“The Acts move quickly to continuous applause keeping the crowd’s attention and wanting more. This performance will delight everyone young and old and in between.”
Review By: Diane DiResta
Review Date: October 25, 2015
The Big Apple Circus-The Grand Tour, is an extravaganza which is set in the 1920s and features acts from the four corners of the globe. Serving as a backdrop, are ships trains, cars, and airplanes which provide exhilarating acts. Each year Big Apple Circus offers a new show featuring the finest circus performers from around the globe both on tour and at the home base at Lincoln Center. And this year’s show does not disappoint.
This circus is not for children only. The Acts are highly entertaining for all ages and include performers, clowns, jugglers, acrobats, and aerialists from six continents. The seven piece Big Apple Circus band plays live at each of over 200 performances and the music revs up the crowd, starting with a 1920’s number.
This is one ring circus creates an intimacy and engaging relationship with the audience and it begins with Mr. Joel.
Move over, Bozo. Mr. Joel, a modern day clown, greets audience members before the show begins. Later in the show he invites children to the ring to participate in the act of musical chairs, and in choosing a clown nose.
Another special touch is the pony rides in the ring available for children who line up during intermission. The traditional tigers, lions, and bears are absent but not missed, as they are replaced with exciting dog and Arabian horse acts. The horses run around the ring and connect with the crowd. The dogs are well trained and well timed. One scene involves a dog sitting at the table in a restaurant participating in the meal with his trainer. Right on cue, he steals the food and the scene.
The show is in two acts and the program includes hula hoop acts, ball juggling, handstands, and aerial straps. The gravity- defying aerialists leave people breathless and the Chinese African, and American acrobats combine the finest gymnastics with dance moves that thrill the crowd. A highlight is the wheel of wonder where two performers move inside a giant rotating wheel performing gymnastics while the wheel is quickly rotating.
The Acts move quickly to continuous applause keeping the crowd’s attention and wanting more.
The Big Apple Circus was founded in 1977 by Paul Binder and Michael Christensen. This performance will delight everyone young and old and in between.
The show runs 2 hours with one intermission and tickets are available October 21 through January 10.
##
Big Apple Circus
Returns to Lincoln Center with the World Premiere of
The Grand Tour
October 21, 2015 – January 10, 2016
New York, NY (October 14, 2015) – Big Apple Circus returns to the Big Top at Lincoln Center for the company’s 38th season with the World Premiere of its all-new show, The GrandTour! Tickets start at $25, and the show runs from October 21, 2015 to January 10, 2016. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.bigapplecircus.org.
The GrandTour transports audiences to the Roaring 1920s, the advent of the modern travel era, when the most adventuresome began to tour the world in ships, planes, trains, and automobiles. With every seat less than 50 feet from the stage, audiences will be awed by the world-class entertainers as they perform breathtaking acts from the four corners of the globe. Clowns, jugglers, acrobats, and aerialists from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America appear with ponies, puppies and more; the troupe sets off on its own whirlwind adventure, accompanied by the live, seven-piece Big Apple Circus Band at each of more than 100 performances.
“Awe-Inspiring!” – The New York Times
“There’s no shortage of thrills…Fun for all!” – New York Post
“The Finest Up-Close Circus in America.” – Variety
“America’s Best Circus for Children” – Parents Magazine
Four-time Big Apple Circus ringmaster John Kennedy Kane returns to introduce a variety of stunning performers: clowns Joel Jeske and Brent McBeth; third-generation circus animal trainer Jenny Vidbel with her pony and dog acts; aerialist Sergey Akimov; international juggling sensation Alexander Koblikov; ninth-generation circus performer Chiara Anastasini with hula hoops; the Dominguez Brothers defying the law of gravity with their thrill-filled act featuring the Wheel of Wonder; Chinese hand balancers The Energy Trio; the African acrobatic troupe Zuma Zuma; and the Dosov Troupe soaring on the teeterboard.
The GrandTour, conceived and created by Joel Jeske, is directed by Mark Lonergan (artistic director of Parallel Exit, the three-time Drama Desk Award-nominated physical theater company) with associate director and choreographer Antoinette DiPietropolo. Musical direction by Rob Slowik with clown material created and directed by Joel Jeske. Set and lighting design by Maruti Evans, costume design by Oana Botez, and props design by Katie Fleming.
As a nonprofit performing arts institution, the Big Apple Circus is committed not only to thrilling audiences in the ring, but also to bringing the joy and wonder of circus into the community. Big Apple Circus creates direct, shared connections inside its one-ring Big Top AND in hospitals, nursing homes, and schools, in its New York City home and in cities across America.
