Beyond COVID & Trump: Resuming Artist Visas, An Interview with Bill Martinez
IMPORTANT BREAKING NEWS: Two days after I completed my interview with Bill Martinez (below), the Tamizdat organization issued the following
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Covid-19
Covid-19
Performing Artists Struggle During Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has made the life of performing artists in Vietnam even harder. Many have had to take up extra jobs
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The Circus Returns to Budapest as Hungary Reopens Live Venues
Stages across Hungary have been quiet for almost a year and half. The permanent ‘big top’ in Budapest shut down
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What The Data Show On When Arts Patrons Will Come Back
A new study shows arts patrons are more likely to be vaccinated than the general public and are increasingly comfortable
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Sad Faces: Clowns Who Perform in Conflict Zones Stuck at Home Amid Covid
Clowns Without Borders try to spread laughter in refugee camps and communities in crisis – but the past 12 months
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Touring During a Pandemic Can Present Interesting Challenges!
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the performing arts. Especially hard hit are performing artists who rely
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Upcoming Works: Creation During COVID-19
At the beginning of the pandemic, it seemed we all experienced a collective creative block. Restrictions and social distancing not
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Is Circus OK? Urgent Concerns Revisited–One Year into COVID
It has been a year since the pandemic has created a quarantine zone around the world, halting live performances everywhere.
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COVID-19: Running Away to Join the Circus Isn’t What it Used To Be
Laura-Ann Chong had been touring the world with Cirque du Soleil, now she is keeping in shape teaching circus skills
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Culture in Crisis: Patience at Éloize
A circus company that has existed for nearly 30 years, Cirque Éloize saw 95% of its income drop to zero
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World’s Top Circus Festival Adapts to COVID-19 Rules
It’s been a tough year for the performing arts in most countries, with virus lockdowns canceling shows and shuttering venues.
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Promoting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing in the Circus Arts
Working in circus can be thrilling, energising and full of moments of joy and excitement. It can also be challenging,
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Australian Circus Festival: Lifetime Achievement Awards Announced
The 5th edition of the Australian Circus Festival is occurring this February. Due to COVID-19, the competition is virtual. The
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COSMIC, Circus Pedagogy Goes Digital
COSMIC is the ongoing project of FEDEC[1], in collaboration with the FFEC[2], and it is quite ambitious and innovative. It
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Blue Man Group May Leave Orlando for Good — Has Universal Outgrown Them?
The pandemic has caused a lot of people to move out of the Orlando area, but three very recognizable men
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WA Lockdown: Perth Festival Cancels Opening Night as Fringe World Put on Hold
In what was meant to be a time of celebration for the city, the five-day lockdown has left the local
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Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival Cancelled, Principality Insists a Show Must Go On
Despite Covid-19 preventing the 45th edition of the Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival from going ahead, the Principality still has some suprises
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A New City Point Residency Gives Aerialists and Acrobats A Chance
For aerialists like Kyla Ernst-Alper, life during the pandemic has felt pretty precarious. Ernst-Alper, whose job – using her airborne
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Circus For Every Body–The Extraordinary Bodies Story So Far
We set up Extraordinary Bodies in the flurry of optimism that followed the Olympics in the UK in 2012. We
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The Show Must Go On! Reimagined Cruise Acts Blend Entertainment with Protocols
Passengers on Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum of the Seas, which launched service from Singapore on Dec. 1, have been treated
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What Rambo Circus’s Death-Defying Comeback Teaches Us About Life
“We are dedicating this show to the people – some known to us, others anonymous – who kept us alive
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Network Your Way Out of Isolation & Build Your Brand
In 2020, the practice of networking was elevated in the performing arts world, as countless creators turned towards the digital
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Lack of New Year’s Eve Celebrations Impact Performer’s Pockets
The pandemic made ringing in the new year less of a bang, and more of a fizzle, and for some
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Goodbye 2020!–An Upside Down Year for Circus
2020–it’s been a year! Whatever role you play in the performing arts world, your work has likely been heavily impacted
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Zip Zap Circus Cancels Shows as Western Cape Infections Soar
Weeks after resuming its shows which were halted by the lockdown, the Zip Zap Circus School is halting its season
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Saving the Circus
Covid-19 dealt a death blow to Rambo Circus, one of India’s most popular circus companies. Then, live streaming came to
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Highwire Act Grounded by COVID Returns Home to Teach Next Generation at Tasmania’s Slipstream School
As the doors of the Slipstream Circus burst open, a girl scoots past on a unicycle as another crosses the
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Adelaide Social Circus Group Helping Improve Vulnerable Children’s Development
When the coronavirus pandemic first struck, it sent the members of a small Adelaide community circus into a spiral. Lolly
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Circus and Changing Realities 2020–What’s Up with Circus in Australia?
