Times have changed for Billy Smart's Circus

Roll up, roll up, the circus is coming to town. But times have changed, and Billy Smart’s has had to modernise along with everyone else. Gone are the animals, gone is the ringmaster, gone is Billy Smart himself so what’s left?

Lots according to Sammy Little the general manager, and all for the better. “It’s all different now” she says happily. “We have had to modernise along with everyone else, but we aren’t Circque Du Soleil, we are still a traditional circus with a circus ring and a big top, it’s just not bears and bicycles anymore.”

“And besides, people don’t want to see animals and don’t miss them, so instead we have the flying trapeze, acrobats and lots of spectacular acts that keep you on the edge of your seats from start to finish.”

There are 21 performers in all and 22 ground staff in Billy Smart’s Circus, which is coming to Oxford from Tuesday. So does the circus still have a place in today’s world? “Of course, there has to be a live alternative to the XBox. It’s really important, and there’s nothing like the circus,” Sammy says passionately. “So there’s still a massive market if you do it properly. Besides, we have a reputation to live up to.”

Sammy herself grew up in a circus in Holland. Her grandfather was an acrobat and she was the knife thrower but is now involved in the logistics rather than the live acts, so she knows what’s involved.

“People come to the box office and say they want to run away with the circus, without realising how much hard work is involved in keeping it up and running. “Everyone has to muck in and help – the trapeze artists sell the tickets and the handstand girl makes pancakes, everyone does everything, we have to.”

Craig Litherland joined Billy Smart’s this year as a trapeze artist. Hailing from Australia he is delighted to have landed a job with “the big one as far as the UK goes.”

So what brought him over here? “It’s one big family, and the circus tradition is much stronger in the UK than anywhere else so I wanted to be part of that,” the 31 year old says. So how do you learn to be a trapeze artist? “When I was younger I did some gymnastics but didn’t pick up circus skills until much later in life when I went to circus school,” he says.

“So while you have to have nerves of steel when learning something new, you also have to have the fear factor and learn to trust yourself and respect your craft. But nothing beats the feel and the rush of the flying trapeze.”

Is it easy to get blase then when flying through the air? “You should never get complacent about something this dangerous,” he says simply, Craig having to rely on the catchers for his safety as much as himself. “There are five of us in the act, three flyers and two catchers so you have to train really hard because there are so many elements involved. It’s a really unique act and takes a lot of training to get it right.

“But I love it. I wouldn’t do this otherwise because there’s a lot of work and stress involved but you feed off the audience’s reactions and when the audience is behind you it makes such a difference.”

Even so, Craig says he still has to pinch himself when he thinks about his chosen profession: “I remember when I was a boy watching the flying trapeze and thinking ‘I could do that’ and now here I am, its ridiculous,” he laughs.

SEE IT

Call 0844 415 5228 to book your tickets or check out billy-smarts-circus.co.uk for more spectacular details.

WIN TICKETS:

Europe’s top circus, Billy Smart’s, is visiting Oxpens, Oxford, during its 2013 tour after a comeback of several years of non-touring. The performance will include an Australian flying trapeze act which has been the toast of the circus world, Desiree’s handbalancing act in which she fires a bow and arrow – with her feet!– acrobats, jugglers, breathtaking aerialists and even a fireman who works his routine on a flaming ladder. We have got 15 family tickets worth £81 each to give away, a total of £1,215. A family ticket admits two adults and up to three children each, and is valid for any performance any day from Tuesday, October 29, to Sunday, November 3. To win a ticket just answer this question:
* Craig Litherland is a performer at Billy Smarts Circus. Is he:
A – Clown   B – Trapeze artist   C – Juggler
Send your answers on a postcard to Katherine MacAlister, Oxford Mail Circus Competition, Osney Mead, Oxford. OX2 0EJ with your name, address, phone number and email address. Winners will be notified by Tuesday, October 29, at noon.