All That Chat - 2nd Annual Celebration of American Circus Awards with Evolving Circus Honoree Bill Irwin

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2nd Annual Celebration of American Circus Awards with Evolving Circus Honoree Bill Irwin - 1/5
Posted by:	Official_Press_Release 04:58 pm EST 12/22/15

Circus Now and Big Apple Circus In Association With Jonathan S. Cerullo \| JSCTheatricals present The 2nd Annual Celebration of American Circus Evolving Circus Honoree: Bill Irwin with David Shiner presenting the award featuring Emcee Thom Wall January 5, 2016 at 8pm at Lincoln Center To honor and spotlight the distinguished achievements in the American circus arts, Circus Now together with the Big Apple Circus, in association with Executive Producer and Director Jonathan S. Cerullo, JSC Theatricals, is proud to present the 2nd Annual Celebration of American Circus at the Big Top at Lincoln Center on January 5, 2016 at 8pm. Part ceremony, part performance, the Celebration of American Circus will honor four artists and/or organizations that have been prominent in the circus arts landscape in America, while spotlighting the thriving state of the circus arts across the nation, and will feature Emcee Thom Wall, with performances from a variety of breath-taking acts. Tickets start at $25 and are available online at www.circusnow.org/CELEBRATE2016. For the second year, the Celebration of American Circus presents a distinguished and impressive roster of honorees, all of which have spent decades furthering the appreciation of circus arts in America. Sabrina Motley, director of the Smithsonian's Folklife Festival, will present the Community Impact Award to Circus Smirkus Founder Rob Mermin and Ed LeClair, Smirkus's Executive Director. Duncan Wall of Circus Now will present the Elevating Circus Award to Dominque Jando, renowned circus historian and author. David Shiner will roast and toast and present the Evolving Circus Award to his fellow clownical artist Bill Irwin. Andthis year we introduce a new award, the Lifetime Achievement Award, will be presented by the legendary Dolly Jacobs (Circus Sarasota) to the legendary Hovey Burgess! Evolving Circus Award, presented by David Shiner HONOREE: BILL IRWIN This award is given annually to an individual whose personal and/or professional contributions have made a significant and permanent impact on the circus field in America, with specific consideration of how the recipient's work has influenced the perception of the circus arts by the American public and the arts and entertainment industry. Bill Irwin is a graduate in theatre arts from Oberlin College, OH, a graduate of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey's Clown College, FL, and received a MacArthur Genius Grant in 1984. Irwin began his film career in 1980 and earned film credits in more than twenty movies. His best-known film role was "Lou Lou Who" in Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000). He is also a producer, director, writer, and choreographer. In 2001, Irwin collaborated with the renowned Russian mime Vyacheslav Polunin, who organized the New Carnival within the framework of the World Theatre Olympics, in the Hermitage Gardens in Moscow. There, Irwin performed in the duo with David Shiner, among some of the best acting comedians of the 20th century, such as Vyacheslav Polunin, Django Edwards, Jérôme Deschamps, Franz-Joseph Bogner, Leo Bassi, Gennadiy Khazanov, Leonid Yarmolnik and Bolek Polívka, and over a hundred of other comedians and mimes from all over the world. He appeared on Broadway in Accidental Death of an Anarchist and at La Jolla Playhouse in The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, among his other stage works. Bill Irwin won the 2005 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play, for his performance in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? He was also nominated for four Tony Awards as an actor, author, director, and choreographer. Irwin and Shiner will appear together next in Old Hats. Called "one of the funniest shows of the past few years" by the New York Post, and selected as a Critics' Pick by The New York Times and Time Out New York, Old Hats will entertain audiences January 26 through March 3, 2016, with a Thursday, February 18 opening night at The Irene Diamond Stage at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). Tickets start at $45. To purchase tickets for all Signature productions, including Incident at Vichy by Arthur Miller and Night is a Room by Naomi Wallace, call Ticket Services at 212-244-7529 (Tues. - Sun., 11am - 6pm) or visit signaturetheatre.org. After an extended, sold out run in 2013, Signature welcomes back Bill Irwin and David Shiner in their award-winning, critically acclaimed production of Old Hats. This production reunites the clowns with original director Tina Landau and introduces their new songstress and comic foil Shaina Taub, hailed as "a young Judy Garland meets grown-up Lisa Simpson" by the San Francisco Chronicle. Using music, technology, and movement, Irwin and Shiner combine their inimitable magic and slapstick to create an unforgettable outing that's fun for the whole family. Community Impact Award, presented by Sabrina Lynn Motley, Director of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival HONOREE: CIRCUS SMIRKUS This award is given annually to a circus artist or organization that has succeeded in harnessing and demonstrating the power of the circus arts for community engagement and social good, and in bringing diverse audiences together through quality programming. Circus Smirkus is Vermont's own award-winning international youth circus. Since 1987, the company has promoted the skills, culture and traditions of the traveling circus, inspiring youth to engage in life-changing adventures