Australia has a unique role in the circus world where both traditional and contemporary circus flourish, and the international touring
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El Vuelvo Circular, a Pandemic-Driven Documentary
On Thursday, December 10th, the online premiere of the documentary “El Vuelo Circular” (The Circular Flight) will take place. It
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Circus Performers Ready to Get Back to the Studio After Training at Home
Two circus performers said they are ‘ready’ to get back into the studio, after resorting to practising their skills at
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When the Circus Can’t Leave Town – French Family Show Stranded in Belgian Car Park
The exotic animals are confined to small paddocks, the acrobats have been grounded, and the clowns aren’t able to make
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The Future of Dance and Performing Arts in Montreal
Few sectors have been forced to as grinding a halt or been shrouded with more uncertainty than the performing arts.
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A Mobility Perspective on Contemporary Circus
In times of climate catastrophe, refugee crises and Covid-19, the question of the responsibility that artists and scholars have is
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COVID-19: Reopening the National Circus School in Montreal – A Case-Study
For the National Circus School (ENC), as well as all circus schools around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic represents an
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In-Person Performances Return to Boost Civic Engagement
With COVID restrictions still in place, many artists are only holding events virtually but a few groups have found creative
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Cirque du Soleil Closes ‘Zumanity’ for Good, Vows to Bring Back Other Las Vegas Strip Shows
In breaking news that is a mixed bag for Las Vegas circus, Cirque du Soleil announced their the tough decision
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Jacksons Lane Starts Redevelopment Program
In early 2020 Jacksons Lane secured the funding needed to begin its ambitious capital redevelopment project and transform the building
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Aerialists in Lockdown–Advice from a Seasoned Performer
“Discovering trapeze was like finding a part of me that had been missing, it was my soul mate. The combination
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Circus and Changing Realities 2020: Transitioning from Social Circus to Professional Circus
This panel is part of CircusTalk’s Circus and Changing Realities 2020 series. In this episode, documentarian and director Joel Gershon, and social
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WA Circus Festival Postponed in Wake of COVID-19
Organisers of Karridale’s long running WA Circus Festival have said that a heartbreaking decision to cancel the 2021 event is
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Outdoors is the Future of Live Performance, and it’s Time to Get it Right
They say there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes. Nevertheless, contemplating a winter aiming to enjoy
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Circus with 80% Foreigners to Stay in Japanese City for 11 Months Due to Pandemic
IIZUKA, Fukuoka – Happy Dream Circus, now being held at a former fish market site in this southwest Japan city,
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Australian Financial Woes Will Not Affect NZ Buskers Festival, Organisers Say
The Australian parent company behind the Bread & Circus – World Buskers Festival has gone into liquidation, but organisers say
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Cirque du Cambodia–Social Circus Artists Shine in New Documentary
Cirque du Cambodia is a documentary film that follows the circus education and emerging careers of two circus artists (Dina
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Fern Street Circus Keeps San Diego Neighborhood Tours Alive with Drive-Thru Performances
As a car pulls into a drive-thru food distribution site at Chollas Mead Elementary, circus performers give the family inside
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Hit by Pandemic, India’s Circuses Forced to Walk Financial Tightrope
The Great Bombay Circus, one of India’s biggest and oldest, had planned mega celebrations in October to mark its centenary
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Lights, Cameras and Plenty of Action on Nevis
A major production took place in Fort William and the surrounding area on Friday October 16, with everyone’s favourite mountain
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Pushed to the Digital Edge– How to Plan an International Circus Festival During a Global Pandemic!
In its third year, the St. John’s International CircusFest was quickly gaining a reputation as the new bijoux (little jewel)
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Absinthe Set to Reopen at Caesars Palace on October 28
Spiegelworld has announced it will bring its acclaimed comedy-variety show “Absinthe” back to the stage on October 28. The performance
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Flipside CEO Robert Kronk Talks All Things Circus!
Flipside Circus and arTour have collaborated on one of the first large-scale tours since the COVID crisis hit Australia –
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Could Ex-Cirque Employees Be Deprived of Financial Assistance?
