Circus Time

I've been working in the circus for a number of years now, but never has my sense of time been so incredibly skewed as it is on this tour. After the first two weeks of shows (or was it only one?) it felt like we'd been running the show for months. Name a town we've already performed in and it feels as distant in my memory as towns I performed in years ago, though it may very well have only been last week. Couples that have formed over the course of the tour feel like they've been together for years, even though it's been only a couple of months at most.

It's very strange, sometimes frustrating, and always very surprising. It's hard not to get lost in the bubble, and harder still to maintain contact with those who aren't in it with you. While in the bubble what feels like a month may only be a week, but that friend from the real world who wrote to you last week, the one you've been meaning to write back to? That really was last month, and they're wondering what the hell happened to you.

It's not so bad for me. I'm used to being on tour and maintaining friendships from a distance. But my worker friends on the tour, the ones who decided to run away with the circus for a season, are having a much harder time of it. And I know that more than one of them is worried about losing their friends by the time this is over.

It's a funny thing, this circus time. A funny thing indeed...

Pippin

Okay, so I've been meaning to write about Pippin for ages. I have some friends involved in the production and I've known about it since last July. But I've been so busy with this tour and the crazy bubble of circus life and what we've dubbed 'circus time' that I just haven't gotten around to it.

In a nutshell, the new Broadway production of Pippin is a circus-themed revival of the show from the 70s. It has been met with mostly rave reviews and has been nominated for 10 Tony Awards.

It looks like a really fun show and I hope to have a chance to see it some day. If you're in New York and love the circus, be sure to check it out!

Replacements and Reunions

We will be welcoming the replacement for our injured cast mate today and because the world of circus is very small, and apparently has quite the sense of humour, the replacement is none other than A, the friend and acrobat I worked with for the last four years at my old circus!

And no, it wasn't me who recommended him. I have no idea how my circus found him, but found him they did. The Director of Artists did ask my opinion of him, but that was well after the conversation had started.

All I know is that I'm really excited to see my friend later this afternoon!

New Title

While working concessions one day during intermission, a member of the public came up to me and asked, "Sind Sie lady rhonrad?"

Not "Die Dame die rhonrad führt" (the lady who performs German wheel), or even "Dame rhonrad", but lady rhonrad.

As far as I'm concerned, I have been granted a title. And that title is Lady Rhonrad. You may now curtsey accordingly.

See This?

See this? This is the crazy jenga game from hell that decided what the state of the floor would be and whether or not I could do my job correctly.

Well you know what? I don't have to deal with this garbage ever again! Two particularly awesome chaps from the workshop have devised a new method of floor installation and it kicks considerable amounts of ass. Ever since the new method has been implemented, I have had no problems with the floor whatsoever. I can do my full act every night and actually take pride in my work again.

It is a huge relief knowing that no matter what the next town brings, I can still do my job. True, sometimes the stage ends up being super high because that's the only way to make it level. And yes, they had to add a ramp so that the trio can run on stage to do their act. But in the end everyone wins, especially me, so hooray!

I'd take a picture of the new system, but seeing as it's only visible during build up and tear down and we're all running around like crazy people, I don't think I can get away with taking a break to snap a photo. But trust me, it's awesome. Basically, they make the entire structure that the floor rests on level before putting the floor down whereas with the old system, they would make one section level and then try to make each surrounding section level in relation to whatever it was next to. Not so effective.

Well done, circus! Thanks for hearing me and finding a solution! Now let's go do some wheel!

Knitting Peace

Every so often I come across a trailer for a circus show and know that there is no question, I simply must see it. This is one of those shows...

Three Plus

I've already written about the two injuries/illnesses resulting in missed shows. I've also mentioned that there's a saying I picked up in my last circus that there's never two without three. It's a silly superstition, of course. But it's also a superstition that, time and time again, comes to pass. And it did so ages ago. I haven't written about it though because it has been such an on going drama that I've mostly just been waiting for the saga of injury number three to reach it's stunning conclusion.

While C missed two shows due to his ankle and our bandleader missed a weekend's worth of performances, the trio has missed more performances than I can count. It doesn't help that there are three of them. It seems that someone always has some kind of injury that necessitates at least an adapted version of the act. But one of the three is particularly... problematic*.

He has a tendency to wander by, exclaim that he will not be doing the act that day, and then leave without further explanation. Sometimes it's because he feels sick. Sometimes it's because he hurts a little bit. Sometimes we don't even know. One time he didn't perform his act, with much eye-rolling from the rest of us, because he stubbed his toe during the group acro number. It hurt too much to jump, you see...

For the most part, he gets told by the higher ups to take an anti-inflammatory or some cold medicine and just suck it up. I mean, we're acrobats in the circus. We all hurt some (most) of the time. But we've also all signed a contract, and taking care of ourselves so that we can work is our responsibility and very much a part of the job. Needless to say, when he declared that his ankle hurt and couldn't do his act but was seen playing soccer for two hours a day earlier, he was handed a roll of tape, some ibuprofen, and was told to do his job.

This went on for what felt like ages. I don't know how many MRIs he's gone for at this point, but each time he's told that yes, there's a thing, but it's not a big deal and he can keep working. And so he comes backstage, hems and haws about whether or not he's going to do his act, or maybe one of the other group acts, and the rest of us sigh, roll our eyes, and let his two partners deal with him.

But now, the entire situation seems to have come to a head. He came off stage in tears the other day and after yet another round of medical visits and a week of missed performances, he's been told that he can't work on his ankle for at least three weeks. And while I hate to say it, after so much crying wolf, one can't help but wonder if that isn't what he wanted all along...

