An entry · Work it
Stilt Walker
A performer who steps up into the air and turns an ordinary street into a wonder.
From curious to committed
Your first steps.
A first visit can be enough. It can also be the beginning.
Meet the craft
Circus and festival workshops strap you into low training stilts and have you taking first steps with spotters close by.
Explore experiences →Give it another afternoon
Notice what you want to come back to. Ask the teacher what regular practice would look like, and what support you would need.
Keep a note for next time →See the working day
Circus schools teach stilt technique alongside movement, character, and the safety of performing at height.
Explore ways into the work →These are starting points. A workshop is not a professional qualification. Entry requirements and recognised training depend on the work and the country.
Before you walk in
A few things worth asking the host before you book.
- Is this session suitable for someone who has never tried it?
- What should I bring, wear or prepare?
- What is included, and are there any extra costs?
- Can you accommodate my access needs?
- What could I try next if I enjoy it?
Teach this craft? Share what beginners ask you →
Work it
Do the work.
Jobs, apprenticeships, and training that put a person in the room.
Places to begin
- Course
The Actors Gymnasium
Professional Circus Training Program
Evanston, Illinois
Train as a professional circus performer at the Actors Gymnasium, where the pro program teaches stilt walking alongside acrobatics and clowning.
- Conservatory
National Centre for Circus Arts
BA (Hons) in Circus Arts
United Kingdom
London's leading circus school trains professional physical performers through a three-year degree covering the balance, stilt and aerial disciplines used in walkabout and stage work.
Ways in
- Course
Circus and physical theatre school
Circus schools teach stilt technique alongside movement, character, and the safety of performing at height.
- Company
Street theatre company
Walkabout and carnival companies take on and train performers, a common way into paid festival work.
- Apprenticeship
Learn from a walkabout troupe
Many stilt walkers learn hands-on with an established troupe, starting low and building height and confidence.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasLive it
Live the hour.
Experiences, classes, and places where the presence is the whole point.
Places to begin
- Booking
PegStilts.com
One hour stilt walking lesson
Lakeside, Oregon · By appointment
Book a friendly one hour stilt walking lesson on the Oregon coast and learn to balance, stride, and fall safely on peg stilts.
- Community
Kaisokah Moko Jumbies USA
Learn moko jumbie stilt dancing with Kaisokah
Brooklyn, New York
Join a Brooklyn stilt dancing family that teaches children and adults the West African and Caribbean art of walking tall as a moko jumbie.
Ways in
- Workshop
Stilt-walking workshop
Circus and festival workshops strap you into low training stilts and have you taking first steps with spotters close by.
- Visit
Carnival or street festival
Outdoor carnivals and festivals are the natural home of the stilt walker and a joy to watch from the crowd.
Ways in, gathered by hand.
Add yours to the atlasWhy the human is the point
The stilt walker has strode through carnivals and festivals for centuries, towering over the crowd as a giant, a bird, or a myth come to visit. Balancing on wooden or spring stilts, they walk, dance, and even leap while making it all look effortless, which it absolutely is not. Every step is a small act of trust in their own body and hours of practice fallen into place. Up there they become a character, waving to children eye to eye from a second-storey height and turning an ordinary square into somewhere magical. It is theatre without a stage, brought right to where people already are. Look up at a good one and you feel the old delight of a story walking down the street toward you.
Kept nearby
