Celebrity Circus
Celebrity Circus is a new reality series on NBC where some of today's favorite stars have the opportunity to challenge themselves as the enter the world of the circus and cirque. For the first season of Celebrity Circus the stars who will be competing are:
| Contestant | Eliminiated |
|---|---|
| Antonio Sabato, Jr. | Winner Season 1 |
| Wee Man | Eliminated on Final |
| Stacy Dash | Eliminated on Final |
| Rachel Hunter | Week 5 |
| Christopher Knight | Dropped out due to injuries |
| Janet Evans | Week 3 |
| Blu Cantrell | Week 2 |
Celebrity Circus is hosted by Joey Fatone, an actor and member of 'NSYNC (and lest we forget an amazing celebrity contestant on the very popular ABC reality television program Dancing With the Stars).
Over the six week run of the show the celebrities will compete head to head in front of a live studio audience and America gets to vote on which celebrity goes home each week.
The stars will be mentored by experts to teach them circus acts such as the Wheel of Death, Fire Dancing, Flying Trapeze, Chinese Poles, High Wire and Hand Balancing.
Viewers will get to watch the entire experience as the celebrities begin their journey to becoming circus performers. At the end of the six weeks one of the celebrities will be named winner of Celebrity Circus. Our judges for this season are Aurelia Cats, Mitch Gaylord and Louie Spence.
Latest Eliminated and Recaps of Celebrity Circus
Antonio Sabato, Jr wins Season 1 of Celebrity Circus
Posted: 16 Jul 2008
After 3 months of grueling competition Antonio Sabato Jr has won the “Wheel of Death” trophy from Celebrity Circus. Although I am not shocked that he won, I do think he worked very hard for this show. I was really wondering how they were going to use a whole hour to build up to the [...]
Antonio Sabato Jr. brings his A Game to the Celebrity Circus Finals
Posted: 9 Jul 2008
Tonight was the finals for the first season of Celebrity Circus. Our judges also got the chance to pick the acts our finalist would perform this evening. Unfortunately Rachel Hunter was not one of these finalists. She was one of our favorite performers and we were sorry to see that she didn’t get enough votes [...]
Janet Evans leaves Celebrity Circus
Posted: 25 Jun 2008
Tonight was the end for Janet Evans on Celebrity Circus. Her score from last week was close to Antonio Sabato Jr, but she just didn’t have the fans to keep her on the show.
Christopher Knight opened up tonight with performing the “Trapeze Bungee”. Aurelia and Mitch thought his performance was excellent but I thought he [...]
Season Premier of Celebrity Circus
Posted: 11 Jun 2008
Tonight was Round 1 of Celebrity Circus on NBC. The show features 7 celebrities who have been training for the circus. On each round of Celebrity Circus the celebrities perform a circus act and are scored on a scale of 1 to 10 by a panel of judges that include: Aurelia Cata, Mitch Gaylord and [...]
Circus Acts Performed
Tight Wire Tight wire is the art of balancing yourself while walking along a tire that is drawn tautly between two points. It is sometimes known as rope walking and dates back almost 2,000 years to the Han Dynasty in ancient China. Sometimes artists use a balancing tool, such as an umbrella, a fan, or a balancing pole, but often he or she merely uses his or her body to help maintain balance. Artists walking a tight wire may perform one of two feats while walking the wire - using dancing/movement or object manipulation. Tight wire artists may do an acrobatic skill such as a cartwheel or somersault while on the wire.The tight wire act can include the artist using such props as juggling clubs, rings, hats, or canes to maintain their balance while making the act appear more difficult. The artists may also add additional elements of difficulty by spinning plates while on the wire or pushing a wheelbarrow with a passenger. The tight wire is similar to the high wire act, but in the case of the latter, the wire is higher off the ground, adding an additional factor of danger to the act.
Fire Knives Fire Knives is an exciting circus act that involves lit bundles of wicking. The wicking is first soaked in fuel so it will burn, and then lit. The contestants either juggle or twirl the fire knives. The art of fire knives is often accompanied by rhythmic music. The idea of the fire knives act may have been taken from the Maori people of New Zealand, as they have a fire poi dance. Fire poi uses chains with Kevlar blend wicks that are soaked then lit on fire. The dancer then spins the chains and wicks to create an interesting and exciting performance.
