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Submitted by Pete Adams on 8/21/2007 Last Modified
The Wenatchee Youth Circus celebrates its 55th Anniversary this season with performances all over Washington State. Under the guidance of founder Paul Pugh who is their managing director and with the assistance of David Henderson and Cyndi Thatcher, Assistant Managers, this show comes on the lot as two 18 wheel semi trucks. Yes, this youth circus is unique as it sets up for each and every performance on a different field most every week and performs from 3 to 5 shows at each site. Paul Pugh who started the program and later was a school principal, maintains his makeup and clown routine known as “Guppo”. The show continued to grow from those early days to now putting on a full fledged performance with a flying act, wire act and yes three rings of entertainment.
The five colorful wagons that are loaded on the semi trailer are a reminderof the old days in circus history when wagons were loaded onrailroad flat cars as seen in the lower photo
The unloading ramps are set in place.
The wagon is lowered down with an electric winch.The crew pushes the wagon to it's position on the circus lot.
When the two semis come onto the lot, you realize that everything has to be taken off the semis and put up which takes from 5 to 6 hours. While visiting the show, I took time to watch the entire set up one evening before the first performance the next day. Five specialty designed wagons are hauled on one flatbed trailer. When taken off, one of these becomes the band stand with a calliope and drums. Two others contain the two dressing/sleeping tents for the students and their chaperones as well as for costumes. The last two wagons contain equipment for the specific acts. Individual performers and parents are assigned their roles in putting up the dressing tents, canvass backdrops, setting up the cook and dining tent area, and keeping the performance area clear. Racks on the sides of the semi and underneath hold the entire major center poles to features the aerial acts, the tight wire and also the flying rigging. The second truck is a full kitchen in the center with stove, refrigerator, oven, and freezer with plenty of space for their circus cook. In addition to the center cookhouse, a generator is contained in the front quarter of the semi and storage is in the back.
The traditionally painted circus truck parked in position.
Safety pads and other equiptment are loaded in this wagon.
This wagon also has side doors to make things easier.
The circus ring sections, called "ring curbs" are unloaded.
The aluminum poles for aerial rigging are being unloaded from thelower portion of the semi trailer called the "possum belly".
At the back door area, a crew sets up the wardrobe tent, also called the "pad room".
To assist the director and assistant directors is a great group of active supporting parent volunteers and several older students who have learned how to put up the circus as well as performing and then afterwards how to take it down and re pack it into the specialty wagons. There are 30 plus member of the cast this year which means that each and every performer also has tasks to perform including set up and tear down as well as performing during the show. Children of all ages are invited to join, but youth under the age of 12 must have a parent/guardian in attendance. The normal schedule is to arrive the day before the show, set up the show in the early evening, perform for the next two days and then tear down after the final show returning back to Wenatchee that night.
The whole crew helps in the raising of the aerial rigging frame.
Supporty guy lines are tightened with a "rachett come along".
Additional aerial rigging goes up by block & tackle.
While not in any Phys-Ed handbook, beating iron stakes intothe ground is great exercise!
When you have to set up the entire show, the whole premise of safety is most important and the adults at Wenatchee take special care including the winching of the wagons as they are lowered from the semi to the ground. They can then be pushed to where they need to be on the lot. The second semi is the back drop for the show with the dining tent toward the back of the show. In addition two small tents are set up for the novelties and food items sold near the ticketing area in the come in. Seating is defined by the place of performance and in this case of the visit to Wenatchee were supplied by the recreation department by bringing 10 sets of bleachers to one side of the arena.
With the main aerial frame in place, 4 additional poles are raised along side.
Adjustments are made to the flying trapeze rigging.
"Now hold that stake steady", more iron stakes must be driven.
....and girls can drive stakes too!.
Paul Pugh, the director and founder of the Wenatchee Youth Circus"bites off" a pully block from the aerial rigging.
Once the unloading begins, all rigging is taken to the designated area from which it will be set. At the same time the center ring is brought out of the back of the center wagon which also contained the calliope. Once the many poles were in place different teams of students did various activities. Some worked on putting up the two costume/sleeping tents while others started the process of putting in the stakes necessary to guide the equipment. Remember we have the sky as our top, so all rigging had to come from the ground. The youth has garnered how to double hit on the stakes and really brought back memories of the setting up of the big top. The lifting of pipes, etc was determined by the age and strength of each individual and no student had to exert himself/herself more than he/she could actually handle. Once stakes were in the ground and the high wire platform was attached to the top of the poles, the wire went up. Measuring the angles and space was all very carefully calculated by the directors. Once up, it was secured.
Taking a test flight on the swinging ladder.Of utmost importance....the CIRCUS4YOUTH banner must be hung!
A well deserved break, these kids work hard!
At a similar time the set up of the four center poles was begun again mapped out for accuracy. Safety was the most important aspect of all work. This gave the show three rings to perform various aerial acts. In the back of ring one the flying act rigging was also set up in a similar manner. As much of this is being done by the older students and adults, the younger members were assembling props needed for each ring of the performance areas. In addition two trampolines were put together from scratch which saves storage space and a low wire was built at one end of the arena. Truly the set up was amazing with the kids sweating and working so hard so that the next day they can perform. Very few youth shows put up their own rigging every time they perform. Rigging was checked at the end by warming up on some apparatus. In all cases mats of various descriptions are used again for safety where nets will not work. The flyers and the wire walkers of course had nets.
Wagons 31 & 32 carries tents and wardrobe
Wagon 33 carries the air calliope, the sound system and tumbling mats.
Wagon 34 carries misc equiptment and the flying trapeze rigging (exept the long ploes)
Wagon 35 carries the high wire rigging and net.
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