The Circus Comes to Town

A week of action-packed activities, empowerment, and fun!

The community of Utju experienced an exciting and informative program centered around safe touch, consent, and body autonomy. Accompanied by the Solid State Circus team, Andy and Hemlock, and AFLW player Ally Anderson, the program was a huge success and left participants with new skills, knowledge, and confidence.

The school-based program began with an introduction to circus and safety, emphasising the role of consent in every aspect of life. The students were divided into groups and participated in acrobatic skills and activities that required respect, communication, and trust. The team chose skills that helped students understand permission, requests, and what constitutes safe, unsafe, and unwanted touch. Elders from the community translated the session into Pitjantjatjara, the local language.

Ally Anderson in Utju

Ally Anderson in Utju

Circus arts can be a powerful way to explore ideas around consent, appropriate touch, and the power of saying no. The activities not only educated the students on an important topic but also allowed them to build on their confidence and resilience by exposing them to new skills and interests.

In addition to the circus activities, the team led a series of AFL workshops to further build an understanding of safe touch in a fun, engaging way. The Utju community loves footy, so the workshops were a great way to bring everyone together. After school, Ally ran footy training sessions with the boy’s team, but after seeing the training in action, the girls from the community suggested she train them as well. The sessions were a huge success, with a women’s AFL match concluding the week.

Ally Anderson Utju AFL drill Ally Anderson taking students through an AFL drill.

To finish the week, Hemilock delivered a surprise circus performance at a community BBQ. The program was an outstanding demonstration of how education and entertainment can seamlessly blend together.