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Family circus to play Ha richer over FourthSan Francisco's Pickle Family Circus, the most popular circus attraction on the West Coast, will make its Midwest debut as part of July 4th weekend celebrations in Iowa City.Larry Pisoni (a.k.a. Lorenzo Pickle), founder of the Pickle Family Circus, is joined in the show by his 9-year-old son, Lorenzo Pisoni. The Pickle Family Circus, the West Coast's leading circus attraction, will make its first Midwest appearance, July 3-6, outdoors at Hancher Auditorium in Iowa City.Performances will be at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. July 3-5 and 3 p.m. July 6, outdoors at Hancher Auditorium. In the event of rain, performances will move inside the auditorium.The Pickle Family Circus is sponsored by Hancher Auditorium, Hy-Vee Stores and KGAN-TV. Refreshments will be available from Great Midwestern Ice Cream, Schwei-gert Meats and Coca-Cola.The one-ring Pickle Family Circus is at the forefront of the movement New Vaudeville, emphasizing the performance of the dextrous arts of clowning, juggling and acrobatics in an intimate atmosphere.Founded 12 years ago in San Francisco by the husband and wife team of clown Larry Pisoni and juggler Peggy Snider, the Pickle Family Circus strives to remove itself from the atmosphere typical of the larger three-ring spectacles.There are all sorts of things I didn't like about the big-top circuses, Pisoni explains. To me, they meant bad food, hyping the danger element, the offensive way men and women performers related to each other.The non-violent, community-oriented circus Pisoni and Snider have created has been called a magical blend of laughter and craft (San Francisco Chronicle) and the most artistically satisfying circus imaginable (San Francisco Examiner).The Pickle Family Circus is a family show rooted in circus and vaudeville traditions. Its acts do not include the roar of lions or humans being shot from cannons. At the Pickle Family Circus the excitement does not come from the fear that the bears are going to get loose or that the tightrope-walker is going to fall from a height of 100 feet.Pisoni says, We are not interested in risk-taking—that people at any second could fall and kill themselves.Instead, the excitement comes from what Pisoni calls the highly developed performance skills of his small troupe. Acts include the clowning skills of 9-year-old Lorenzo Pisoni; acrobatic feats of Tom Widen-er, Tash Wesp, 9-year-old Trevor Rogers, and 15-year-old Sky Sela; trapeze artistry of Rebecca Perez; trampoline rhythms of the Bayside Bouncers; and antics of 10 dancing gorillas. And almost everyone juggles, especially in the rousing finale.Prodeedings are accompanied by the Pickle Family Jazz Band, performing original music by the musicans themselves.One of the most important aspects of the pickle Family Circus, says Pisoni, is the truly intimate atmosphere surrounding the ring. As the show begins, children circle the ring by the dozens while Lorenzo Pickle (a.k.a. Larry Pisoni) goes around, shaking their hands. During the show, the performers seem to be having such a good time that their pleasure envelopes the audience (San Francisco Examiner).It's a spectacular feeling to meet people who come up after the show and say they saw us at age 12 and now they're bringing their own kids to see the circus, Pisoni says. The fact that people feel comfortable about coming up and talking to us is what the philosophy of our performances is all about—making connections with people.The Pickle Family Circus was the origin of two other successful acts with similar outlooks: the Flying Karamozov Brothers, who performed in Hancher Auditorium last season and were featured in the Michael Douglas-Kathleen Turner film The Jewel of the Nile, and clown Bill Irwin, the first performing artist to receive a Mac Arthur Foundation genius grant in the four years the awards have been given.General admission tickets for all performances of the Pickle Family Circus are $6 for adults and $4 for people age 13 and under. Tickets are available in advance from the Hancher Auditorium box office and Iowa City/C or alville Hy-Vee Stores.Hancher box office is open 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday. Iowans outside Iowa City may call toll-free 1-800-H AN CHER. Iowa City residents and persons outside Iowa should call (319) 353-6255.
Newspaper Details
Coralville Weekly Courier
Coralville, Iowa, US
Wed, Jul 02, 1986
Page 3
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USA 06 Apr 2024
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