Acclaimed writer and director Cal McCrystal, returns to the helm for the eleventh year following the success of last year’s The Hooley, along with veteran Giffords musical director James Keay and award winning set and costume designer takis, to faithfully continue circus co-founder and producer Nell Gifford’s extraordinary vision.
Along with Tweedy the Clown, a host of international circus talent includes fellow clown personage Adriana Duch, juggler Gordon Marquez, vaulting and pas de deux act the Donnert Family, trapeze artiste Anna Rastova, aerial duo Isabella and Daniela Munoz Landestoy, The – knife throwing – Jasters and acrobats from the Havana Circus Company. Plus live music from the Giffords Circus band.
The word ¡Carpa! originates from the Spanish word ‘tent’ and refers to a removable canvas roofed structure used for a travelling theatre, much like a circus. ¡Carpa! was a type of theatre that flourished in the 1920s and 1930s in Mexico and the southwestern states in America.
Cal McCrystal said “Our 2022 show will evoke the sights and sounds of rural Mexico. I have directed in that splendid country several times. It is a place that I greatly admire. Mexico’s incredible art, music, history, and people will be our inspiration. We are bringing Mexican performers over to join the troupe and with them we will create a show full of skill, humour, turmoil and excitement.”
The UK tour opens at the Circus’s HQ in Stroud, Gloucestershire on 14th April 2022, Easter weekend, before touring the UK taking in all the favourite venues such as Bowood House & Gardens, Daylesford Organic, Sudeley Castle, Blenheim Palace, Chiswick House & Gardens, Stonor Park, Barrington, Minchinhampton Common, Marlborough Common and Stratton Meadows in Cirencester.
New for 2022 are Evenley Wood Gardens in Northamptonshire and Home Farm Live in Elstree, Hertfordshire and a welcome return to Frampton on Severn.
Established in 2000 by Nell and Toti Gifford, Giffords Circus is a magical village green circus that tours England throughout the summer. Combining dance, comedy, horses and live music in a beautiful white tent surrounded by vintage-style burgundy showman’s wagons, it has a broad and dedicated following of farmers, children, artistes, sports people, models, actors, rock stars, and royalty.
