Giffords Circus 2008 Tour in Gloucestershire

24 June to 15 September – Take your place under the Giffords Circus big top to see the brand new Caravan show, touring Gloucestershire in the summer of 2008.

Roll-up, roll-up, Giffords Circus will be touring Gloucestershire once again this summer with the brand new show Caravan set to entertain to amaze audiences of all ages in villages and towns across the county from 24 June 2008.

Launched this year at the Hay-on-Wye Literature Festival, the small and impeccably stylish vintage travelling circus will be calling at Cheltenham, Lechlade, Longborough, Great Barrington, Frampton-on-Severn, Minchinhampton, Marlborough, Cirencester and Stow-on-the-Wold in Gloucestershire this summer.

Established by Nell Gifford in 2000, the electrifying new Caravan show is set in a gypsy horse fair in 1900, and draws on the rich history of circus in Britain, revisiting the traditions of the touring village green show, and providing intimate and glamorous entertainment for circus-fans and theatre-lovers alike.

Caravan combines dance, comedy, horses and live music in a fast-paced live one hour show – with brilliantly dressed gypsies in gaudy furs, jostling traders, wandering musicians, tarot card readers, chattering gold birds in cages, flying hawks and dancing dogs all coming together for this year’s performances.

Music will be provided by a 10-piece Balkan brass band fresh from the streets of Paris, who will aim to create an authentically raucous gypsy sound. An eight-man hand-to-hand vaulting act from Russia is also new for this year, as well as the addition of a talented new horse trainer from Moscow, and audiences can even expect to be entertained by trained pigeons.

A little Shakespeare is expected to be thrown into the mix thanks to the addition of Jonathan Holloway, of the Red Shift Theatre Company, new for 2008. Plus, Nell will also be joined by world renowned choreographer Molly Molloy this year – so even long-established fans will be surprised by the eclectic mix of entertainment that’s on offer in 2008.

Giffords Circus will be touring Gloucestershire as follows in 2008:

Cheltenham from Tuesday 24 to Monday 30 June 2008
Lechlade from Friday 4 to Monday 7 July 2008
Cirencester from Friday 11 to Monday 13 July 2008
Longborough from Thursday 17 to Monday 21 July 2008
Barrington from Thursday 24 to Monday 28 July 2008
Frampton from Thursday 31 July to Monday 3 August 2008
Minchinhampton from Wednesday 6 to Tuesday 19 August 2008
Cirencester from Friday 5 to Monday 8 September 2008
Stow-on-the-Wold from Thursday 11 to Monday 15 September 2008

‘Regular followers turn up each year to squeeze themselves into our tiny, romantic tent to be entertained, thrilled, moved, and transported from their lives to the strange, surreal world of circus,’ Giffords director and Europe’s only female circus owner, Nell Gifford, says.

Having now entertained more than 100,000 people during the past six seasons, and with a capacity of just 360 able to fit under the big top, book now to find out why Giffords Circus is worth making a song and dance about when the travelling circus pitches up near you this summer.

Event: Giffords Circus
Venue: Locations across Gloucestershire, see above for details.
Dates: From Tuesday 24 June to Monday 15 September 2008
Times: To be confirmed.
Tickets: Cost £16 for adults and £11 for children, with under 3s admitted free if they sit on a parent or guardian’s lap. Call 0845 459 7469 to book.

SoGlos.com
7 April 2008