Dear Circus Center Community,
As we begin this new year of 2023, I enjoy reminiscing about the fabulous shows we did in 2022.
- We kicked off 2022 by highlighting the beautiful art of Mongolian contortion in Delkhii, our co-production with the Mongolian Contortion Center.
- We brought in Jeff Raz of Cirque du Soleil and the Pickle Family Circus to direct our San Francisco Youth Circus show, Circus at the End of the World.
- We had two Sideshow Cabarets for students to create and present new acts: San Francisco’s Got Talent and My Body My Circus, which was also a fundraiser for reproductive justice.
- We said a joyous hello and a fond "see you down the road" to the Circus Center Cabaret, with Steve Smith, Leanne Borghesi, and the Roger Glenn Trio reuniting for music, circus, and revelry with Déjà Vu.
- We produced the world premiere of The Secret Garden, presenting an innovative style of circus-theater.
- We reignited Circus Center’s Artists in Residence program, leading to great shows like Dark Side of the Circus and The Rainbow is Enuf.
- We had our very first Human Animation showcase with the hilariously wild UNHING’D.
- Our elegant Trailblazers Gala celebrated the achievements of women in circus and honored our founders Judy Finelli and Wendy Parkman.
- We finished out 2022 with Alice! A Holiday Circus Spectacular, which brought together adult and youth students, seasoned professionals, and performers making their stage debut.
Wow! What a year! Now it’s a new year, and I am excited to share what we have in store for Circus Center in 2023.
We begin the year by highlighting another circus discipline, the magical art of juggling and object manipulation, with our January show Dropping the Ball.
We are providing a pathway for advanced students and emerging professionals to buckle down and create an act they’ve been dreaming of. It starts with a Works in Progress showing in February, followed a few months later by a swanky Sideshow Cabaret in May.
In addition to these individualized development events, I am also making opportunities for our community to work with a variety of renowned circus artists in professionally supported productions. For example, the San Francisco Youth Circus is currently in rehearsal with internationally recognized circus artist Veronica Blair to develop their Spring Show TRY/BE.
Not only are we creating artistic development opportunities that can’t be matched, but I am also committed to making Circus Center a fertile space for artists to work. Our Artist in Residence program is growing! Watch this year for new work from local artists such as Genie Cartier, Kristine Cannon, Sara Toby Moore, Circus of the Moon, and Mystic Ventures.
Last but certainly not least, we are excited to leverage our shows to help bring Circus Center more fully into the Bay Area arts scene. We have been invited to remount The Secret Garden, last year’s hit show, in a summer residency at the Children’s Creativity Museum. I am thrilled to reunite with Acrobatic Designer Evan Tomlinson Weintraub of Cirque du Soleil to bring this unique production to a wider audience.
I invite you to learn more about our upcoming shows and events on our website. You can also watch for audition and submission postings!
As Circus Center’s Artistic Director, I am devoted to pushing circus as an artform forward through the diversity of artistic development opportunities we are producing. I am grateful to our creative community of artists and athletes that join us in making exciting work. And I am looking forward to collaborating with all of you to bring San Francisco audiences more innovative, quality circus in 2023!
Happy New Year!
Felicity