Pictured: Tasmin Henry (center) and her brother, Kepler (left) with the Sailor Circus Gold Academy clowns performing a Gilligans Island skit. Photo by Wes Roberts.

The Academy Gold Troupe of The Circus Arts Conservatory presented their Gold Troupe Showcase on Saturday, November 19. Dozens of students, between the ages of eight and eighteen, capped off eleven weeks of intensive training with the performance of a full-scale circus in the Sarasota Sailor Circus Arena on the Sarasota High School Campus.

According to The Circus Arts Conservatory, the program is designed to “build the student’s natural abilities, improve their strength & confidence, performance technique and performance etiquette.“ The showcase included performances such as clowning, juggling, rolling globe, trampoline, floor tumbling, hammock, silks, and web, and others.

The Sailor Circus Academy began 73 years ago in 1949 as a high school gymnastics class. Today, the program has developed into a rigorous after school program where students often train four to five times a week over the duration of the school year in preparation for the Holiday and Spring Sailor Circus shows. “The Academy not only provides a great avenue for students to experience the circus in a safe, controlled environment, but it also creates a pipeline of young talent for us,” says Pedro Reis, president and CEO of the Circus Arts Conservatory. “In the past, once you graduated from the Academy you were out. We’ve since dissolved that policy and any student that graduates and wants to continue in our “pro-track” is welcome to, with a focus on a specific discipline.”

For Saturday’s audience, the excitement was the show. With peppy music and sometimes surprisingly high levels of athleticism, the Fall Gold Troupe Showcase was fun for both the many proud parents in the audience, and for anyone looking to enjoy a positive, joy-filled performance, (in air conditioning). The next performance will come at the end of the Spring cycle, April 1st.

Pictured: Tasmin Henry (center) and her brother, Kepler (left) with the Sailor Circus Gold Academy clowns performing a Gilligans Island skit. Photo by Wes Roberts.