Circus Sarasota

Rivals Cirque de Soleil; truly lives up to the description as the «greatest show»

So happy we went to the last show this year of Circus Sarasota! What a great circus! Everyone in the show was great, so skilled at their craft! I couldn’t believe how good they were! From the jugglers to the acrobatics, unbelievable what they could do! And to top it off I got to meet Nik Wallenda and his family after the show and get autographs! They were frightening in the show tonight! I was so happy when their act was over! I don’t know how they do it! The show had a few things for children, but I think it was more aimed at an adult audience — just my opinion. The best part of circus Sarasota is that they are non-​profit and give so much back to the community, from arts and education to entertaining children and elderly with lots of laughter. I really liked the show and the people involved with this event. Go see it next year!

This was a tremendous value considering the quality and quantity of the acts. I only paid $ 10 for my ticket, but it would have been well worth it had I paid three or four times more. Many of the performers are top-​notch and amaze with their physical feats. I could’ve done without the ventriloquist, but kids seemed to like him. There is really no bad seat, so you don’t necessarily have to sit ringside to feel close to the action. My only complaint is that it was too warm under the plastic tent.

This is the second season when the Directors of Circus joined with Key Chorale. Young Chorale, and the younthful Sympony players to bring an unequalled show to the Big Top, set up in the pasture across from Ed Smith’s Orioles stadium.
Five performances were sold out with good reason. We had sublime orchestrations from instruments and trained voices which alone would more than justify the $ 40-​$ 45 price per ticket. But an old-​fashioned circus performance (no animals) really amped up the fun.
Seventh generation Wallendas on the high wire. Old fashioned gasps from the crowd as the oldest aerialist’s foot slipped from the chair balancing on the ⁵⁄₈ inch wire. It was part of the performance we learned later, but we bought it, and the suspense built with the musical crescendo
The opening announcement informed us that the Wallendas never work with a net, but the orchestra, seated below the high wires in the small performance circle, and noticeably beneath a heavy net — DO! Physically perfect acrobats in glittery costumes amazed us only a few feet from the grand stands. Goofy clowns were interspersed in the action and never over-​stayed their welcome. Fire eaters kicked off the action and were close enough for the audience to breathe in the fumes and see the smoke linger in the spotlight above the red-​coated Ringmaster.
You walk on a field of tamped down grass and can feel the late afternoon sun heat up the tyvec tarp that leads to the seats. We had a choice of blue or pink cotton candy. You must lick your fingers to get every last, melting bit of it. Toasted pretzels with sea salt. Really bad soda from overcharged cylinders manned by inexperienced food sellers. Lemonade. Circus souvenirs including red clown noses. I luuuuuved it.