Vigilante Justice

There was a string of robberies while we were in one of the bigger towns. It's all well and good to say "lock your caravans", but locks mean very little to people intent on stealing from you. And a caravan isn't exactly Fort Knox.

The day of the first theft a man had been seen wandering around among the caravans. He was talking on a phone, or at least pretending. I believe when confronted he said he was looking for "Mary". Word spread that a shadowy figure had been seen wandering around the caravans, but even still, someone got robbed. Luckily, all they took was money out of her wallet and left the rest of her belongings alone.

Later, another caravan was broken into, only this time, a wallet with all the owner's important papers were inside. We're talking work visas and such.

People were getting nervous.

And then, one day, a man was seen walking nearby. Y recognized him based on the description he had heard of the suspicious man who had been seen among the caravan a few days before. That's when shit got real.

I saw one of the shop guys walking hurrying along and asked where he was going. He turned to me and said "We're going after the thief." A few more of the guys from the workshop as well as some of the musicians set off too.

You could feel the tension around the camp.

And then they caught him. They actually caught him and dragged him back to the circus. I ran to go find D so he could identify the guy as he had been one of the people who saw the creep the first time around. The cops were called and the man was taken in for questioning.

It takes some serious balls to come back to the scene of the crime a third time. Or a serious lack of brains, anyway. Of course, since no one actually saw him touch anything, there's no grounds to actually do anything to the guy. At the very least, I think we all felt a small sense of victory. And now the guy knows that you do not fucking mess circus because we will hunt you the fuck down.

Some Days I Hate to Go to Work

Sweet Dreams?

What would you do if you walked into a store and discovered a picture of yourself on some weird ass product?

That recently happened to a friend of mine when he discovered that a photo of himself performing had been emblazoned onto bedsheets.

Tired of the Sesame Street bedsheets you've had since you were a kid? The Acrobat On Stage Bedding covers a wide range of bedding possibilities! Duvet covers, comforters, top sheets, and fitted sheets! All with the faceless and infuriatingly off centered image of my friend!

Seriously though, it's super weird and creepy.

But if you'd like to drop close to $150 on a sheet, please, be my guest.

Funding Fun

"The transformative power of circus connects education, physical art and social development. Social Circus is more than teaching circus skills. It is a tool for transformation, discipline, creativity and artistic expression."

 The above statement comes from the Mobile Mini-Circus for Children (MMCC) website. MMCC is Social Circus program in Afghanistan that uses circus arts a tool for teaching social skills, overcoming trauma and developing essential capacities and the ability to take responsibility.

Not only do they offer workshops for children, but they also perform educational shows about essential themes such as hygiene, Peace, or traffic safety. Partnering with MACCA/UNOPS, for example, MMCC has produced performances geared toward teaching and protecting children from the dangers of landmines and unexploded ordnance, in ways they can easily and much better understand.

MMCC is currently raising funds for their next year of operations. They hope to cover the costs of costumes for rehearsal and performance, as well as covering equipment costs.

Right now, they're at $765 of their $6000 goal. If you're able to help and wish to contribute, you can make a donation here.

For more information about the Mobile Mini-Circus for Children, visit their website here.

More Excitement Than I Like

I love transport. It's one of my favourite parts of tour life. But the other day there was a little more excitement than I typically care for...

The good news is, that is not one of our cars. The bad news is, as we drove past, things started exploding. Fortunately, we could already see the firefighters en route in the distance. It's still pretty crazy, though!

Escape

No matter the circumstances, no matter the devastation, somehow, the human spirit survives. Year after year, conflict after conflict, stories of hope and humanity push their way through the horror and the rubble. One needn't look further than the Syria Parkour Club to see that.

Belly of the Beast

It's no secret that Cirque du Soleil has some pretty impressive tricks up its sleeve when it comes to the mechanics that make their permanent shows run. But just how much is really going on? Forbes magazine decided to find out. The resulting article provides an interesting look at what makes the beast tick.

A Little Bit of Lovely

Gracie Hanneford on Hagenback-Wallace in 1937. [source]

Mario Bros. Parkour

That's right, I said Mario Bros. Parkour. The only thing I can add to that statement is watch it. Watch it now!

Circus, Performance Art, What's the Difference?

This is an interesting article that appeared in The Wall Street Journal. As a contemporary circus artist, what I find most interesting about this article is the perception of contemporary circus by the author and the shift in attitude that occurs.

I'd wanted to be in the circus since I was a little kid. I didn't need to be convinced of anything and as such, it never occurred to me that people could dismiss the art form circus has become. Heck, I pretty much jumped in blind and was pleasantly surprised by just how rich circus culture is and how many different kinds of circus there are! But of course if you've only ever rolled your eyes at the idea of contemporary circus and dismissed it, how could you possibly know what it has to offer and see its merits?

Read the full article here.

Now THAT'S an Elephant Act!

Chookas

Circo de 1910

If Other Professions Were Paid Like Artists

Facepalm

I had just come up from the opening spiral sequence when I noticed a rather large puddle on stage. This made absolutely no sense as it hadn't rained a drop in days. Then I looked up and noticed a very sheepish looking woman remove her half empty beverage from the ring curb.

Way to spill your drink on stage, lady. In the future, please refrain from using the ring curb as a table.

Yeesh.

The Next Wave

Just when you thought you’d made it through the toughest part of the tour and could may breathe a little more easily, reality steps in and punches you in the kidneys.

The newest contender for the tour leg from hell will, from Saturday to the following Sunday, see us in four towns! Our schedule for the week?

Saturday: Build up, two shows.

Sunday: Show, build down, transport.

Monday: build up, circus employee variety show.

Tuesday: Two shows, build down.

Wednesday: early morning transport, build up, evening off.

Thursday: Two shows.

Friday: Show, build down, transport.

Saturday: build up two shows.

Sunday: Show, build down, transport.

Monday: Build up, evening off.

So in those 10 days we set up or take down the tent nine times with one day off in the middle, with build up double shows happening two times! Three if you include double shows with build down. I thought we only had build up double shows three times during the entire season. But three times in the same week? Ugh. Build up double shows was already the worst. But this? This is absolute horse shit.

Also, a new new record! The tent going up or down five days in a row! Woo!

The silver lining is that after we get through the above madness, we stay put for two weeks. Let’s just hope we can all hold on until then


UPDATE: Aaaaaaaaaaaaand I hurt my back while doing my act midway through all these shenanigans. I guess putting a tent up or down five days in a row really isn't the best way to maintain good lumbar health. So it goes.

Poot!

Lately the cooking on tour has been wreaking havoc on most people’s digestive systems. I’ve got to say, it’s hard to maintain the illusion of elegance and grace on stage when the fact of the matter is that you’re farting up a storm during your act. Ah, circus. Always keeping it gassy classy…