The ownership transfer of Cirque du Soleil could prevent 1,500 of its Canadian employees, who lost their livelihoods due to
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Local Students Experience Cirque de Soleil Up Close and Personal
Char Lan District High School students in Williamstown were treated to a performance on Wednesday, October 14th, by Indigenous hoop
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Festival Misses Out on Arts Funding: ‘We’ve No Idea How Grants Were Allocated’
A festival has criticised the way the Government’s £1.6 billion Culture Recovery Fund has been allocated. The Sea Change Festival,
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Almost 600 Further Arts Organisations Receive Funding from Culture Recovery Fund
Following last week’s reveal that over 1300 organisations will receive grants from the UK government’s culture support scheme, almost 600
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When the Circus Went Quiet, Mike Finch Picked Up a Pen and Drew a Pub
“I live in a very, very small one-room studio apartment with my partner, Amy Cater, in Fitzroy,” says Mike Finch,
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Circus School Reopens in Full Swing in Brussels
The ropes are swinging. Chalk stains the mats anew. And students at the ESAC international circus school in Brussels are
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The 33rd Edition of the Festival CIRCa is On, October 19th-24, 2020
The 33rd Edition of the Festival CIRCa will take place this October in Auch, France. Over a series of 10
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Show Goes on for Christchurch Buskers Festival Despite Global Events Meltdown
A collapse of the global events industry will not hurt Christchurch’s annual buskers festival. The Australian company behind the Bread
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Cirkaskina Virtual Ambassador’s Youth Committee– Building Inclusion, Solidarity & Sense of Community Around the Theme of Culture
Cirkaskina’s first 2020 young ambassadors’ committee was organized the weekend of September 25th, in collaboration with the St. John’s International
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Curtain Up: Cirque, Caesars, MGM and Others React to New Entertainment Restrictions
Many of the largest entertainment companies in Las Vegas are chiming in on the Gov. Steve Sisolak’s lifting of certain
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Here’s How Performing Artists Stay Afloat Six Months into the Pandemic
Before the pandemic, Nina Sawant made a living hanging from hoops, contorting into improbable shapes and shimmering in sequins under
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Circus and Changing Realities 2020: American Circus – The Now & The Future
This panel is part of CircusTalk’s Circus and Changing Realities 2020 series. In this episode, titled American Circus–The Now & The Future,
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Circus for the People
When Serenity Smith Forchion couldn’t offer Nimble Arts’s normal two or three performances a week this year due to the
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Disney to Lay Off 28,000 Employees as Coronavirus Slams its Theme Park Business
Prolonged closures at Disney’s California-based theme parks and limited attendance at its open parks has forced the company to lay
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Circus From the Edge of the World– St. John’s International CircusFest September 25th-27th
The Third Annual St. John’s International CircusFest takes place September 25-27, 2020. Traditionally, the Festival occurs in coastal St John’s,
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Deprived of a Last Lap by the Epidemic, the Cirque Plume Bows Out
After 36 years spent amazing the public, Cirque Plume is finally lowering the curtain. Its farewell tour scheduled until the
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South Koreans Defy Virus to Attend Drive-in Circus
A clown juggled and acrobats launched themselves through the air above a stage in an open field in Seoul at
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Review: Midnight Circus Lights up the Afternoon in a Chicago Park — With a Few Cirque Ringers in the Cast
“Foster Park,” the ringmaster cried, piercing the quiet of a September afternoon in Auburn Gresham, “are you ready for a
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Circus, Traditional Arts to be Combined on Stage for First Time
Vietnam’s first theatrical work made up of circus and cai luong (reformed arts) – Cay gay than (The Magic Stick)
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Closer Short Circus Film from Jacksons Lane
Jacksons Lane arts centre has released a contemporary circus short film, Closer, produced by an international collaboration during lockdown between
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It’s a Balancing Act, but Local Whip Round Keeps Stranded Circus Going
A circus troupe is surviving on savings and the kindness of strangers while they’re stranded in a paddock in Melbourne’s
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Dancing With Gravity: Episode 32, Do NOT Give Up
This episode of the podcast is about how COVID-19 is affecting our circus communities around the world and a simple
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Circus Harmony’s The Balancing Act: Walking the Pandemic Tightrope Announced October 10
Circus Harmony presents: The Balancing Act: Walking the Pandemic Tightrope on October 10th at 7pm featuring Circus Harmony students and
Read moreNo Animals, Just Stunts: How I’m Keeping the Circus Alive Through the Pandemic
When I joined the circus as a clown 20 years ago, showmanship was at its peak and thousands would line
