Community Relations
Citizenship Action in St.Michel
Cirque du Soleil is represented on the board of directors of Vivre Saint-Michel en santé en santé, a trans-sectoral umbrella movement that encourages dialogue and networking and brings together community citizens, organizations, institutions and businesspeople throughout St. Michel. The participants work together to define and promote action priorities with the aim of improving the quality of life of the district and the social and economic development of its population.
Cirque du Soleil also takes part in the Fonds Ville-Marie's Classes Affaires project, a programme that invites high school students from St. Michel to take part in training activities for a few weeks in various departments of the company. The purpose of this initiative is to combat truancy by exposing young people to inspiring and impassioned professional mentors and to the possibilities of working in a variety of trades.
Cirque employees organize annual collections of school supplies, non-perishable foodstuffs, toys and clothing to benefit local families in need, and the company works with area schools on a variety of initiatives. For example, the pilot project Arts Nomades offers workshops in circus arts, visual arts and dance to pre-schoolers, while the social circus in the schools program offers circus workshops to area high school students as a truancy prevention initiative.