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CIRCUS SMIRKUS CAMP, 2 Weeks of Fun! Part 1  Submitted by Erin Purcell on   12/9/2009 Last Modified . Photos By Erin Purcell and Hannah Ferris I’m sure that many of us youth circus performers can attest that one of the major highlights of being in a circus is performing. The appreciation of the audience, the exhilaration of sharing all that you’ve worked so hard on, and the thrill of the spotlight are huge parts of what make the circus so enticing. However, in order for this performing to happen, a show needs first to be put together. The creation of a show is a long and arduous process, which involves many people and many, many hours of rehearsal. Themes and storylines must be drawn up; acts must be designed, casted, and choreographed; costumes and music selected; dates and ticket prices and publicity agreed upon. Performers train and rehearse for countless hours, and those wonderful adults in our lives (coaches, directors, parents, volunteers…) put in immeasurable amounts of effort in order to get a show off the ground. This summer, I had the opportunity to learn about the creation of a show from start to finish, and I can easily call it the most educational and rewarding part of my circus life thus far. I was one of eleven teens selected to be in the Circus Smirkus summer camp Roadshow program (not to be confused with the Circus Smirkus traveling show). The Roadshow, a sector of the two week Advanced Camp program, has a small group of circus students create an original forty-minute circus show in one week, and then perform it more than a dozen times throughout the community in the second week. Led by two fearless directors, we experienced a non-stop crash course in the intense creative process of putting together a show. Throughout the two week experience, I squeezed out a few minutes every night to jot down what we had accomplished that day. I recorded the brainstorming of the first few days, the struggles of perfecting the acts, and the rewards of performing. Below is a sort of timeline, illustrating how thirteen strangers were able to concoct a bit of circus magic. Circus camp + new friends = 2 weeks of pure fun! August 2nd: First Night: When I first arrived at Smirkus camp, held on the Sterling College campus, I was a bit perplexed. Our car had turned the corner of a muddy, mountainous Vermont road, and then suddenly a painted wooden sign on the side of the road announced that we had reached Smirkus territory. There was no tent, no outrageous clues that we were in the midst of a New England circus haven; rather, a group of chipper teenagers were assembled on the porch of a nearby building, their parents clustered calmly around, attempting to shield their children’s sleeping bags and duffels from the light drizzle. Once we emerged from the car, however, it soon became clear to me how very “circus” the place was. Coaches and counselors flitted eagerly between groups of kids, chattering excitedly and coaxing giggles. All the campers were then ushered into a large room where we played multiple “icebreaker”, “get-to-know-you” type games. Everyone was kind and enthusiastic, greeting new friends as well as old faces. By the time lights out rolled around, I knew that I was in for two weeks of intense circus fun. Still, I was getting antsy… the games were fun, but I was ready to hit the tents! The beautiful mountain view in the Greensboro, VT area. August 3rd: First full day             As we rounded a bend at the end of our morning jog, we cleared the edge of the trees and a large, open field stretched in front of our eyes. In this field were not only cows and vegetable plots, but three colorful, striped circus tents. The first, blue, white, and yellow, was the aerials and juggling tent; the second, red and gold, was the acrobatics tent; the smallest, striped red and white, was for “performance” skills (clowning, improv games, etc.). Right away, we got down to business. All us Roadshow kids sat in a circle, and shared what our main skill areas were, and what type of acts we’d be interested in performing. Next, we brainstormed possible themes for the show: cowboys, outer space, etc. With plenty of creativity flowing, we then rotated through the different circus disciplines, showing what we knew and playing lots of performance games to get comfortable with expressing ourselves. By the afternoon, we’d decided on a theme—airports. During evening tent time, we tried arranging our skills into acts that would fit the airport theme—pyramids in the shape of an airplane, slapstick with luggage, and neon juggling clubs as ground control signalers, for example. By the time we were heading back to the dorms, I felt as though we’d been practicing forever- but we still had a long way to go! Our show had an "airport" theme.  "Smirkus-air" graphics by Circus4Youth editor. August 4th: Second day             As soon as I woke up, I noticed a soreness beginning in my legs. We went through the morning rotations again, but this time we used each station to try out specific elements that might be a part of the show. We continued with improv skills in the performance tent, experimented with an airplane pyramid in acrobatics, and started a ball juggling number in juggling. When we got to the aerial rotation we pushed the trapezes and fabrics aside and used the space to practice more clown gags, since we would be unable to bring aerial equipment along on our shows.             In the afternoon, we decided to add an adagio act. Most of the show was filled with peppy clowning and juggling, but we wanted something slower and calmer to add depth to the show, and give the audience a rest. One of our performers was an excellent flyer, and several clowns transformed into straight-faced bases.             