THE BALLOON MAN

Picadilly Circus, Kelly Miller in Northfield Village this week

 

The Picadilly Circus, whose big top is shown here, opens Aug. 1 for a five-day stand. The Kelly Miller Circus is in town on Aug. 3.
TWO COMPANIES SET UP IN TOWN THIS WEEK
from: the-newsw-leader.com
by Eric Marotta | Editor
Aug 2, 2012
Northfield Village -- Residents will have the opportunity to check out two circuses in the village this week.
The Picadilly Circus arrived on July 30 and will have its first performances of a five-day engagement Aug. 1 at Northfield Park.
Meanwhile, the Kelly Miller Circus will roll into town Aug. 3 and set up for two shows that evening at the Northfield Village Retirement Community.
Kelley Miller, returning to the community for its 12th year, is sponsored by the Nordonia Hills Kiwanis Club, and a portion of circus proceeds go to benefit the club's local charitable programs.
But the group's 11 members are concerned Picadilly will cut into club proceeds generated by its largest fundraiser of the year.
Kiwanis member Bonnie Dusek said the club last year raised about $3,600 from the circus. Of that money, the club provided two graduating Nordonia High School seniors with $500 scholarships.
She said the remaining money goes to other club projects, including holiday food and gift baskets for needy families, school supplies and other items -- even eyeglasses -- for needy children.
Dusek, who coordinates the circus fundraiser, said the group had hoped to bring Kelly Miller back to Northfield Park, where it had set up last year. But the possibility that Northfield Park would begin building a racino by August this year forced the club to find another venue.
"We couldn't afford to have them come in on Aug. 3 and find that they had broke ground. We would have had to cancel," she said.
She said the club found a suitable location at the Northfield Village Retirement Community and in January contracted with Kelley Miller to return.
Dusek said village officials told her Picadilly was going to be in town the same week about three weeks ago, when she went to get a permit for Kelly Miller.
"They said, 'Did you know there's going to be another circus in town?'" she said.
Cuinn Griffin, promotional director for Picadilly Circus, said his company did not know the Kelly Miller Circus would be in town when they planned to come to Northfield.
He said Picadilly Circus occasionally encounters similar conflicts.
"It happens once every couple of months. We do 300 to 400 circuses per year," he added. "We go to all the major markets. It's bound to happen eventually."
Jim Royal, general manager of the Kelly Miller Circus, said July 30 that his circus experiences such conflicts "a couple times a year."
"It's just one of those happenstance kinds of things," he said, adding the circus still manages to do well because a lot of people turn out to support their local sponsor.
"People are not only getting to see our circus, they know they're also supporting the Kiwanis Club," he said.
Dusek said the club has never before had another event conflict with the circus.
"I'm just hoping that the community will support us," Dusek said. "I'm hoping that they'll realize this is our 12th year and most of them come back."