In Center Ring presents, the legendary Mr. Paul Binder – the Brooklyn kid turned American circus icon. In this episode Mr. Binder details his years as a street performer in Europe with juggling partner and Big Apple Circus co-founder, Michael Christensen. He tips his figurative hat to the legends who ignited the showman in him….
In Center Ring presents circus impresario, Kevin Venardos. The actor turned beloved Ringmaster turned Circus boss opens up about his remarkable journey in entertainment, his adventures as an entrepreneur, forging ahead and creating new paths in the age of COVAID19, mastering the art of the comeback, and his newest and most prized role, fatherhood….
“For me, founding Big Apple Circus was an act of love,” says the legendary Paul Binder. For founders Michael Christensen and Paul Binder, that love began as jugglers on the streets of Europe. Their talents would take them from London to Istanbul, eventually landing them in the Nouveau Cirque de Paris. “Being in the circus…
The circus is a grand community of joy peddlers and dream makers. We’re a milieu of language and culture that merges into one language and one culture – circus. It is a life long fraternity for those of us privileged to be apart of its ranks. It is more than entertainment or a means of…
“It was only going to be a year,” said Vanessa Thomas about her intentions upon joining the cast of The Greatest Show On Earth®. I said the exact same thing when I joined Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® as well, over 17 years ago. After all, Thomas, a Philadelphia native, was on course to…
For Bernice Collins, life in Kansas City, KS, was quaint and easygoing. She was one of six children in a musical, church-going family. Her father, a musician, emphasized education, encouraging his children to learn all they could and try to see as much of the world as possible. Somewhere in Bernice’s young imagination her father’s…
On occasion it is implied that the circus is an archive of a bygone era. Cynics blather exhaustively that the art known for soaring bodies and fabulous animals, among other diverse spectacles, has somehow faded by the wayside of a modern tech-indulgent generation, whose own spectacles, we are told, are so effortlessly accessed via their…
The first thing anyone ever notices about Jenny Vidbel is her smile. It’s the purest smile I’ve ever seen. It emanates from a soul steeped in genuine gratitude, abundant joy and love for her craft. Yet, to see her as the woman and talent that she is today, coupled with the stardom she enjoys as…