in the circus arts. Rob Mermin (Founder, Circus Smirkus) ran off to the circus in 1969. He studied mime with Marcel Marceau and Etienne Decroux, and clowned with circuses throughout Europe, Scandinavia, and the Soviet Union in shows including Britain's Circus Hoffman, the Hungarian State Circusz, Sweden's Circus Scott (performing Karl Kossmayer's Comedy Mule Act), circus buildings in Russia, and three years (1973-75) in Copenhagen's circus building with Cirkus Benneweis. In 1995 Rob was co-director of Ringling's Clown College. In 1987 Rob founded the international Big Top touring company Circus Smirkusin Vermont. Rob has authored two books on Circus Smirkus: A True Story of High Adventure & Low Comedy.Rob's awards include Copenhagen's World Star-Time Gold Clown; Russia's Best Director Prize at The International Festival on the Black Sea; The Lund Center's It Takes A Village Award; the Vermont Arts Council Award of Merit and the 2008 Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts. www.RobMermin.com Ed LeClair (Producer and Executive Director, Circus Smirkus) has 35 years of business and nonprofit performing arts management experience, holding the position of Producer, Executive Director, or General Manager for four companies. He has produced the last thirteen tours for Circus Smirkus, presenting over 500 shows. Since his joining Circus Smirkus in 2003, the organization has grown rapidly to become one of the top 100 companies in Vermont. Under his direction Circus Smirkus and its performers have been featured on PBS, "The Martha Stewart Show", "Fletch", "America's Got Talent", and The Toronto Film Festival. As Executive Director, Ed has continued Circus Smirkus' longstanding tradition of cultural exchanges, initiating partnerships with circuses in Columbia, Mongolia, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Cuba, and France. Ed holds an MBA from the Tuck School at Dartmouth, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical/Nuclear Engineering from the University of Arkansas. He studied and performed the Japanese art of Taiko drumming for 12 years and toured Japan with Vermont's Burlington Taiko. Elevating Circus Award, presented by Duncan Wall, Creative Director of Circus Now HONOREE: DOMINIQUE JANDO This award is given annually to an individual or an organization who has made a lasting contribution to increasing public awareness about the beauty, artistry, creative potential of the circus arts through their body of work, with particular attention paid to interdisciplinary collaboration or expression. Dominique Jando began his involvement with the performing arts more than five decades ago in his native France, when he first stepped into a circus ring as a clown at the legendary Cirque Medrano in Paris. Later he pursued an artistic and administrative career in both the theater and the circus. In 1974, as General Secretary of the Paris Cultural Center, he participated with Alexis Gruss in the creation of France's first professional circus school, and of Le Cirque à l'Ancienne, which eventually became the French National Circus and is considered the catalyst of the European 'New Circus' movement. He moved to New York in 1983 to join the Big Apple Circus, and served as its Associate Artistic Director for nineteen years. He then worked as Creative Director of Circus Center in San Francisco, California. He is now an independent circus arts consultant and writer, and is Vice-President and Artistic Director of Lone Star Circus® in Dallas, Texas. He is also Founder and Curator of Circopedia.org, an international online circus encyclopedia funded by the Shelley and Donald Rubin Foundation. A circus and popular entertainment historian, Dominique has published several books and written many articles on these subjects, both in Europe and the US. The Russian translation of his Histoire Mondiale du Cirque is used as a textbook at Moscow's Circus and Variety State College and GITIS theater institute. He often lectures on circus and popular entertainment, has taught classical clowning at Circus Center's Clown Conservatory, is the International Circus Consultant for Guinness World Records, Ltd., and is a founding member of the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain, an international circus competition that has been held each winter in Paris since 1977. He has served on the juries of international circus festivals in Europe, Russia, Mexico, and Israel. Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by Dolly Jacobs, Founder & Associate Director of Circus Sarasota HONOREE: HOVEY BURGESS This award is given to an individual artist, troupe, or company whose overall contributions to the field and community are substantial, undeniable and significant. Born in Middlebury, Vermont in 1940, Hovey Burgess will complete his fiftieth (50th) year of teaching circus techniques for actors at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts this spring. This summer he will hit the "sawdust trail" for his twenty-sixth season with St. Louis-based Circus Flora. Hovey Burgess is author of Circus Techniques with photographs by Judy Finelli. He has written for TDR (Tulane Drama Review) and Spectacle. He served as circus choreographer for Robert Altman's film Popeye with the late Robin Williams in the title role. From Juilliard's Drama Division to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, Hovey's teaching career has spanned the United States, from Maine to California and from Washington State to Florida, as well as Canada and Israel. Previous honors include City Lore's People's Hall of Fame; International Jugglers Association's Excellence in Education Award; Red Skelton Award for Teaching and Mentoring Clowns; Golden Nose Award for Lifetime Achievement; and Burlesque Idol's Best Dressed Award. A "Master of