Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror

The brief:

Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror was a touring theatre show by Extraordinary Bodies, our partner project with Diverse City.  The show (made in co-production with Bristol Old Vic and Theatre Royal, Plymouth) is built around true stories and billed as a “large-scale collaboration between D/deaf, disabled and non-disabled artists and creators”

The story unfolds in 1933 Germany. The world is becoming darker and more dangerous – Nazis are burning books and suspending civil rights. Many are desperate to escape, but for Waldo and his travelling circus of outcasts, acrobats and aerialists, ‘the show must go on’.  As Hitler’s dictatorship strengthens and the law for “Prevention of Offspring with Hereditary Diseases” is passed, the eclectic troupe face a new and direct threat. In this daring tale of humanity, courage and resistance, love, loyalty and risk-taking balance on the tightwire.

We assembled a diverse and inclusive cast of both circus artists and actors.  For those artists that had not performed circus before (like our star Abbie Purvis), we brought in specialist circus practitioners to provide training in specific disciplines, including tightwire walking and trapeze.