By Mindy Ragan Wood
Staff Writer
Life with the circus is more than clowning around eight months a year, but for those who live it, work is their passion.
The Culpepper and Merriweather Circus will be in Piedmont Saturday near the Roundup Club at Piedmont Road and Washington Avenue at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Leo Anton, a clown, toured with Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey for 10 years before he joined the Culpepper and Merriweather Circus in 2014.
“For some it’s a family tradition. It’s what they’ve done for generations. We have six generation and three generation circus families. It’s quite simply what they do, how they support their families and make a living. It’s a small community and we all work together and come together. You learn different languages. It’s like a little town,” Anton said. “It’s not a regular job. It’s more like a calling.”
The Culpepper and Merriweather Circus (CMC) started in 1985 and is considered a smaller and fairly new circus. It tours the United States with stops in communities that alternate every other year.
A season is from March to October and in the off season, the animals, equipment and some of the staff take their rest in Hugo, Oklahoma, where circuses have spent their off seasons for decades. Performers try new routines and discuss ideas before the tours resume.
After the winter break it’s back to the hard work in March. Just setting up the tent takes three hours.
“They’re being very careful for the safety of ourselves and the public,” he said. “I’ve seen them do it in about an hour and a half before, but generally it’s three hours. As soon as the last audience member is out of the tent, they’re tearing it down and it’s on the trailer in about an hour and a half.”
During the show, setup crews are not twiddling their thumbs waiting to pack up. They help set up and move props for performers, work concessions and other jobs that need to be done. Everyone from the crews to the clowns work together to bring an exciting and safe show to the audience.
“It’s a lot of work and it’s a good time. We take care of each other and work together,” Anton said. “We have 30 employees on site.”
Circus families home school their children and take advantage of the travel to catch a show, a water park, museum and any adventure that comes their way when they’re not performing.
As generations of families continue the circus tradition, new generations of audience members have reportedly dwindled. That’s news to Anton.
“We pack the tent, more often than not, people want to see it. Thanks to Hugh Jackman and his friends (in the Greatest Showman on Earth), there is still very much excitement and the passion for the circus is still alive,” he said.
Although CMC is a newer production, it is considered a classic American circus with ringmaster, clowns, big cats, trapeze artists, unicyclists and other popular features under a big tent in one arena.