In the evening, four of us worked with the Smirkus camp clown coaches to choreograph a slapstick act. It was the first time doing slapstick for most of us, and we were both excited and challenged. By the time we headed back along the dark path toward the dorms, I really felt as though our group had accomplished a lot. AUGUST 4th PHOTOS: The wing of an "airplane". Trying out ways to make an airplane-shaped pyramid.     Left: We even worked some magic into the show. Right: An intermediate camper enjoys practicing new skills. This clown gag, about pedsestrians listening (and dancing) to their MP3 players, was reworked several times. Stretching during an evening practice. ************************************************************** August 5th: Third Day This time when I woke up, the soreness had arrived full-on!             We spent most of this day figuring out the specifics of what would happen in each act, which largely meant putting tricks into sequence and deciding who would do what and when.             Some of us had been working on acts in small groups, and this was the first time that we got to see some of them. We added a second small security gag, as well. All in all, the show seemed to be fleshing out. We were all grateful that we got the evening off for a few hours of traditional summer camp fun in the form of a talent show and campfire. AUGUST 5th PHOTOS:     Practicing some partner club juggling out in the grass between the tents.   Practicing the "Airport Security" gag...and the real thing! The MP3 player gag in progress. A relaxing evening by the campfire with new found friends. *********************************************************** August 6th: Fourth Day             This day was spent organizing transitions between the acts. One thing unique to Roadshow was that our whole performance space was two strips of panel mats. This meant that there was no backstage, so all eleven of us were in front of the audience the entire time. During acts that did not involve the whole cast, therefore, the rest of us had to be engaged and aware of our presence, while not detracting from those who were performing. To accommodate this, “background people” became chairs, tables, doorways, and idle pedestrians around the edge of the mats, an effect that took quite a bit of choreography to accomplish.             We were all excited to add an additional element to our show in the afternoon- costumes! We indulged in raiding the costume bins for bright and outrageous pedestrian outfits. Putting them on felt like declaring “yes, I am a circus performer!”; I instantly felt funnier and more expressive.             By the afternoon, things were going a lot smoother—which made it much more fun! We even did our first full run-through of the show for a few staff members before dinner. It certainly wasn’t perfect, but having an audience was exciting. Evening practice brought some individual practice on weaker acts, and then another run-through. AUGUST 6th PHOTOS:     Raiding the costume boxes! A goofy group shot...no wonder these kids are in the circus! ************************************************************* August 7th: Fifth Day             It was difficult to believe that Friday morning had come so fast! That night we were supposed to unveil our finished show in front of the rest of the camp, and the very next day we’d be doing our first official performances!             We started off in the acrobatics tent, and created a tumbling and pyramid number for the finale. Next we cleaned up both the ball and juggling acts; we made a last minute switch to using all white clubs for the juggling tricks so that they’d be easier to see. The club passing cross box, which had nearly been cut from the act, really seemed to come together as well. After a few run-throughs of the show, evening had come, and it was time to perform in front of the rest of the camp!             Performing for the other campers was so much fun. They laughed easily, and were eager to cheer for other young circus enthusiasts. Having an audience infused us with excitement as we chased each bout of laughter and every spurt of applause. Though there were definitely rough spots in several acts, this dress rehearsal in front of the camp gave us the confidence and enthusiasm we needed to take the show out into the community the next day! AUGUST 7th PHOTOS: The opening plane pyramid. Searching for someone named "Finkelstein" at the airport. A diabloist that just jumped out of that suitcase! Striking a pose during the ball juggling act. Baggage handlers engaged in a slapstick act. Ground crew controllers directing planes...with juggling clubs? Exhausted but happy at the final "Hup" ************************************************** August 8th: Sixth Day             This day started off with a special treat- sleeping in until 9:00 am! We then savored a delicious breakfast, and loaded the buses for Derby Line Days, a community fair held in northern Vermont. We performed three shows at Derby Line in just about three hours! We quickly learned that performing in the sun can be difficult, not only due to the heat, but also because of the bright rays obscuring our vision. Many of us opted to wear sunglasses during the juggling acts.             Performing in front of a “real” crowd of people from the community was very helpful. We listened to what parts made them laugh, and what parts didn’t. We watched for when their faces were engaged and attentive, and when their focus started to wane. These three shows were certainly not our best, but they provided invaluable feedback, which we used to improve our performance for subsequent audiences. AUGUST 8th PHOTOS: Unoading the van and warming up at the Derby Line Days Fair. TO BE CONTINUED      Email This Resource   Copyright © 1999-2010 Circus Fans Association of America and Authors. For more information view our  Copyright Policy & Privacy Policy .

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