Virginia State Fair gets new lease on life


 

This Wednesday, March 28, 2012 file photo shows an entrance to the 360-acre Meadow Event Park site, in Doswell, Va. The site is being sold at foreclosure sale after the State Fair of Virginia Inc. defaulted on more than $80 million in financing from a group of creditors. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
from: wtop.com
Sunday - 5/27/2012
WASHINGTON - It's been a wild ride when it comes to the Virginia State Fair. But after it went bankrupt and its land was sold, the event got a fairy-tale ending.

The 150-year-old nonprofit fair and the event site was recently purchased by Mark Lovell, who says the fair will go on.

Lovell owns Universal Fairs, a for-profit Tennessee-based company that stages festivals and fairs. He successfully bid $5.35 million at an auction for the State Fair of Virginia's intellectual property and its real estate last week.

Lovell now owns the Meadow Event Park, where the fair moved to in 2009 from its longtime home at the Richmond Raceway in Henrico County.
 read more:
http://www.wtop.com/120/2880530/Virginia-State-Fair-gets-new-lease-on-life

Lesley Stones: Le Grand Cirque Adrenaline is an action-packed spectacle.




Thanks goodness I don’t have the kind of brain it must take to invent new acts for a circus.

You must be truly, madly crackers to devise some of the contraptions that star in Le Grand Cirque Adrenaline, which is back in Joburg with a new show that’s pure razzamatazz and sensory overload.

Each act is performed to a background of power-packed music, pounding bass beats and fabulous, imaginative lighting. There’s a quick blast of O Fortuna and some mesmerising monastic chants, then even your seat is rumbling with the bass beat turned up to intensify the spectacle.

 The circus is introduced by MC and clown Salvador Salangsang, a lovely character who enjoys himself as much as we do. These breaks for tomfoolery between the high-adrenaline acts are great fun and a welcome change of pace, giving the audience time to mull over the feat they just saw before they’re hit with another burst of enthralling action.

The trio of trampoline artists is brilliant, shooting in and out of windows and climbing the walls on the façade of an apartment block. Juggler Ruslan Dmytruk is amazing, but the right music and the flamboyant man-in-a-mask costume elevate him to the status of an artist.

One of the most popular acts was the ludicrous Rolla Bolla, where the svelte Kirill Rebkovets balances on a board wobbling on an ever-increasing number of hollow tubes stacked one on top of another. I loved hearing the collective gasps and squeals of the audience, interspersed with “oh my gods” and “no ways” as his rolling tower grew more precarious.

With the obligatory acrobats and strong men, several of the acts feel much the same as in Le Grand Cirque’s previous show. But that’s not a criticism at all. I’m thrilled by the glitz and glamour and the exhilarating insanity of it all.

I loved seeing so many children in the audience too – it’s a great way of showing them that in human endeavour, there are no limits.

 

There’s a bizarre two-wheel contraption that rises dramatically with acrobats inside the spheres on either end. It’s a like a funfair ride on steroids, except there are no safety belts and the performers are walking around outside the circles as they revolve high above the stage. There are some slips and stumbles, which are probably choreographed into the act to remind us that this is actually dangerous

The show ends with the ridiculously daft spectacle of three motorbikes weaving in and out of each other at 65km an hour inside a metal ball. Now the engines are roaring, the music booming and the spotlights flashing in a delicious sensory battering.

Perhaps circuses need to exist so people who are different from the rest of us have somewhere to ply their trade. Otherwise what would happen to those who can fold themselves into human pretzels or do a handstand on their partner’s head?

They’d be unemployed, that’s what, and the world would be a poorer place because of it.
 Le Grande Cirque Adrenaline runs at Joburg Theatre until June 17.

Lesley Stones is a former Brit who is now proudly South African.

Ocean City Boardwalk Menu Stocked With Memorial Day Food

from: baltimore.cbslocal,com

May 27, 2012

While others enjoy “Thrashers, ice cream. It doesn’t matter. All of the stuff on the boardwalk for the last 40 years of coming down here,” said Dennis Martinez, Ocean City visitor.

The boardwalk boasts just three short miles, but the menu goes on and on.

“We got a little cheesesteak that we’re splitting and a small Thrashers fries,” one visitor said.

Oh, that’s right, calories don’t count on vacation.

“There are no diets in Ocean City,” one visitor said.