“These performers, many from circus dynasties, preserve an important tradition, reinforced by the nonprofit Big Apple Circus’s commendable community-service activities, notably the Clown Care program, which entertains hospitalized children. This company … doesn’t only have awe-inspiring acrobatic skills; it has a lot of heart, too.” – The New York Times, 2014 Critics’ Pick
Big Apple Circus Clown Care® brings the joy of classical circus to hospitalized children at 15 leading pediatric facilities across the United States. Performers collaborate with doctors and staff to design a program to fit the needs of each hospital. Members of the Clown Care team bring the healing power of humor to children with acute and chronic illnesses, visiting nearly 225,000 young patients every year.
Big Apple Circus offers a specially adapted performance of the show, Circus of the Senses, for children and adults with vision or hearing impairments and/or other disabilities. American Sign Language interpreters are positioned in spotlights throughout the tent, and wireless audio headsets transmit a live audio play-by-play description of the action in the ring. Braille or large-print descriptive programs are available for audience members. A “touch session” after the show offers a unique opportunity for pre-selected groups of visually impaired children to go into the ring to meet the artists and literally feel a clown nose, a juggler’s clubs, or the silky coat of a performing dog. Big Apple Circus Embraces Autism provides performances with modified lighting and sound as well as a staffed calming center, to meet the needs of children on the autism spectrum. Inclusion is a core value at Big Apple Circus, which is dedicated to delivering the finest circus entertainment to everyone, regardless of physical or cognitive ability, or economic circumstance.
Circus for All!®distributes free and subsidized tickets to schools and nonprofit organizations serving low-income children and families, enabling many of them to experience the excitement and wonder of the circus for the very first time.
Circus After School®teaches kids life skills such as teamwork, responsible risk-taking, and perseverance, through a structured program of learning and performing circus arts.
About Big Apple Circus
(Will Maitland Weiss, Executive Director; Guillaume Dufresnoy, Artistic Director)
Conceived and founded by Paul Binder and Michael Christensen to be a leading presenter of live family entertainment and a nonprofit performing arts institution, our nation-wide performances and community programs have made our 38-year history far-reaching and full. It all began in 1974, when American entertainers Binder and Christensen became juggling partners and took to the street corners of Europe. Their comedic juggling act was a hit, and they soon found themselves on the stage of the prestigious Nouveau Cirque de Paris. They returned home to America in 1976 with a vision: to entertain and improve the lives of millions of American children and families. One year later, they found a site for the first tent-raising in Battery Park, New York, and went on to create the award-winning, nonprofit Big Apple Circus. For more information, visit www.bigapplecircus.org.
Review of The Big Apple Circus at Lincoln Center with the World Premiere of The Grand Tour
October 25, 2015 Comment Off 145 Views“The Acts move quickly to continuous applause keeping the crowd’s attention and wanting more. This performance will delight everyone young and old and in between.”
Review By: Diane DiResta
Review Date: October 25, 2015
The Big Apple Circus-The Grand Tour, is an extravaganza which is set in the 1920s and features acts from the four corners of the globe. Serving as a backdrop, are ships trains, cars, and airplanes which provide exhilarating acts. Each year Big Apple Circus offers a new show featuring the finest circus performers from around the globe both on tour and at the home base at Lincoln Center. And this year’s show does not disappoint.
This circus is not for children only. The Acts are highly entertaining for all ages and include performers, clowns, jugglers, acrobats, and aerialists from six continents. The seven piece Big Apple Circus band plays live at each of over 200 performances and the music revs up the crowd, starting with a 1920’s number.
This is one ring circus creates an intimacy and engaging relationship with the audience and it begins with Mr. Joel.
Move over, Bozo. Mr. Joel, a modern day clown, greets audience members before the show begins. Later in the show he invites children to the ring to participate in the act of musical chairs, and in choosing a clown nose.
Another special touch is the pony rides in the ring available for children who line up during intermission. The traditional tigers, lions, and bears are absent but not missed, as they are replaced with exciting dog and Arabian horse acts. The horses run around the ring and connect with the crowd. The dogs are well trained and well timed. One scene involves a dog sitting at the table in a restaurant participating in the meal with his trainer. Right on cue, he steals the food and the scene.
The show is in two acts and the program includes hula hoop acts, ball juggling, handstands, and aerial straps. The gravity- defying aerialists leave people breathless and the Chinese African, and American acrobats combine the finest gymnastics with dance moves that thrill the crowd. A highlight is the wheel of wonder where two performers move inside a giant rotating wheel performing gymnastics while the wheel is quickly rotating.
The Acts move quickly to continuous applause keeping the crowd’s attention and wanting more.
The Big Apple Circus was founded in 1977 by Paul Binder and Michael Christensen. This performance will delight everyone young and old and in between.
The show runs 2 hours with one intermission and tickets are available October 21 through January 10.
##
Big Apple Circus
Returns to Lincoln Center with the World Premiere of
The Grand Tour
October 21, 2015 – January 10, 2016
New York, NY (October 14, 2015) – Big Apple Circus returns to the Big Top at Lincoln Center for the company’s 38th season with the World Premiere of its all-new show, The GrandTour! Tickets start at $25, and the show runs from October 21, 2015 to January 10, 2016. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.bigapplecircus.org.