Modern Vaudeville," Thom Wall has wowed audiences around the globe. With a sharp wit and sharper knives, Thom juggles, balances, and dives his way through exciting and fast-paced acts that astonish and amaze. As one of the last great American gentleman jugglers, Thom presents an elegant show with nuanced comedy and some of the most unusual tricks seen today. Thom is a complete variety performer, finely tailoring each performance to engage and surprise his audience, resulting in a unique and refreshing experience each time. Hailing originally from St Louis, Missouri, Thom regularly performs internationally. In addition to appearances in Hong Kong and South Korea, he toured with Cirque du Soleil's show Totem, where he juggled for thousands each night on tour across the US, Canada, and New Zealand. Thom has won awards internationally for his circus performances, notably the 2015 "People's Choice" Special Prize at the Riga International Circus Festival in Latvia, the Bronze and Silver medals at the International Jugglers' Association Senior Stage Championships (one of which was awarded for the first mouthstick act ever to receive an award in the organization's 67 year history), and "Best of the Fringe" for his duo act "The Dinner And A Show Show" at the 2014 Kansas City Fringe Festival. He has had the pleasure of performing for dignitaries and diplomats worldwide. Thom is a graduate of the New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA) in Brattleboro, Vermont. When not on tour, he coaches aspiring circus artists at NECCA and regularly teaches workshops worldwide. About Circus Now Circus Now is a non-profit, national service organization and community movement working to support the circus arts in America through professional development, promotion, and connection. Founded in 2013, the organization operates with an "Action Team" of nationwide volunteers. We host events for people to meet, see work, and make circus together. We coordinate workshops and webinars to help circus companies thrive, and connect them with theaters. We coordinate advocacy campaigns so that people know that circus is a diverse, evolving, dynamic form of performance and practice-and that if they haven't experienced it already, they're missing out. Learn more at circusnow.org. About Big Apple Circus (Will Maitland Weiss, Executive Director; Guillaume Dufresnoy, Artistic Director) The company's mission is to invigorate the communities it serves with the joy and wonder of classical circus, creating a unique shared experience in the tent as well as dedicated outreach programs in healthcare facilities and communities across the nation. For the 38th season, the Big Apple Circus presents the World Premiere of The Grand Tour, which transports audiences to the Roaring 1920s, in Manhattan, New Jersey, Boston, and Queens. With every seat less than 50 feet from the stage, audiences will be awed by the world-class entertainers as they perform breathtaking acts from the four corners of the globe. As a nonprofit performing arts institution, the Big Apple Circus is committed not only to thrilling audiences in the ring, but also to bringing the joy and wonder of circus into the community. Big Apple Circus creates direct, shared connections inside its one-ring Big Top AND in hospitals, nursing homes, and schools, in its New York City home and in cities across America with such programs as Clown Care®, Circus of the Senses and Big Apple Circus Embraces Autism, Circus for All!® and Circus After School®. Conceived and founded by Paul Binder and Michael Christensen to be a leading presenter of live family entertainment and a nonprofit performing arts institution, the circus's nationwide performances and community programs have made the 38-year history far-reaching and full. It all began in 1974, when American entertainers Binder and Christensen became juggling partners and took to the street corners of Europe. Their comedic juggling act was a hit, and they soon found themselves on the stage of the prestigious Nouveau Cirque de Paris. They returned home to America in 1976 with a vision: to entertain and improve the lives of millions of American children and families. One year later, they found a site for the first tent-raising in Battery Park, New York, and went on to create the award-winning, nonprofit Big Apple Circus. For more information, visit www.bigapplecircus.org. About Jonathan S. Cerullo \| JSC Theatricals Jonathan Cerullo's career in professional entertainment spans 35 years, during which he has worked in every medium from Broadway to Off Broadway, National Tours, International, Film and Television, and the Circus Arts. In 2013 Jonathan made his debut as Executive Producer under his newly formed company, JSCTheatricals, LLC with Grand Central Terminal's Centennial Celebration, Orphan Train, The Musical directed by Emmy Award-winning director Patricia Birch. He choreographed both Carnivale! and Picturesque at Big Apple Circus, and has worked with some of the entertainment industries brightest talents among them, Wynton Marsalis, Sam Waterston, Nancy Giles, Abigail Disney, Philip Glass, Natalie Cole, and Bette Midler. He is an alumnus of both the Commercial Theatre Institute and the NY Foundation for the Arts Entrepreneurial Program, and a recipient of the Caroline Newhouse Scholarship from Career Transition for Dancers. Jonathan is a proud member of The Stage Director and Choreographers Society, Actors' Equity Association, The Dramatists Guild, and the Drama League, and is honored to serve as Vice Chair on the SDCF Callaway Award Committee as well as a nominator for the prestigious Lucille Lortel Awards recognizing excellence of the Off-Broadway season. For more info please visit his web site at www.jsctheatricals.com.
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