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This anthology presents poetry, prose and autobiographical narratives of experiences in the Women's Circus, a community theatre project which was established in 1991 to work with survivors of sexual assault and which, in 1995, toured Beijing.
Notes
'The Women's Circus provides opportunities for women from all backgrounds to acquire physical, technical and musical skills while working in a safe, non-competitive and supportive environment. It presents feminism to the wider community through dynamic, high-quality circus/physical theatre, preformances and workshops' (xii).
Contents indexed selectively.
Contents
* Contents derived from the North Melbourne,Flemington - North Melbourne area,Melbourne - North,Melbourne,Victoria,:Spinifex Press,1997 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
Jen Jordan writes of the work of recovery and healing achieved by the Women's Circus for survivors of childhood sexual abuse. She writes: 'The Women's Circus provided opportunities for survivors to honour each other's strength and spirit of endurance, to speak the unspeakable without fear of denial, rejection or withdrawal, and thus to reframe their experiences in an atmosphere of mutual acceptance, respect and understanding' (38).
Vig Geddes writes of efforts made by the Women's Circus to attract women from diverse cultural communities to join the Circus. She mentions the translation of pamphlets and the use of ethnic radio and press to promote awareness of the Women's Circus's activities.
Mandy Grinblat writes of her experiences with the Women's Circus, beginning with juggling and being part of human pyramids, and later working in the administrative side of an arts organisation.