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International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo 2021 is Cancelled
On September 9th, the organising committee of the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo took the decision to cancel the festival’s
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Solo Circus: Downers Grove Acrobat Performs for Alzheimer’s Patients in Burr Ridge
Evan Baird literally jumped at the chance to perform Thursday at a memory care center in Burr Ridge. All the
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Why Performers Should Be on Your Hiring Radar for Off-Stage Career Opportunities
In the wake of job losses and setbacks for the circus sector due to the coronavirus pandemic, Projet Lumière has
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Waiting for the Show to Go On
Israel Portugal pivots on the slack wire with catlike confidence, catching the small balls tossed to him by his brother
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They Do Circus and Acrobatics so They Can Work
Representatives of more than 70 Mexican circus companies gathered in front of Palacio Nacional in order to demand that their
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Disney to Begin Rehab Work on Cirque du Soleil
his morning, September 1, WDI submitted a “notice of commencement” with Orange County. Disney “hereby gives notice that improvement will
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Detachable Passion – An Open Letter to Performing Artists Everywhere
Separating art from commerce is a means to future proof our artistic practice. As the Adelaide Fringe festival drew to
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Silent Film Festival Amplifies Creative Collaborations from a Distance
In 2013, dancer and musician Leah Casper was struggling to find a band or performance troupe that fit her skills,
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Circus Festival Letní Letná in Full Swing
“We cooperate with the Prague hygiene station and follow the recommendations of experts. Based on a government decision, we have
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Circus Shows Cancelled Due to COVID-19
The union’s premier event of seven shows featuring circus and puppet performances, to be staged by 30 young and veteran
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Circus and Changing Realities 2020–What’s Up with Canadian Circus?
Canada, and Quebec in particular, plays an important role in the circus world. Montréal is home to circus institutions such
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Diego Salles Says “There is Nothing to Escape!” with His New Video REBOUND
Award-winning aerialist Diego Salles has made a video that is firmly rooted to the earth, which he calls REBOUND–There is
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AP PHOTOS: Clowns Suffer, Adapt in Peru Due to the Pandemic
Circuses in Peru are built around clowns, providing work for more than 500 of the characters. But the shows have
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FringeArts Announces Full Details for 2020 Fringe Festival
FringeArts in Philadelphia has announced details for their 24th annual Fringe Festival, which runs September 10 through October 4. The
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How STREB’s Action Heroes Navigate the Zoom Conundrum
The question that comes to mind is, how have you been surviving? This is not a hyperbole as the world
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Le Reve at Wynn Las Vegas to Permanently Close Due to Pandemic
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — One of Las Vegas’ most popular shows on the Strip is permanently closing due to the
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Great Moscow Circus Opens New Season with Charity Performance for Medical Workers
Artists perform during a show at the Great Moscow circus in Moscow, Russia, on Aug. 7, 2020. The circus opened
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Circus Juventas Postpones Shows, Adapts Programs to Stay Afloat
Dan Butler is used to being nimble and flexible. As executive director of Circus Juventas, he’s been teaching trapeze and
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The Show Must Go On! What a Visit to The Big Kid Circus Looks Like with Covid-19 Measures in Place
A 22-strong Circus group, including 20 artists from the Cirque de Cuba, have arrived in the North East for a
Read moreDuffy’s Circus May Face Final Curtain as it Celebrates 150 Years
David Duffy, the managing director of Duffy’s Circus, lives, eats and breathes the big tent, the performers, the noise. This
Read moreThe Spectacular Tale of a Stranded Circus—and its Great Escape from Honduras
Eduardo Segovia was eating at a restaurant in a small coastal town in Guatemala when he met Telma Nineth Segura
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91-Year-Old Irish Circus Star Survived COVID after Three Heart Attacks
Tom Duffy, of Duffy’s Circus in Ireland, tested positive for the virus in April. Since his diagnosis, the former ringmaster
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Tumbling, Balancing and Soaring Together: Creating Circus in the Time of Covid
This Sunday 36 acrobatic performers and dancers will come together for the first time at the Circa Contemporary Circus’s rehearsal
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Bhutisi Initiates Clowns Against Covid-19
Comedian Admire “Bhutisi” Kuzhangaira is coordinating an initiative dubbed “Clowns Against Covid-19” aimed at educating and informing young people living
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Forget Buildings – Circus Tents are Ideal for Covid-Safe Shows
Big tops are being built up across the UK. With sidewalls raised and seats spaced out, tented circuses are resuming
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