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While many regard Capitol Hill as the greatest circus in the country, others prefer the more traditional kind with real clowns. It was mid-1977, the infamous Summer of Sam, when Paul Binder and Michael Christenson debuted the Big Apple Circus in New York City, now in its 30th year of enthralling audiences of all ages with spellbinding acrobatics, riveting animal stunts, and sidesplitting clowneries.
The Big Apple Circus Gala at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park under the Big Top Tent raised $1.2 million for programs like Clown Care, which trains professional “clown doctors” to buck up kids’ spirits in hospitals, and Circus for All, which provides discounted tickets for children in economic straits.
Big Apple’s 30th Anniversary Show Celebrate! features the beloved “Grandma the Clown” Barry Lubin, British ringmistress Carrie Harvey, an original musical score by Broadway’s Michael Valenti, plus the whole nine circus yards from high-wire jinks and juggling to canine antics, cavorting cats, prancing horses, and Russian hula-hoop wizardry.
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