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 Big top circus comes to town!

When it comes to good old-fashioned family entertainment, nothing beats the circus. Whether it's the thrill of the acrobats, the animal acts, the humor of the clowns, or the ringmaster, the circus continues a tradition of entertainment that has been thrilling audiences in North and South America and Europe for well over 100 years. The Culpepper & Merriweather Circus visited Pawnee on Thursday, September 3rd, one of over 200 shows the Norman, Oklahoma, circus will perform this year. The crowd was estimated over 300 at North Park for the two shows. Several circus artists entertained the crowd, including Simone Dyke who acted as the Ring Master for both shows. Most of the artists had more than one function during the evening's events. Dykes demonstrates her amazing balancing skill, standing atop four platforms balanced on a round wheel and bowling ball. The rest of the time, Dykes can be found painting faces and selling food. The same can be said for the other performers. As the audience entered the Big Top, they encountered a young lady dressed in jeans and a blouse selling circus programs. Just 20 minutes after the start of the show, Dykes came out in full costume, dressed like a showgirl. She surprised everyone by climbing up the trapeze and performing her high-flying act. Later on during the show, Dykes served as ringmaster, also taking part in a comedy juggling routine with Jessi Wonderfool, the circus' resident clown. "Steal my audience," Wonderfool joked. "I'm having none of that." The two proceeded to show off a funny and skilled juggling performance. Even more extraordinary, it was a juggling act performed by two women. Wonderfool was another surprise - a young female who was the sole clown for the circus. "There are a lot more women clowns," Wonderfool said, "but you don't tend to see just them as the only clown in a circus. I think people are surprised when they see how young I am." Wonderfool also demonstrated her balancing ability, trying to "sleep" in a hammock 6 feet off the ground. As a child, she began taking gymnastics. "I guess I liked making people laugh, but I also like tumbling, so being a circus clown was a perfect combination." Perhaps the charm of a small circus like Culpepper & Merriweather is the short distance between the audience and performers. It is only forty feet from either center pole to the side wall, so no one is more than 15 steps from the action inside the ring. Except for Trey Key's Jungle Cats act, there are no walls or cages blocking the crowds view. "We're still not much different from when this circus began," David "Stilts" Valpone said. "Three guys started the circus in 1985 in a much smaller space. In fact, they would perform, then pass the hat as they announced. They would perform anywhere they could find a crowd, which is why we still tour a lot of smaller cities and towns." The tent is another vestige of the glory days of circus. The Big Top, which was produced by the famed A-1 Tent Company of Sarasota, Florida (the circus capital of the United States), is one of the last tents the company made in 1995. Over 6,000 performances have been hosted in the tent, by far the largest number of any existing one-ring circus. It is estimated over 2 million people have viewed the Culpepper & Merriweather Circus over the past 14 years under the Big Top. Perhaps that is one difference between the circus and most other forms of entertainment: the closeness of the performers to the audience. Outside of Ringling Bros/Barnum and Bailey or Cirque De Soleil, most circuses have to watch every penny to keep expenses down. That means everyone pitching in from when the circus first arrives to when the last pole has been removed. "We're in this together," Valpone said. "That's why all of us work hard to make everyone feel special, so they will have a memorable experience." A few brave souls took the opportunity to get up close and personal to a very special performer: a 20-foot albino Anaconda snake. Children volunteered to have their picture taken with the gigantic snake. Even a few adults braved the snake, often with a grimace on their faces. "Ugh, that thing is very scaly and very, very heavy," one participant said. After the show's final act (the high-wire Mitrovich Duo), Dykes wished the audience a safe ride home and invited everyone to take home some cotton candy, "Just in case someone wasn't able to make the show," she said. She then headed outside the tent to talk to audience members. "When you go to a big circus or a concert, you don't normally get the chance to meet the performers," Valpone said. "Here at the Culpepper & Merriweather , you get to see us before, during and after the show. The only difference is I don't wear my stilts at the end of the day; my legs get tired." Valpone turned to a passing family, smiling as he told them, "Thanks for coming. I hope you enjoyed the show." Then it was time for Valpone and the rest of the circus to begin striking the tents and preparing for their next performance.