Human cannonball Shawn Marren in his cannon outside the Westchester County Center in White Plains before a performan of the Royal Hanneford Circus. / Xavier Mascareñas / The Journal News
By Karen Crokefrom: www.lohud.com
Dec. 16, 2011
Hurtling through space at 70 mph sheathed in a skin-tight blue suit emblazoned with lighting bolts is child’s play for Shawn Marren.
The 26-year-old circus performer, and father of toddler twin boys, makes a living being shot out of a cannon.“It’s so exciting,” he says.Marren wasn’t born a daredevil. He was a college trumpet major before, literally running off to join the Royal Hanneford Circus — much to the dismay of his mother.“My mother came to see my first shot and she was distressed,” he says. “All she said was, ‘How did I raise a cannonball?’
”At show time, Marren is all business, checking, double-checking and triple-checking harnesses, nuts, bolts, cables and his calculations. “You don’t want to hit the ceiling,” he says, matter-of-factly.What’s not to like?“It’s the best thing ever. When I’m in the air, to hear kids go ‘whoooo,’ that’s cool. To see all the faces? I’m giving them something they’ve never seen before.”
Catch him in 2012: The Royal Hanneford Circus returns to the Westchester County Center Feb. 18-20.
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