THE BALLOON MAN

Circus Oz is Cranked Up to hit the bush

 

Circus Oz will go to Arnhem Land for the first time in 20 years after a premiere season of Cranked Up in Melbourne. Source: Supplied
•Sally Bennett
•From: Herald Sun
•June 17, 2013
ONE day these circus artists were the toast of New York City, performing a month-long season in a plush theatre and at a celebrity gala for the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker.
Next they'll be trucking through Arnhem Land, performing on football fields under the stars in some of Australia's most remote communities.
Since it began in Melbourne 35 years ago, Circus Oz has become a global brand, seen by more than three million people in 26 countries on five continents.
But it is on home soil where the company will embark on one of its most exciting adventures yet -- a five-stop tour of new show Cranked Up! through Arnhem Land, its first visit to the region in 20 years.
Cranked Up! premieres in home-town Melbourne on Thursday night under the heated Big Top at Birrarung Marr, where it will run until July 14.
Then, everything but the tent will be packed into a semi-trailer for the long-haul trip to Darwin, where it will join a busload of cast and crew for the Circus Oz Goes Bush tour.
Artistic director Mike Finch is as excited as a kid at Christmas.
He has been successfully using circus to build a bridge between indigenous and non-indigenous Australia, introducing the company's BLAKflip program to develop Aboriginal artists.
Read more: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/circus-oz-is-cranked-up-to-hit-the-bush/story-e6frfmq9-1226665072799#ixzz2WTYRQ2tN