THE BALLOON MAN

 Meriden: ‘I might as well join the circus’

 

Christopher Zajac
"I think I'll join the circus'
Josh Dummitt, of Meriden, powders his face as he readies his make-up Friday morning in Waterbury at the site of the Cole Bros. Circus, June 22, 2012. Dummitt auditioned for a clown role for Cole Bros. Circus after he saw the circus in town a year ago.
June 22, 2012
by Richie Rathsack
WATERBURY — Many children dream of running off to join the circus after seeing the show and the caravan come through town. Josh Dummit actually went through with it.
Growing up on North Colony Street in Meriden, he had gained a bit of neighborhood notoriety from walking around on stilts and juggling. On Monday, he will make his hometown debut as Meatball the Clown when the Cole Bros. Circus of the Stars sets up downtown.
“They came through town two years ago and I thought, ‘I might as well join the circus,’ ” Dummit said Friday while the crew was setting up for the weekend in Waterbury.
Last year when the circus came through town, he approached Cole Bros. about performing, he said. In middle school and high school, he was in show band and did a little theater, learning to juggle and walk on stilts as a hobby. Staff interviewed him and talked about possible ways he could perform, such as being a clown, and told him they would give him a call if they needed him.
The next day, as he worked his day job at a Macy’s warehouse, Dummit got the call, saying he should join up with the group in Cromwell. He’s been on the Cole Bros. traveling show ever since.
read more:
http://www.myrecordjournal.com/meriden/article_9d0b3372-bce4-11e1-9176-0019bb2963f4.html?mode=story