Sitting down with the circus in town

The circus is back in town. 

From Thursday, August 8 to Sunday, September 1, Paignton Green will host some of the world’s most talented daredevils and entertainers under Circus Vegas’s big-top tent. 

Merging Las Vegas Traditions and contemporary styles with extreme stunts and classic clown escapades, audiences will be amazed by the jam-packed Circus Vegas with show-stopping performances that will have you on the edge of your seat.

“It’s pretty much a brand new show,” said Stephen Courtney Jr, Stage Manager for Circus Vegas, which last came to the Bay two years ago. 

“We’ve got a Ukrainian act this time, we have African warriors doing the limbo, we’ve got the hair hangar and an aerial chandelier as well. It’s a really exciting show!”

Circus Vegas was started by Stephen Courtney Jr’s father and it’s been a family affair ever since. 

Stephen now takes a front seat in bringing the show and its 60 employees to towns and cities across the UK and beyond; a stunt in itself given that they’re on the road for more than 11 months a year. 

Stephen said: “We get less people running away to the circus than you’d imagine. They come, realise how hard it is, and run away again!

“We just keep going all the time really, we’ll have about three weeks to a month off a year. It just becomes a lifestyle. 

“But when the tent is full in another new city, and everyone is laughing or in suspense, you finally feel like all that hard work paid off. It’s a good feeling.”

That family dynamic extends to the performers as well, who hail from places like Cuba, Chile, Ukraine, Colombia, Brazil and Tanzania, to name just a few. 

Head clown and long-time legend of Circus Vegas, Eddy the Clown is from Mexico. He’s been performing in the UK for six years after learning acrobatics in South and Central America. 

“When I was a kid, I used to see my cousin performing in the circus and I wished I could one day do something like that. My first job was selling candy floss. I then started doing the lights and other jobs before I began to practise some acts, silks trampoline, trapeze and juggling.”

After six years on the road in Europe, Edy still says the best part of the job is travelling. 

“It’s like being paid to be on holiday, I get to perform and see the world. My favourite place in Britain has to be Scotland, but down here I love Dartmouth. It doesn’t feel like England there!”

He added: “Circus life is a bit like living in a constantly moving house, but all the family members do crazy things every night!”

A welcome addition to this year’s show is Jidinis, the circus’s extraordinary magician. Having performed everywhere from Macau to Las Vegas to Copenhagen to Disneyland, the performance of Jidinis is more than just a trick. 

“My act is like a fantasy world,” he said. 

“It’s an extravaganza, I like fashion, I like design and I like craziness. I want to bring the audience into a strange universe full of dreams, characters and dancers.

“These kinds of tricks are not usually in the circus ring. To see an act like this in a circus is really unique, especially in the UK.”

Other acts include Finland’s sensational Veera Kaijanen on the Low Wire, Didyk Troupe from Ukraine on the ‘acrobatic swing’ and Tanzania’s ‘Bellagio Warriors’, who will thrill the audience with exciting and lively acrobatic displays that will leave everyone screaming with delight.

Now with two extra clowns, Edy will also be there, entertaining throughout the night.

It seems that even after over 250 years of circus in the UK, there’s still more to wow crowds and pack tents.”

“I think it’s the unpredictability and excitement of a live performance,” said Stephen Courtney Jr. 

“Seeing these things in front of your eyes, it’s hard to translate that to a screen. When people leave they’re generally shocked. I think it’s the excitement that keeps people coming.”