Flying Cube The Flying Cube circus act involves a performer performing gymnastic and acrobatic techniques around, within, and through a large titanium cube that is spinning and being tossed. This act requires the performer to have both coordination and skill.
Spanish Web The Spanish Web is an aerial circus act that involves a long rope covered in cloth that has a loop near the top. The performer climbs to the top and places his or her foot or wrist through the loop. At the bottom of the rope is a spinner who spins the rope as centrifugal force causes the performer to remain horizontal. The performer can also strike different positions and perform drops. The act is combines power and flexibility while still being beautiful.
Russian Swing The Russian Swing is also an aerial circus act that involves what looks like a swing hung on an A frame. The seat of the swing is usually a 4'x6' platform. The swing can launch a performer through the air at a distance of between 30 and 60 feet, which is why it is sometimes called the Human Catapult. The circus performers usually perform twists, somersaults, and other acrobatic feats while flying through the air. They land on crash mats, nets, or other safe landing areas. The Russian Swing is often used in action films by stunt men as it can throw them higher and further than an air ram.
Wheel of Death The Wheel of Death is called such because it resembles two wheels attached by long poles. It is actually a large beam with hooped tracks ("wheels") at either end that are wide enough to allow the performers to stand on them. The Wheel of Death rotates as the performer or performers run around the inside or outside of the tracks or perform other coordinated acrobatic stunts. Sometimes the Wheel of Death is stopped from spinning and the circus performers do balance stunts on it. It requires balance and if two performers are on it, synchronization.
And, if you think Wheel of Death is just a name, you should know that in 1994, circus performer Neville Campbell was performing the act in Blackpool, England when he lost his footing and fell 15 feet to his death.
Trapeze Bungee The Trapeze Bungee requires the circus performers to be high above the ground while they use both a trapeze and bungee cord to thrill the crowd. While on the trapeze, the performer uses the bungee cord attached to his or her wrist to perform electrifying, acrobatic drops. After the falls, the performer often uses the momentum of the bungee jump to return to the trapeze for more stunts.
Tissue In Tissue (sometimes known as the Aerial Silk), a performer climbs up a piece of fabric that is suspended from the ceiling. Usually, he or she climbs between 20 and 35 feet in the air. The performer then uses the fabric by wrapping it around him or her while posing then dropping down the fabric. The performer may also swing and spiral while hanging on the fabric. While this act looks easy, it takes a good amount of athleticism and flexibility to perform it.
Hammock For the Hammock, a performer is carried into the air on a hammock, which is suspended from the ceiling. The performer then uses the material of the hammock to perform poses and do aerial dances similar to those done on a trapeze.
Chinese Poles The Chinese Poles are three large vertical steel poles that are used by performers on which to climb, twist, drop down, flip, and hold poses. The poles are typically between 10 and 30 feet tall while being 3 to 4 inches in diameter. One of the more famous stunts performed on the Chinese Poles is "The Flag," where the performer positions his or her body horizontally to the pole, thus making a flag. This requires a great amount of strength and some performers can even do push-ups in that position or rotate their legs in a circle.
Flying Trapeze The Flying Trapeze, a circus act that dates back to 1865, involves two circus performers - the flyer and the catcher. The flyer grabs the trapeze and flies off a platform high in the air. Once he or she gains enough momentum in the swing and is in synch with the catcher, he or she releases their grip on the trapeze. The performer then flies through the air until caught by the catcher. The catcher normally hangs from the other trapeze by his or her knees. Once caught by the catcher, the flyer sometimes falls into a net, but often time the performer will catch and return to his or her own trapeze.
German Wheel The German Wheel is a giant wheel that the performer must control with physical skill. The wheel, which measures over six feet tall, is actually two metal circles with six rods connecting them. The performer can stand on a rod while spinning, twisting, turning, and maneuvering the wheel to perform somersaults and other acrobatic feats both on the inside of the wheel and on the outside.
