Circus engages young audience in Fish Creek

By Andrew Paloczi

STUNNING circus performances engaged audiences of children and their family members when ‘Are We There Yet’ hit Fish Creek Memorial Hall, the show part of the Fish Creek Carnival and running twice a day last Wednesday and Thursday.

The adventure took the form of a road trip, filled with fun, frivolity and audience engagement as the cast incorporated their varied talents to great effect, with those putting on the show having also entertained an adult audience during the New Year’s Eve Cabaret event at the Fish Creek Hotel.

Director Kate Fryer outlined her role of bringing together the diverse talents of the performers to form a harmonious ensemble.

“How do we contextualise it and make it work within the world?” was the question she successfully answered as highlighted by the delight of the kids in the audience.

They relished the routines of Leongatha’s Lili Akers, who displayed her aerial skills and ability on the Roue Cyr wheel, Hannie Helsden’s expertise as she simultaneously controlled many hula hoops, the juggling of Richard Sullivan and the extraordinary feats of strength and mastery shown by Bede Nash.

Tash York also thrilled the young audience members, quickly turning their suggestions of a character name and traits into an upbeat song in which she got them to participate.

The resultant adventure of ‘Poo Poo Pants’ was entertaining, even for the adults.

All too soon the entertainment finished, but not before everyone enjoyed a jam-packed show.

After the show, Hannie spoke about her love of entertaining kids, seeing and hearing them getting involved.

“It’s really fun for us,” she said.

While fun, such shows require substantial dedication from cast members, with Hannie practising for many years with her hula hoops, including a three-year period of training for two hours a day.

She explained that she always goes in the same direction with the hoops and needs to do stretching and Pilates to keep her body in balance.

As well as the ‘Are We There Yet’ performances, kids and some adults threw themselves into workshops, learning circus skills.

One of the workshop facilitators, Karina Schiller said it’s fun watching kids try something new.

She delights at seeing participants return the next year, some surprisingly remembering what they did previously and building on that.

“Kids who don’t get an opportunity to shine at school shine in circus,” Karina said, adding that being distracted, running around and climbing on stuff mightn’t be looked on favourably in an academic environment but it’s a different matter in the circus world.

There’s no doubt many Fish Creek locals and visitors are already looking forward to next year’s Fish Creek Carnival.