 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(October 2018) |
The Gym Dandies is the largest children's circus in New England. Located in Scarborough, Maine, the program is an extracurricular activity for any children in grades three through twelve who wish to participate.
This is the Gym Dandies' mission statement, according to their website Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine :
The group generally only does performances around New England, especially in the states of Maine and New Hampshire, however they have also been to the National Independence Day Parade three times (2000 2004,2006 and 2011), the Montreal Bicycle Festival (2002), the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2005), the National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade (2008 and 2012). Most recently the group was invited to participate in the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Day Parade in Washington D.C. (2013). The Gym Dandies were also an annual participant in the Maine State Parade until it was cancelled. The children's circus has also been featured twice on the PBS show, Zoom .
Many times, the Gym Dandies will visit other schools around New England to give lessons and community performances. They often leave a lasting impression, and many schools are motivated to start their own circus arts program. In addition to this, there is an annual performance for the town of Scarborough.
A list of the circus arts equipment that the group uses in its performances:
The Gym Dandies" Children’s Circus of Scarborough, Maine came into existence when Jon Cahill, the director of this group, began incorporating circus skills into the physical education program. Mr. Cahill soon realized that circus arts had the potential to be much more than just an alternate activity in the physical education curriculum. There were numerous potential benefits that could be realized by children as a result of participating in this unusual, challenging, and exciting endeavor. But, something was missing. The children loved to demonstrate their skills. They wanted to perform, and this was the birth of "The Gym Dandies".
In 1981, "The Gym Dandies", the little "Big Top" of Scarborough, consisted of ten enthusiastic fifth and sixth grade boys and girls and a box full of tennis balls. Circus arts are naturally motivating for children at this age and soon it became obvious that juggling, although challenging, was not enough. "The Gym Dandies" held what might have been the "World’s First Juggle -A-Thon" in the spring of 1981. Funds raised from the Juggle-A-Thon went toward the purchase of unicycles. By the spring of 1982, after a great deal of hard work, “The Gym Dandies" had evolved into a stylized unicycling and juggling group normally found only in professional circuses.
Approximately 230 children now participate each school year. There are beginner and advanced groups and each member meets once a week to practice. The age range of participants is 8 to 18 years old. Well over 4,000 Scarborough, Maine school children have participated in the Gym Dandies circus arts program since 1981.
The following outline provides an overview of and topical guide to entertainment and the entertainment industry:
Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object or many objects at the same time, most often using one or two hands but other body parts as well, like feet or head. Jugglers often refer to the objects they juggle as props. The most common props are balls, clubs, or rings. Some jugglers use more dramatic objects such as knives, fire torches or chainsaws. The term juggling can also commonly refer to other prop-based manipulation skills, such as diabolo, plate spinning, devil sticks, poi, cigar boxes, contact juggling, hooping, yo-yo, hat manipulation and kick-ups.
A unicycle is a vehicle that touches the ground with only one wheel. The most common variation has a frame with a saddle, and has a pedal-driven direct-drive. A two speed hub is commercially available for faster unicycling. Unicycling is practiced professionally in circuses, by street performers, in festivals, and as a hobby. Unicycles have also been used to create new sports such as unicycle hockey. In recent years, unicycles have also been used in mountain unicycling, an activity similar to mountain biking or trials.
The Big Apple Circus is a circus based in New York City. Opened in 1977, later becoming a nonprofit organization, it became a tourist attraction. The circus has been known for its community outreach programs, including Clown Care, as well as its humane treatment of animals. Big Apple Circus filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2016 and exited bankruptcy in February 2017 after its assets were bought by Compass Partners. The Circus was renewed in October 2017 for its 40th anniversary season and returned to start a new season in October 2018 at Lincoln Center, receiving generally positive reviews.
Red's Dream is a 1987 American animated short film written and directed by John Lasseter and produced by Pixar. The short film, which runs four minutes, stars Red, a unicycle. Propped up in the corner of a bicycle store on a rainy night, Red dreams of a fantasy where it becomes the star of a circus. Red's Dream was Pixar's second computer-animated short following Luxo Jr. in 1986, also directed by Lasseter.
Anthony Gatto is an American juggler who holds several juggling world records. He began performing in Las Vegas at the age of ten.
Many countries, cities or juggling clubs hold their own annual juggling convention or juggling festivals. These are the backbone of the juggling scene, the events that regularly bring jugglers from a wide area together to socialize. The attendance of a convention can be anything from a few dozen to a few thousand people.
Education in the performing arts is a key part of many primary and secondary education curricula and is also available as a specialisation at the tertiary level. The performing arts, which include, but are not limited to dance, music and theatre, are key elements of culture and engage participants at a number of levels.
Circus Smirkus is a non-profit, award-winning, international youth circus founded in 1987 by Rob Mermin. Based in Greensboro, Vermont, the mission of Circus Smirkus is to promote the skills, culture and traditions of the traveling circus and to inspire youth to engage in the circus arts.
The Great All American Youth Circus, also known as The Great Y Circus, is billed as the oldest community circus in the world and is located in Redlands, California, United States.
Rudy Horn was a well-regarded juggler.
The Philadelphia School of Circus Arts (PSCA) is a contemporary circus school in Philadelphia. It began in June 2008.
The Israeli Juggling Convention (IJC) takes place each year during the Passover Holiday. The IJC is the second biggest juggling convention in the world with around 2000 participants each year.
Zach Warren is an American circus performer and psychologist. In 2005, he began working with the Afghan Mobile Mini Children's Circus and was Director of Policy Research for The Asia Foundation between 2014-2017. He is known for breaking world records in unicycling and juggling.
The Ansan Street Arts Festival is an annual street festival held every May in the city of Ansan, South Korea.
The King Charles Troupe is an American group of unicycling and basketball playing circus performers. In 1969, they became the first known major African-American circus act in modern American circus.
The Berousek family is a Czech family, originally from Vilémov, with members who have been circus performers for two centuries. Skills include comedy, puppetry, acrobatics, equestrianism, bear training, tight rope walking, and juggling.
Make*A*Circus was a professional, recreational, and educational circus that created free day-long events in which children observed a professional circus performance, took workshops in the circus skills of their choice, and finally performed their own circus. It took place outdoors in parks, in primarily underserved neighborhoods in the San Francisco Bay Area, and all over the state of California, with 400 to 700 children per show. It lasted for 25 years, from 1975 to 2002.
Rong "Krystal" Niu is a Chinese American acrobat who performs under the stage name Red Panda named after the animal with the same name. Her act involves riding a 7-foot (2.1 m) tall unicycle while catching and balancing multiple metal bowls on her feet and head. She is known for her performances during halftime shows of National Basketball Association (NBA) games. She also appeared in season 8 of America's Got Talent.