Charles Brockbank

I can't quite believe the journey I have been on and I feel very lucky to have achieved what I set out to do and more, I don’t believe this would have been possible without Kendal college.

What made you choose your chosen career?

I started learning about the circus at an after school club in Appleby-in-Westmorland at the age of 13 and learned the discipline of juggling. During this time, I learned about the Circomedia’s degree course. In order to apply to Circomedia, I needed UCAS points so I enrolled on an A-Level course in Appleby. I was struggling with Dyslexia and I didn’t feel that the school system was considerate of my needs. Consequently, my grades after the first year were…awful. I decided I needed to take a more direct route to give myself the best chance of achieving my goal. I had heard great things about the Performing Arts course in Kendal, so I applied for the course, got an audition and got a place.

What skills did you learn whilst at College?

During the course, I learned valuable lessons about acting, dancing, voice work and the theatre industry as a whole. The course had a wide variety of tools and perspectives I have carried with me through university and my professional career. This also made sure I didn’t neglect the weaknesses and gaps in my training. At the time, I found this very challenging but I now appreciate the skills I learnt from it.

What are you up to now?

After college, I went on to study at Circomedia in Bristol, a contemporary circus and physical theatre school and graduated with a first-class degree in 2016. I now work as a professional Juggler, theatre practitioner and teacher. I formed a circus-theatre company with two of my friends called The Broken Box Collective. We obtained funding in 2018 from Arts Council England to produce, direct and perform a Juggling show. As well as performing solo juggling acts at cabarets, festivals, museums and events, I also teach juggling at Circomedia on the BTEC course and degree.