The lights dim in the circus tent as the buzz of the crowd dies down. A single figure steps out from behind a foggy entrance. The ringmaster announces the first act in a grand voice, and the show begins. Throughout the night, men and women pile onto a bicycle, swing from the trapeze and do tricks suspended on a rope. This is the Flying High Circus at Florida State University.
A Brief History
The Flying High Circus was founded in 1947 by Jack Haskin. He wanted to find a way to integrate men into FSU when it was still a women’s college. He thought that a circus would be a good co-ed activity that men and women could be a part of. Now it consists of students from their freshman year in undergrad to doctoral students submitting their dissertations. It also spans across majors from psychology to engineering and everything in between.
Since its inception, the circus has traveled around the world to Europe, Canada, the Bahamas and the West Indies. They also travel in the United States, with their most recent trip being to Nashville, Tennessee to watch Cirque du Soleil perform. They work circus camps here in Tallahassee and at Callaway Gardens in Georgia as well.
The circus has been recognized by the State of Florida for its “achievement in captivating audiences the world over.” It has also been recognized as the Southeast Tourism Society’s Top 20 events, and it has been in a CSTV documentary. The FSU Flying High Circus is one of the only two university circuses in the nation, the other one being at Illinois State University; however, Florida State is the only one with an on-campus big top.
What is it Like Being in the Circus?
I was lucky enough to sit down with Rachel Jones who performs in the Hand-Balancing and Spanish Web acts. Hand-Balancing is an act in which they perform tricks by balancing on top of each other. Spanish Web is the act feature above. In Spanish Web, performers perform tricks on a rope that is swung from below.
We sat in the bleachers watching people flip high into the air from a teeterboard and saw other students rigging the equipment. As I watched a small woman flip onto a man’s shoulders, Rachel pointed out that “What’s cool about teeterboard is that they use body types across the board. They need the tiny girls to be flung up into the air, and they need the super, super heavyweight guys to be punching these people off of the teeterboard to make it work. It’s really cool that this does really celebrate every single body type.”
Responses have been edited for clarity.
Her Campus (HC): How did you decide to get involved with the circus?
Rachel Jones (RJ): I saw a show in the spring of my junior year, and I saw Spanish Web, which is the aerial act with the rope… They were wearing tutus and the music was this beautiful Lindsay Sterling orchestral piece. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, and I thought “if I didn’t try to do that, I was crazy.” The summer before my senior year I would stretch my splits, I would try to do as many push-ups as I could and I would condition a little bit before the audition. When it did come around, I didn’t have any pull-ups, but they saw some potential in me as a base for hand balancing.
HC: If you’re not a performer or athletic, can you still be involved in the circus?
RJ: Yes, so we have an entire department of hair and makeup artists that will come in just before shows, and they will come in before our technical and dress rehearsals to make sure that they know how the makeup and hair are supposed to look.
HC: Most places don’t have circuses, and it’s not something that’s in high schools, so can anyone join? Or do you need special pre-recs?
RJ: You don’t need any previous experience. For example, I was in the Marching band for 5 years of undergrad and four years of high school… I wasn’t a dancer or a cheerleader, and that’s the case for a lot of people here. The circus does test your strength and your flexibility, so it really helps to be flexible and work on that before you audition.
HC: What’s been your favorite part about joining the circus?
RJ: Performing is really cool, but the relationships and friendships that I have made are my favorite thing. I’ve just never met such a close-knit group of people because we really do trust each other with our lives.
During the interview, Rachel also pointed out that the circus tent is running every day. There will always be people practicing their acts in the tent, which surprised me because I always thought it was empty. As we wrapped up the interview, some of her friends sat with us, and that showed me how much a community the circus really is. The Flying High Circus really is one of FSU’s most golden traditions.
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