Wednesday, July 3, 2024
BREWSTER – Two cannibals were dining on a clown for dinner. One turns to the other and asks: “Does this taste funny to you?”
Leo Acton, a clown for the Culpepper & Merriweather Great Combined Circus when he is not serving as Big Top greeter and tour guide, definitely would taste funny. He delivered a constant stream of facts sprinkled with humor for guests watching the tent-raising process last Sunday morning, June 9, before the afternoon’s two performances.
As Acton began his introduction, the large Big Top tent was spread flat on the ground behind him.
“We are now watching the most important part of the tent-raising process, the coffee break,” he deadpanned.
“The first poles they are putting into place are called side poles because they are on the…” asked Leo, cupping an ear toward his listeners, “Side” came an answer from one observer. “Correct!,” Acton said.
“It’s important our technical terms are so easy because we have people in this business from all over the world,” said Acton. “We have four spoken languages on this show, and lots of different cultural and educational backgrounds from GEDs to Ivy League degrees.”
“We have some third generation, some sixth generation,” said Leo. “Even our newest performer - a member of the Loyal Bareback Riders - just born in April is an 11th-generation circus performer.
Born in Berkeley, California, Acton is not from a circus family but got into the business three decades ago.
“I’ve been a circus clown since 1998. I went to Ringling Bros. clown college in 1996 and toured with the big show for 10 years,” said Acton. “I have been with C&M for the last 16.”
One of the show’s newest employees, Luella Smith, just joined the crew for the summer. She is a University of Idaho sociology major who said the exposure will benefit her study choice.
“Both of my parent were clowns with Ringling Bros. & Barnum & Bailey,” said Smith. “I picked my major too late to get an internship and my mom brought this idea up to me. It’s kind of awesome.”
As Acton continued, the tent began to rise as the crew went about the process with practiced speed and efficiency. Earlier in the morning they drove 118 four-foot-long anchor stakes into the ground using 60-pound sledgehammers.
“The larger poles are called torsion poles,” said Acton. “They are 22 feet tall. The center pole is 30 feet.”
He turned attention to the tent.
“The tent is not one big thing, it’s three huge sections laced together,” said Acton. “It is 110 feet long, 80 feet wide, 30 feet high, and can fit 600 people in just our seats alone. We got this Big Top in 2018 for $40,0000,” said Leo adding that they can endure from three to eight years before needing replacement.
The show is based in Hugo, Oklahoma and started in 1985. It alternates years between West Coast and Midwest tours. Its 32-week season begins in mid-March and extends through October. The West Coast tour visits 200 cities and towns in 17 states while the Midwest schedule runs through 11 states.
Among those who arrived to watch the tent raising process Sunday morning were members of the Wenatchee Youth Circus Blue Crew.
One of the performers, Samantha Willoughby, a sixth grader from Lake Chelan, showed up with father, Chris.
“I’m an aerialist, acrobat, and stilt walker,” the younger Willoughby said.
The youth circus performs mainly in Washington and had a performance scheduled in Entiat the next weekend.
The tour progressed to some of the animal stars of the show including Wendell the lion who was raised as a household pet by an Oklahoma family before the circus acquired him.
Acton noted that all three cats on the Brewster tour are rescue animals.
“Our tigers were born in a roadside zoo in Northeastern Texas that was not taking care of their animals and got shut down for it,” said Acton.
He described how the C&M circus owner rescued the tigers when they were a year and a half old and rehabilitated them for later introduction into the show. This year marks their 17th year on the tour.
They just turned 20 last July,” said Acton. “They see their main veterinarian at the beginning and end of every season and see another vet on tour at least once a month.”
The cats perform in a specially built 34-foot diameter, 50-foot-tall steel cable cage.
Before Action completed his narrative the Big Top was up as final touches were addressed. Following the final performance of the day it takes the team about 90 minutes to pack up and load the 40-foot flatbed trailer for departure to its next destination.
Mike Maltais: 360-333-8483 or michael@ward.media
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