Check out the latest...TUC Events & Behind the Scenes
The Underground Circus, a professional circus company on Canada’s West Coast.
The Underground Circus, TUC for short, is a professional circus performance company and training studio base in Vancouver, BC. If you are looking to host an event that your guests and clients will never forget, we can create the perfect awe-inspiring, sophisticated, and/or quirky circus performance to fit almost any event need.
For those looking to take the next step in circus arts, diversify their current circus arts training, or expand their training regime for other sports and performance disciplines…you have come to the right place.
Get to Know Us…In 1 Minute or Less
PERFORM
Perform
We are professional performers, entertainers, and general show offs when it comes to acrobatics and circus arts.CREATE
Create
We create new and unique acrobatic acts, performances, apparatus, costuming and visual displays of interactive modern circus.TRAIN
Train
In our 2000 sqft Vancouver studio, we train emerging entertainment professionals with a passion for circus arts.PRODUCE
Produce
We produce circus shows (big and small) with unique themes and storylines to fit any event or be an event all on their own.BUILD
Build
We conceptualize, prototype, and build unique structures for circus acts, art display…and anything you can dream up.PARTICIPATE
Participate
We participate in youth programs designed for disadvantaged children, school workshops, and charity fundraisers.Our Circus Roots
Twenty years ago, Peter Boulanger and Ninon Parent were performing as Tesseract, travelling around the world working at festivals, special events, cruiseships, and symphony orchestras. Based out of Vancouver BC, they found training circus arts in the city quite lonely compared to the larger circus community in Montreal.
To combat lonely training days, they invited a few friends to join them, and after a year or so were able to start offering two or three acts for special events. For a short time, they performed under the name Cirque Phoenix, but a desire to embody the slightly subversive feel of their circus life on the west coast, they took the name “The Underground Circus” to truly represent their new found company.
The focus has always been to create professional level innovative circus arts, and in doing so The Underground Circus has become recognized as the premier circus company in Western Canada.
Chief Cooks & Bottle Washers
As the Artistic Director, Peter’s fascination for structures, geometery, and freeform shapes has led to increadible developments in both artistic welding and circus acrobatics. One of his passions is creating and exploring movement possibilites on new and unique structures. It is this passion that has led Peter to craft a multitude of one of a kind aluminun welded sculptures like the ‘David’ - North America’s largest marionette.
Ninon’s experience in acrobatics and stunts guides her as the head trainer for the Underground Circus developing strength, conditioning and flexibility schedules for all who enter the studio. She also directs and oversees the aerial choreography and heads up concepts and fabrication of the elaborate costuming and textiles seen in every TUC performance.
Visit byninon.ca to see the creative works of Ninon.