The GrandTour transports audiences to the Roaring 1920s, the advent of the modern travel era, when the most adventuresome began to tour the world in ships, planes, trains, and automobiles. With every seat less than 50 feet from the stage, audiences will be awed by the world-class entertainers as they perform breathtaking acts from the four corners of the globe. Clowns, jugglers, acrobats, and aerialists from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America appear with ponies, puppies and more; the troupe sets off on its own whirlwind adventure, accompanied by the live, seven-piece Big Apple Circus Band at each of more than 100 performances.
“Awe-Inspiring!” – The New York Times
“There’s no shortage of thrills…Fun for all!” – New York Post
“The Finest Up-Close Circus in America.” – Variety
“America’s Best Circus for Children” – Parents Magazine
Four-time Big Apple Circus ringmaster John Kennedy Kane returns to introduce a variety of stunning performers: clowns Joel Jeske and Brent McBeth; third-generation circus animal trainer Jenny Vidbel with her pony and dog acts; aerialist Sergey Akimov; international juggling sensation Alexander Koblikov; ninth-generation circus performer Chiara Anastasini with hula hoops; the Dominguez Brothers defying the law of gravity with their thrill-filled act featuring the Wheel of Wonder; Chinese hand balancers The Energy Trio; the African acrobatic troupe Zuma Zuma; and the Dosov Troupe soaring on the teeterboard.
The GrandTour, conceived and created by Joel Jeske, is directed by Mark Lonergan (artistic director of Parallel Exit, the three-time Drama Desk Award-nominated physical theater company) with associate director and choreographer Antoinette DiPietropolo. Musical direction by Rob Slowik with clown material created and directed by Joel Jeske. Set and lighting design by Maruti Evans, costume design by Oana Botez, and props design by Katie Fleming.
As a nonprofit performing arts institution, the Big Apple Circus is committed not only to thrilling audiences in the ring, but also to bringing the joy and wonder of circus into the community. Big Apple Circus creates direct, shared connections inside its one-ring Big Top AND in hospitals, nursing homes, and schools, in its New York City home and in cities across America.
“These performers, many from circus dynasties, preserve an important tradition, reinforced by the nonprofit Big Apple Circus’s commendable community-service activities, notably the Clown Care program, which entertains hospitalized children. This company … doesn’t only have awe-inspiring acrobatic skills; it has a lot of heart, too.” – The New York Times, 2014 Critics’ Pick
Big Apple Circus Clown Care® brings the joy of classical circus to hospitalized children at 15 leading pediatric facilities across the United States. Performers collaborate with doctors and staff to design a program to fit the needs of each hospital. Members of the Clown Care team bring the healing power of humor to children with acute and chronic illnesses, visiting nearly 225,000 young patients every year.
Big Apple Circus offers a specially adapted performance of the show, Circus of the Senses, for children and adults with vision or hearing impairments and/or other disabilities. American Sign Language interpreters are positioned in spotlights throughout the tent, and wireless audio headsets transmit a live audio play-by-play description of the action in the ring. Braille or large-print descriptive programs are available for audience members. A “touch session” after the show offers a unique opportunity for pre-selected groups of visually impaired children to go into the ring to meet the artists and literally feel a clown nose, a juggler’s clubs, or the silky coat of a performing dog. Big Apple Circus Embraces Autism provides performances with modified lighting and sound as well as a staffed calming center, to meet the needs of children on the autism spectrum. Inclusion is a core value at Big Apple Circus, which is dedicated to delivering the finest circus entertainment to everyone, regardless of physical or cognitive ability, or economic circumstance.
Circus for All!®distributes free and subsidized tickets to schools and nonprofit organizations serving low-income children and families, enabling many of them to experience the excitement and wonder of the circus for the very first time.
Circus After School®teaches kids life skills such as teamwork, responsible risk-taking, and perseverance, through a structured program of learning and performing circus arts.
About Big Apple Circus
(Will Maitland Weiss, Executive Director; Guillaume Dufresnoy, Artistic Director)
Conceived and founded by Paul Binder and Michael Christensen to be a leading presenter of live family entertainment and a nonprofit performing arts institution, our nation-wide performances and community programs have made our 38-year history far-reaching and full. It all began in 1974, when American entertainers Binder and Christensen became juggling partners and took to the street corners of Europe. Their comedic juggling act was a hit, and they soon found themselves on the stage of the prestigious Nouveau Cirque de Paris. They returned home to America in 1976 with a vision: to entertain and improve the lives of millions of American children and families. One year later, they found a site for the first tent-raising in Battery Park, New York, and went on to create the award-winning, nonprofit Big Apple Circus. For more information, visit www.bigapplecircus.org.
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