But this is the circus and the show must go on. An act is missing and that simply will not do. And so, the quest to find a temporary replacement has begun...



* Oh, the venting... the venting I could do! But it seems unfair to devote an entire post to how one person doesn't even come close to pulling his weight. It's still pretty early in the season though...

Overheard Backstage, "Oh My!" Edition

"I'm warming up!"

"You fididdling my penis is not warming up." 

MCC - 2013 Program Announced!

If you're anything like me, you've been wondering when the folks at Montreal Completement Cirque were going to get around to announcing this summer's festival line-up.

I'm here to tell you that the wait is over! It looks like the 2013 edition is going to have some serious clown action, as well as a considerable French and Spanish influence. Other countries represented include Australia, with festival veterans Circa, as well as offers from companies in Switzerland, Canada, and England.

Noticeably absent this year are Cirque du Soleil and les 7 doigts de la main. That could very well be a good thing, leaving room for other lesser known companies to show case their work.

Unfortunately,  I won't be in Montreal to cover the festival this year as I will still be on tour in Switzerland at that time.

The festival runs from July 3rd to the 14th. For the full line up, go here.

Solid Potato Salad

Ladies and gentlemen, the Ross sisters!

 

For those who are wondering, this gif is from the 1944 film Broadway Rhythm. View the full clip here.

Gah!

While walking through the circus grounds, I came across a pile of entrails. I really wish that was code for something else, but sadly, it is not. Needless to say, I was horrified.

The response of our mechanic?

"Hedgehog."

And the Crowd Goes...

"If you ask a kid to draw a circus, they draw a tent." -Pam Miller, Big Apple Circus

I came across this quote the other day and it was exactly the piece of grounding wisdom that I needed to hear. Maybe I’ve just always been spoiled, but in every show I’ve ever performed in, my act was always one of the most well received and often an audience favourite. Here, I feel like my act receives the least applause of any of the acts…

I try not to pay attention. I try to tell myself not to compare. And I know that it’s sometimes hard to really hear during your act or right after because you’re focus is elsewhere. But I hear the applause for the others, and I know mine is not the same. I assist in one act and I swear, I can feel the wall of sound at the end the applause is so loud.

I’ve had friends here tell me “it’s not the same”. My act is more poetic and therefore has a different reception. The first half of the show is much slower and the energy lower (the circus received an e-mail saying the first half was kind of boring with the exception of the last two acts, one of which is mine). And by the time my act rolls around people are anxious for intermission. And of course, when they come back, they’re full of sugar so… yeah.

Sigh…

I know it shouldn’t matter but there are days where I wonder if maybe I’ve gotten old and my material stale. I can’t help but wonder what I’m doing wrong. But at the same time, I feel like I’m able to connect with the audience, and individual members of the audience especially, more so than I have ever been able to do before.

Which brings me back to the above quotation.

It’s not an individual act that makes a circus. Sure, people will have their favourite numbers, and I’m sure every act is at least one person’s favourite. But it’s the circus experience as a whole that fills us with a sense of magic. The sudden appearance of a big top on the horizon, the smell of sawdust and popcorn, and the many and varied feats of those who step into the ring.

So the next time I go out there and wonder where my whistles and woos are, I will try to remember Ms. Miller’s words. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll just pretend that everyone is so incredibly amazed by what they’ve just seen that they’ve lost all ability speak, let alone cheer.

Baby steps… baby steps…

5m80

YES.

My Contortionist Friends Have Been Holding Out On Me

For One Fleeting Moment

For the last four years I performed on a proscenium style stage. Now, for the first time since leaving circus school seven years ago, I'm performing in the round. It's nice to be in a ring. Maybe it's silly, but it feels more like a circus this way. But the best part is the proximity to the public.

The ring curb is probably about 50cm wide. That means the first row of the audience is probably about 60cm away. Sometimes, this closeness can be a real blow to the ego. You think you're doing a great act and you look out to the person just in front of you and... they're looking somewhere else. Or they look terribly bored. Or they're yawning...

Ouch.

But sometimes, oh sometimes...

Sometimes my wheel comes very, very close to the ring curb and I can look someone right in the eye while hanging upside down. It's wonderful to seem them lean back a bit in surprise and then, relieved to find themselves perfectly safe, they smile. Even more wonderful, though far more rare, is to have a dialogue with one person in particular over the course of my act.

Maybe it's a spectator who is particularly appreciative and claps far more than her peers. Those people stand out and you can't help but take that extra moment to smile right at them, as if to say thank you, and they just glow at the attention. Another look a little later really cements the exchange.

The most powerful and truly touching exchange I ever had was with a woman in the front row. I felt as though we spoke the exchange was so clear. There was more than one moment during the course of my act where we looked at each other, made eye contact, had a dialogue of head nods. Like with Amanda Palmer, I really felt as though in that moment, each let the other know "I see you. Thank you for this moment. Thank you for sharing this with me."

It was absolutely incredible. I have never had such a profound experience with a member of the audience while on stage. Who knows if I ever will again?

One thing is for certain. Even after seven years of working, this traditional tour and Swiss audience continues to teach me new things about my art and myself. And for that, I say thank you.

À la Malcolm

After spending three hours trying to get the damn stage level, it was discovered that some of the wooden planks that had been used as supports stuck out too far and therefore made it impossible to set up the ring curb. By this point, the "it" had been collectively had up to the proverbial here, so the technicians took a chainsaw and just cut that shit up.

One cannot help but be reminded of this.

Problem solved.