“The ocean breaks off all the calories,” said another.

Restaurant owners say, there is one way to classify the food on the boardwalk, and that is childhood memories.

Scott Bruning owns Caruso Pizza. He says restaurants wait all year for Memorial Day weekend.

Oh, we’re ready,” he said.

That means it will be one sweet holiday weekend.

There are more than 100 restaurants on the Ocean City

 

http://www.facebook.com/Circuspainter#!/Circuspainter

Eyewitness: International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo
Photograph from the Guardian Eyewitness series

 

The acrobatic troupe of Shanghai performs during the opening ceremony of the 36th International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo in Monaco
Photograph: Eric Gaillard/ Reuters

CHECK OUT ON FACEBOOK!
JIM HAND, SHOW PAINTER

 

http://www.facebook.com/Circuspainter#!/Circuspainter

Creating elephant footprints at Busch Gardens Tampa

Published on May 23, 2012 by AttractionsMagazine

Busch Gardens' elephant team added some "colorful" enrichment to the elephants' day by making "elephant footprints" with non-toxic children's poster paint at the park's new Elephant Interaction Wall. The unique prints will be framed and shared with special guests and members of the media who visit Busch Gardens during the Republican National Convention.

THE WELDES

LEGOLAND Florida Water Park - Fun With Kids

Published on May 26, 2012 by ABCActionNews

It's the big grand opening day for LEGOLAND Florida's Water Park - and Sean Daly catches some kids - who are enjoying the pool.

For a moment, the circus halts to honor one of its greats




John Katsilometes 
The “Mystere” stage at Treasure Island for Brian Dewhurst’s 80th birthday Tuesday, May 22, 2012.
By John Katsilometes
from: lasvegassun.com
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
The gentleman in the ill-fitting suit with the wild, gray mane and hair-raising antics (like locking a man in a small jail cell and stealing his date) celebrated a milestone this week.
Brian Dewhurst turned 80 on Tuesday, and a surprise party was held for him onstage after the 9:30 p.m. performance of “Mystere” at Treasure Island. Dewhurst plays the cagey, clowning usher/emcee character in the still-inspiring Cirque du Soleil production and is the oldest Cirque performer working anywhere in the world.
He also is believed to be the oldest regular cast member of any show in Las Vegas.
“He has to be,” said his daughter, Sally, during the post-show party. “No one else is that crazy.”




Brian Dewhurst acknowledges the crowd after the second performance of "Mystere" at Treasure Island as he celebrates his 80th birthday Tuesday, May 22, 2012. 
Sally and her brother Nicholas, who also is a “Mystere” cast member, managed to keep the party a secret in the days leading to Dewhurst’s birthday, though the full “Mystere” cast, several reps from other Vegas Cirque shows and dozens of friends were invited. The audience was handed red, foam-rubber noses and pushed them on their faces at the end of the performance and led the crowd in a round of “Happy Birthday.”

 

Nicholas Dewhurst, right, wishes "Happy Birthday" to his 80-year-old father, Brian, after the second performance of "Mystere" at Treasure Island on Tuesday May 22, 2012.
Dewhurst was welcomed by three friends who traveled from overseas, whom appeared from inside the famed jail cell onstage. They were longtime friends Graeme Quinn Smith (who performed in “Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in London), Eddie Hawkins (a dancer with Kathleen Dunham), and Cristina Schoenberg (a Baroness from Denmark).


During the party, where guests sipped libations and snacked on sweets, I asked Dewhurst the secret to his sprightly longevity. He motioned toward his daughter, standing nearby.


“Being around her,” he said, smiling. “That helps!”

 

Circus hoop-la

 

ABOVE: Culpepper & Merriweather Circus performer Miss Karina spins more than two dozens hula hoops at once during a performance Saturday at Old Field Beach State Park, sponsored by the Indian Lake Area Chamber of Commerce.
Written by THE BELLEFONTAINE EXAMINER STAFF   Monday, 21 May 2012 

Shrine Circus 'Wows' Crowds

by KREX News Room

by Amanda Brandeis

May 27, 2012 

 GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.- For its final day on Saturday, the 67th annual Shrine Circus wowed crowds at the Mesa Country Fairgrounds.

The traveling circus, based out of Las Vegas, visits Mesa County once a year.

They brought exotic animals with them, including tigers and elephants.

