years around the globe, using circus arts for well-being, we are very excited to start it in Vancouver, especially with a deserving partner like SOS Children’s Villages and the support of the Vancouver Circus School” said Emmanuel Bochud, Team leader, Programs & Partnerships, Community Relations, Cirque du Soleil.
The SOS Social Circus program, piloted in 2014 in Mexico, is based on the framework of Cirque du Monde, and aims to act as a catalyst for social change. Using circus arts to build confidence, self-esteem and trust among participants, the SOS Social Circus program aims to empower vulnerable children and youth to gain the confidence and life skills necessary to become active citizens, express their creativity, and realize their full potential.
“We are thrilled to be expanding our global partnership with Cirque du Soleil in order to bring this invaluable opportunity to vulnerable and at-risk youth here in Canada,” said Boyd McBride, President and CEO, SOS Children’s Villages Canada.
In honour of the Vancouver launch of the SOS Social Circus program, taking place at the SOS Children’s Village in BC this summer, members of the public and local media are invited to attend a public reception and presentation.
Event details:
Date: Monday, July 4th, 2016
Location: Anvil Centre, 777 Columbia St, New Westminster, BC
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Emmanuel Bochud (Team Leader, Programs & Partnerships, Community Relations, Cirque du Soleil), Travis Johnson (Co-Owner and Instructor, Vancouver Circus School), Marc Bonomo (Director of International Partnerships, SOS Children’s Villages Canada), and Douglas Dunn (Executive Director, SOS Children’s Villages B.C.) will be in attendance for the event.
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About Cirque du Soleil
From a group of 20 street performers at its beginnings in 1984, Cirque du Soleil is now a major Quebec-based organization providing high-quality artistic entertainment. The company has close to 4,000 employees, including 1,300 performing artists from close to 50 different countries.
Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to more than 160 million spectators in over 400 cities in sixty countries on six continents.
For more information about Cirque du Soleil, visit www.cirquedusoleil.com.
To find out more about the ONE DROP Foundation, visit www.onedrop.org.
About SOS Children’s Villages
SOS Children’s Villages is an independent, non-governmental, non-denominational organization working to meet the needs of the most at-risk children and families in the world. Since 1949, SOS Children’s Villages has created loving and nurturing homes for orphaned and abandoned children, and has helped to strengthen families and communities to prevent child abandonment.
Today, SOS Children’s Villages works in over 130 countries, supporting more than 2.2 million children, youth, and families.
For more information about SOS Children’s Villages Canada, visit: https://www.soschildrensvillages.ca/.
Details on the SOS Children’s Village in BC can be found here: http://www.sosbc.org/
For media inquiries, please contact:
Kerline Usher
[email protected]
(613) 232-3309 ext. 518