Most circus and entertainment agencies in the UK take between 30% and 60% of every booking fee, leaving the performers who actually deliver your event significantly underpaid. Elevate Circus Workshops was founded specifically to change that — we charge a flat £50 agency fee per booking, meaning our tutors take home around 90% of what you pay.
When you hear that a company is “shaking up the entertainment industry,” you probably picture huge flashy shows, fire-breathing press releases, and someone in a sparkly blazer yelling about revolution.
At Elevate Circus Workshops, we don’t have a sparkly blazer (yet). And we’re still a young company. But we are shaking things up — by doing something so simple, so obvious, and apparently so radical that it’s practically rebellious:
We treat our tutors, performers and artists fairly.
Yes. That’s the revolution.
A Young Company With an Old-Fashioned Idea: Fairness
When founder Carl Mann started Elevate, he didn’t launch with a multimillion-pound budget or a celebrity partnership. What he did have was years of working in the circus and entertainment industry, operating behind the scenes — and seeing how often the people who deliver the magic end up being underpaid, undervalued, and pushed aside.
“I wanted to build a company where artists aren’t an afterthought. I’ve seen far too many brilliant tutors and performers undervalued, underpaid and pushed aside by agencies chasing quick profits. Elevate was created to flip that culture on its head and prove you can run a successful entertainment business without exploiting the people who make it possible.”
— Carl Mann, Founder of Elevate Circus Workshops
Our tutors and performers aren’t a line in a budget spreadsheet. They’re frontline educators, skilled technicians, physical storytellers and all-round creative powerhouses.
Yet across the UK, far too many agencies continue to:
Withhold work from tutors who rock the boat
Withhold payments for weeks or months
Take as much as 40% from the fee for a day’s specialist work
Treat artists as disposable or interchangeable
Prioritise agency profit margins over safety, professionalism and wellbeing
It’s not just unethical — it’s embarrassing for an industry built on passion, skill and hard work.
We’re Not Having Any of That
At Elevate, we decided: no artist exploitation, full stop.
That means:
Fair, transparent pay
Our tutors know exactly what they’re earning, when they’re earning it, and why. No mysterious deductions. No “admin fees” that magically appear like a bad magic trick. We tell them exactly what we have quoted the client and we only charge £50.00 for a days booking. That’s around 10% and we do all the admin, from getting the work for the tutors in the first place, to conversing with the client getting all the details correct and the schedule for the day agreed, issuing all the invoices and job sheets, liaising with the client and tutor if any questions arise, making sure payments are made and chasing those if needed and finally asking for feedback and review. This makes sure that the artists can concentrate on what they do best - BE AWESOME!
Reasonable agency margins
We price responsibly so schools, events and clients get great value — without squeezing our performers into poverty. Our prices are not focused on how much we make, because we always make the same amount per job, it’s all about getting the best price for the artists and the client.
Respect for the craft
Our tutors aren’t hobbyists. They’re professionals who have spent years perfecting juggling technique, mastering unicycles, studying teaching methods, and occasionally balancing things on their faces for comedic effect. They have spent vast amounts of hard earned cash on equipment, costumes and props that often get damaged and go missing at gigs. That deserves recognition (and actual money).
Support, not exploitation
We’re building a network where performers feel safe, valued, and part of something bigger than another faceless booking system.
“I’ve worked for agencies where I felt like a number, 1 step wrong and the jobs stop coming. Working with Carl at Elevate feels like being part of a team again, no - more like a family.”
— Jess, Circus Skills Tutor
Clients Love It Too — Because Happy Artists Do Better Work
Here’s the secret that shouldn’t even be a secret:
When performers are treated well, they perform better - shocker right?!
They show up energised.
They teach with enthusiasm.
They stay creative.
They create unforgettable experiences.
One of our recent corporate workshop clients put it perfectly:
“The energy was unreal. You could tell Andy and Theo loved being there — and that made the whole workshop electric. They told us that working with Elevate was a breath of fresh air and enabled them to give 110%.”
— Mark, Corporate Events Manager
That’s the “Elevate effect” — ethical treatment turning into exceptional experiences.
We’re Young, But We’re Loud About What We Stand For
Sure, Elevate Circus Workshops is still fresh on the scene. But maybe that’s our superpower.
We’re not bogged down by outdated industry traditions.
We’re not cut from the ‘agency first, artist second’ mould.
We’re not interested in being another company that quietly continues the cycle of underpaying creative workers.
We’re here to raise standards.
To push for fair pay.
And to prove you can run a modern entertainment company that is both ethical and commercially successful.
What This Means for Clients Across the Mainland UK
Schools, businesses, festivals and community groups who book with Elevate get:
High-quality tutors who are paid fairly
Safer, more engaged, more motivated workshop leaders
Ethical entertainment that aligns with modern values
And for the hundreds of incredible circus artists across the UK?
It means hope.
It means change.
It means a fairer future.
FAQS
Q: What makes Elevate different from other circus agencies?
Elevate pays tutors and performers at or above Equity recommended rates, taking only a modest agency fee — typically around £50 per booking — rather than the much higher commissions other agencies retain, even though the same tutor is often delivering the work regardless of which agency booked them.
Q: Why does fair pay for performers matter?
Performers are the ones actually delivering the skill and experience your event depends on. Underpaying them isn't just unfair — it drives good tutors out of the industry and ultimately lowers the quality clients receive.
Q: How is Elevate's fee structured?
Elevate typically charges a £50 fee on bookings, dropping for lower-value jobs, with the remainder going directly to the performer — a transparent split rather than opaque commission.
Q: Does paying performers fairly affect the price I pay as a client?
No — clients pay a comparable market rate to other providers. The difference is in how that fee is split, with more of it reaching the person actually delivering your event.
Q: Why was Elevate founded this way?
Elevate was set up with a performer-first ethos after seeing how poorly contractors were often treated elsewhere in the events industry — the aim was to build an agency tutors would want to work for, not just tolerate.
Q: Does this affect the quality of tutors I get?
Yes, positively — fair pay helps attract and retain experienced, motivated tutors rather than relying on a revolving door of underpaid freelancers, which means more consistent quality for clients.
Q: Are Elevate's tutors vetted and insured?
Yes — every tutor in our network of 150+ freelancers is DBS-checked and covered by public liability insurance, regardless of how they're paid.
Q: How many tutors does Elevate work with?
We work with a nationwide network of over 150 DBS-checked freelance tutors and performers across mainland UK.
Q: How can I find out more or book with Elevate?
Get in touch with your event details, and we'll match you with the right tutors from our network for your date and location.
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We deliver across mainland UK, including Maidstone, Norwich, London, Birmingham and Manchester.
