Clowning and Juggling and Aerials… Oh My!- Tuesday, August 13th
Although it’s been over two months since we all got to Greensboro, time has flown so fast that it feels like it was just yesterday. After four consecutive sold-out shows in Freeport, Maine, it was time to make our way to Hanover, New Hampshire. It was a long drive – about three hours – but soon enough we had arrived and the lot was set up. That night, a successful jump was celebrated with homemade pizza at the outdoor community pizza oven in nearby Norwich, Vermont! Any chance to hang out as a big group off-site is always a lot…
Click Your Heels- Thursday, August 8th
Just a few days after Oz Incorporated was in Kennebunkport, we were back up in Maine with four shows at the Merriconeag Waldorf School in Freeport. One of the first things I saw upon arriving on site was a swingset and set of monkey bars – right away i had a feeling that Freeport was going to be fun. The Troupers arrived on-site Monday morning to set up the ring and backstage tent before the show at 1pm. Once everything was set up, a few Troupers gathered in the school’s auditorium to practice their skills: Eyal, Wesley, and Bekk…
See You Down the Yellow Brick Road- Monday, August 5th
Time has begun to pass by at a faster pace the longer we have been on tour. I’ve grown accustomed to the early mornings on jump days and the late nights on load-out days, and I’ve come to treasure the special moments – whether it’s a conversation with a Trouper or fellow staff member over a cup of coffee from the pie car, or seeing a Trouper perfect the double back-flip they’ve been working on, I feel so lucky to be a part of all of this. After Kennebunkport, it was back to Massachusetts for four shows at Manter Field…
The Ordinary is Extraordinary- Friday, August 2nd
After a run of six shows in three days (phew!) in Waltham, Massachusetts, it was time for our group of 26 troupers and one trouper-in-training and 40 staff to head up to Kennebunkport, Maine. Soon enough we pulled in to the Rockin’ Horse Stables in Kennebunkport. As we sat down to lunch under the familiar blue and white tent at our green picnic tables, I saw some horses running in the field behind us! A few hours later, a successful set-up was celebrated with a trip to Ben and Jerry’s… not a bad way to end the day! As…
Somewhere Over the Big Top…- Monday, July 29th
The run of shows at each site begins with the Troupers arriving early to unload the prop truck and begin setting up. In addition to getting everything ready in the backstage tent, they also lay out the mats, carpet, and ring curb for the ring itself under the Big Top. This is usually finished around lunch time and it’s always exciting to see the ring in place for the first time. After our shows in Richmond it was off to Sandwich, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod. We were visited there by Lilye Chapman who is a long-time Smirkus fan and…
Branching Out to Get the Show on the Road- Sunday, July 28th
In order to make each performance of Oz Incorporated happen, all 27 Troupers have a variety of tasks to perform. Many of them are in multiple acts in the show, from clowning to juggling to rope to trampoline, so it’s important to be well-versed in the circus arts. Backstage and between shows is used as a time for rehearsals, where the Troupers will perfect a sequence on the rope or a juggling pattern or a funny clown gag. There are scheduled rehearsals between shows, and there’s constantly people practicing on the wire and aerial rig set up backstage. …
This is In-Tents!- Thursday, July 25th
On Monday of last week, we arrived in Brattleboro, Vermont for a run of four shows in two days. We had plenty of visitors on-site — from former Troupers to press to well-known circus professionals. Late on Tuesday afternoon, just as we were finishing dinner between shows, a semi-truck pulled up to the site… our new backstage and midway tents had arrived! The tents came all the way from Italy (did you know that Italy is the best place to go to get a circus tent?), and the truck driver picked them up at the port in Boston before driving…
Let the Games Begin!- Friday, July 19th
What’s exciting about being on tour is that every site- and every town- is completely different. In Essex Junction, Vermont we were on a fair ground (the Champlain Valley Expo) and in Princeton, Massachusetts we were on a ski resort (Wachusett Mountain); in Brattleboro, Vermont we were on a farm. The scenery always changes and the surrounding towns all have unique things to offer. Though some things are always different, some things are always the same. We have the same Big Top and the same bunk houses and the same Troupers and staff at each stop, and though parts of…
It Takes a Lot of Character: Tuesday, July 16th
There are many things that set Circus Smirkus apart and that make it what it is; one of them is the idea that Smirkus is a story circus. Each winter, Artistic Director Troy Wunderle and Creative Director Jesse Dryden work together to come up with a theme for the summer’s Big Top Tour. This year’s theme of “Oz Incorporated” is a twist on the classic Wizard of Oz story that everyone knows and loves. Every act in the show fits into the storyline, and every performer in the show is a character in the plot. It’s really cool to see…
Young and Old, We All Laugh Together: Monday, July 15th
The jump from Saratoga Springs, New York to Essex Junction, Vermont was a long one, but after an early start to the day the Troupers and staff made it to the Champlain Valley Exposition without a hitch. The Champlain Valley Expo – “CVE” – is an event facility just a few miles from Downtown Burlington, and the biggest site we’ve had so far. While the Champlain Valley Fair will be happening right there later this summer, for now most of the fair ground aside from the Smirkus lot was quiet. Just past the “pie car” (the mobile kitchen where the…