There were also aerialists and motorcyclists performing stunts.

Despite the winds, the president of Western Colorado Shrine Club, David Vandyke, said, "It hasn't affected them at all, nothing has been canceled, they are doing great, it's amazing. It makes it more fun, I don't know how they are doing it but they are doing it!"

"Mamma Mia" al Circo Orfei di Darix Martini

Published on Mar 21, 2012 by fmichi

Circus comes to Darlington Theatre

- by John Dixon

from: whatsonstage.com--London UK

Date: 26 May 2012

Direct from China and beyond gravity, Cirque du Ciel’s ShangHi comes to Darlington Civic Theatre from Thursday 31 May to Saturday 2 June. 

The cast of more than 30 amazingly multi-talented and highly-skilled performers will be parading from Darlington Civic Theatre to perform in the Market Square as a taster for on-lookers of what is to come in their two-hour extravaganza show! 

Combining acrobatics, modern dance, martial arts, original music and many other traditional and contemporary Chinese elements in an enthralling fantasy adventure, with over 500 superbly decadent costumes, intricate scenery, fantastically evocative lighting and a score that enhances and highlights the magical aura of the show. 

This stunning production showcases the skills of both the performers and the world-class team behind the scenes, taking you beyond gravity. 

We are promised astonishing routines including Mexican hat juggling, terrifying yet beautiful aerial displays, the famous death-defying Chinese Monkey Poles, a dizzying mix of balancing, tumbling, spinning, and brilliant live drumming that will fascinate audience members of all ages. 

Performances are Thursday 31 May and Friday 1 June at 7,30pm and Saturday 2 June, 2.30pm and 7.30pm. To find out more visit the Darlington Arts website.

Theme parks open new attractions, roller coasters


 

AP - People ride the Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction in the new Storybook Circus area of Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom Park in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
from: amarillo.com
The Associated Press 
Posted: May ntasyland at Florida’s Walt Disney World, the new Cars Land at California’s Disneyland based on the “Cars” movies, and Universal Studios Hollywood’s new Transformers ride top the list of new attractions at theme parks across the country in 2012.

And thrill ride enthusiasts won’t be disappointed, with at leas25, 2012
ORLANDO, Fla. — The first phases of a reimagined Fat 20 new roller coasters debuting at parks from Maryland to California.

Disney said the renovation and new construction at Fantasyland inside Magic Kingdom in Florida is the largest expansion project in the park’s 40-year history, doubling the size of the current Fantasyland. Part of it — including one of what will eventually be dueling Dumbo rides and the rethemed Barnstormer family roller coaster — opened in April
read more:
http://amarillo.com/lifestyle/travel/2012-05-25/theme-parks-open-new-attractions-roller-coasters

San Bernardino County Fair
 

Daily Press File photo  
Children ride a mini roller coaster at the San Bernardino County Fair.   
from:  Vacaville Press "BEST BETS"
May 25, 2012 
May 26 through June 3
(760) 951-2200
www.sbcfair.com
This year’s theme is “Come out & Play.” Enjoy food, rides, games and family fun. Don’t miss the car show, magicians, hypnotists, livestock, bird show, Turkey Stampede, the Russell Brothers Circus and more.

Headliner entertainment:

• Michael Jackson tribute artist Jeffrey Perez at 4 p.m. May 26. This concert is free with paid fair admission.
• High Desert Music Festival, 3 to 11 p.m. May 27-28. Free with paid fair admission. Featuring the music of Lenny Williams, Stray Cat Lee Rocker and more.
• Heidi Newfield at 7:30 p.m. May 29. Grandstand seating is free with paid fair admission. Floor seating is an additional $5.
• Eddie Money at 7:30 p.m. May 30. Grandstand seating is free with paid fair admission. Floor seating is an additional $5.
• Foghat at 7:30 p.m. May 31. Grandstand seating is free with paid fair admission. Floor seating is an additional $5.

Admission is $5. Children ages 5 and under are free. Parking is $5. Carnival wristbands are $25.
Hours: 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday through Monday; 4 to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday;
2 to 11 p.m. June 1 to 3.
LOCATION: San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, 14800 Seventh St. in Victorville.

Galveston’s new carnival opens on Pleasure Pier

by Doug Miller/ KHOU 11 News

kvue.com

Posted on May 25, 2012