Circus Bella is an open-air, one-ring circus that sets its acts to a live band. Through its Circus in the Parks project, the nonprofit organization offers free performances in open spaces throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
The show is an intimate kaleidoscope of thrilling feats of balance and strength, elegant acts of grace and poise, and outrageous humor of slapstick antics. The company showcases static trapeze, foot juggling, contortion, hula hoop, original clowning, and more. The original music is composed and directed by highly acclaimed musician Rob Reich, drawing from French waltz, New Orleans jazz, klezmer, and American circus march.
Founded by Abigail Munn and David Hunt in 2008, Circus Bella stands on the shoulders of its pioneering San Francisco-based predecessors, the Pickle Family Circus and Make*A*Circus. While building community spirit within neighborhoods, performers invite their audiences to join in the celebration of “the heart of circus”: community, joy, and achieving the impossible. Even after the ring is packed up for the winter, “The attitude of fun and goofiness definitely continues throughout the year,” according to one recreation center director.
