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Cirque des Voix ®: Circus of the Voices Highlights Music of Film Composer Danny Elfman, Showcases Outstanding Circus Artistry

Vocal vivacity combines with timeless circus elegance in The Circus Arts Conservatory (CAC) and Key Chorale’s Cirque des Voix ®: Circus of the Voices, a one-of-a-kind experience for audiences of all ages.

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Circus Sarasota Celebrates 250th Anniversary of the Modern Circus with OVATION!

Each year, Circus Sarasota boasts an impressive roster of international artists who test human boundaries and leave audiences awestruck. This year’s performance, titled Ovation , honors the 250th anniversary of the modern circus and those who have impacted the artform.

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The Circus Arts Conservatory Presents Annual Circus Science Machine for Thousands of Local Students

The Circus Arts Conservatory (CAC) is proud to announce the return of the Circus Science Machine, hosted in the Sailor Circus Arena, from January 18-19, 2018. The Machine, a giant cause and effect Chain Reaction contraption, is a larger-than-life demonstration of physics, force, mass and acceleration that transforms standard science lessons into an interactive, circus-themed experience!

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Let Sailor Circus Take Your Breath Away with “High Flying Holidays”

This holiday season, celebrate circus style! Sailor Circus presents The High Flying Holidays, a show for the whole family, Wednesday, December 27 through Saturday, December 30 for only eight shows!

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Meet Our Summer Intern: Zachary Wells

My name is Zach Wells and I am a senior at the Out-of-Door Academy. I have been involved with the circus arts for three years now. During my senior year, I helped start the ODA Circus Club with fellow student Mia Hamill and Mr. Michael Salmon (who is also on the Board of The Circus Arts Conservatory). These two individuals are very passionate about circus and its history. Within the circus club, we have done it all, from having speakers come in and tell their life stories about their involvement in circus over the years, to flying high above the trapeze with Tito Gaona.

My journey with the circus started my sophomore year when I needed volunteer hours for my school. A friend of mine who was an upperclassman recommended that I volunteer with the circus to get the last few hours I needed. I only needed to do two shows to get the hours I needed. However, I found myself working with the team under the Big Top for six shows!

In my junior year, I found myself back at the Big Top, this time signing up for more shows and spending more time getting to know the performers. I had found something I was passionate about and loved being a part of! This year, I was tasked with leading the ODA Volunteer Team under the Big Top along with fellow senior Brett Szalbirak. It was our job to encourage our friends and other students to come out and volunteer under the tent.

Since I had spent the last three years being involved with Circus Sarasota and meeting so many amazing people who have amazing stories, I figured The Circus Arts Conservatory was the perfect place to do my senior internship. I wanted to learn what went on behind-the-scenes and what happened when the red and white tent came down for the season.

Volunteering with The CAC for the last three years has created countless memories that I will never forget, from working the Big Top to flying on the trapeze. I have met, talked to,and become friends with people that have infinite knowledge about all things circus and have created friendships that I will carry with me throughout college and life.

Zach will be studying Psychology and Education in the fall at Florida Gulf Coast University.

The Arena Renovation Project

HELP US TO EXPAND OUR PROGRAMS AND TO CHANGE MORE KIDS’ LIVES

The need is great, the time is now!

We need your help! Be part of our future, the future of our students and the expansion of our Circus Arts programs.

We have raised $2.5 million of the $4 million needed to complete necessary repairs and updates to The Arena. But time is running out – we must raise the remaining $1.5 million by June 1, 2018 or forfeit a $1 million grant from the State of Florida.


YOU CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE…

There is great news! If you give now, your gift can have TWICE the impact! Thanks to the generosity of a very special CAC donor, the first $100,000 in donations made by December 31, 2017 will be matched!

The CAC currently adds over $6 million dollars to Southwest Florida’s economy each year. The 70 year old Sailor Circus Academy serves over 45,000 people annually through athletic, education and summer camp programs.

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Florida’s Circus Arts Conservatory (CAC) Co-Presents The 2017 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in DC. Partnership culminates 2 years of production for America’s largest tourist event

The 50th Anniversary Smithsonian Folklife Festival closed on July 9th, following 2 weeks run in DC. This year’s festival focused on the international world of Circus Arts. CAC presented 3 major performance programs and hosted circus troupes and performers from all over the world in the only Big Top on the National Mall and at daily demonstrations in the Arts and Industries Building and 20 venues across The Mall.
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Tales from the First of May: The Circus Goes to Washington!

Greetings, circus fans! It’s been a while since my last “First of May” post – so long, in fact, that I am no longer the “First of May” around here – but I wanted to share a few exciting happenings The CAC is currently experiencing…

First, welcome to our new website! We have relaunched CircusArts.org with a new design, new features and new media to showcase the best of the circus arts as we know it to be! Feel free to take a look around the new site, learn more about our Outreach Programs, explore ways to Get Involved with the organization and more! Read more

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CAC Goes To Washington DC

BY BILLY COX — HERALD TRIBUNE: Hundreds of thousands of Americans, maybe upwards of a million, are about to learn that reports of the circus’ death have been greatly exaggerated when they visit the National Mall in Washington, D.C., over the next few weeks. But local audiences can get a sneak preview at a fundraiser Tuesday night. That’s when the Circus Arts Conservatory and its versatile Sailor Circus students will stage their final dress rehearsal before joining the Smithsonian Center’s Folklife and Cultural Heritage Festival in the nation’s capitol from June 29-July 4 and July 6-9. MORE

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CAC at 2017 Florida Folk Festival

BY JESSIE R. BOX — SUWANNEE DEMOCRAT: The 65th annual Florida Folk Festival had around 10,000 people attend Memorial Day weekend. The 2017 Folklife Area celebrated the diverse cultures of Southwest Florida. Karen Bell and Robin Eurich, of the Sarasota’s Circus Arts Conservatory, demonstrated circus arts and clowning. Bell said growing up she always took the comedy route. She said she was drawn to clown college… MORE