Circo Comedia: performance program by Lied Center of Kansas

Saturday

OCT 18 7:00 pm

Circo Comedia Family entertainment at its finest Meritrust is honored to be a VIP Sponsor for tonight’s Lied Center performance of Circo Comedia. We’re proud to support the Lied Center and the world-class performances it shares with the community. Meritrust joins with Lawrence in celebrating this organization and the arts. Sponsored by

This event is sponsored, in part, by the Lied Performance Fund.

Please be mindful of the following in the auditorium and the Pavilion: • Please silence cellular phones and electronic devices • No food or drink • No cameras or recording devices

Saturday, October 18, 2014

CIRCO COMEDIA Unpredictable thrills, side-splitting comedy and daredevil stunts are the signature style of Circo Comedia, starring the fantastic duo Jean Saucier and Patrick Côté from Montreal — performing their distinctive style of humor, acrobatic tricks, daring feats, magic and eccentricity. Following in the tradition of the Quebec Circus, Jean Saucier, master equilibrist, juggler, trick cyclist, acrobat and magician, performs his feats from dizzying heights, while Patrick Côté, burlesque clown, expert roller skater and drummer, innocently tries his best to be the (imperfect) assistant. This is family entertainment at its finest! Deliriously funny — filled with unforgettable moments.

THE CRITICS RAVE “Circus act small on performers, large on laughs. How small can a circus be? No smaller than the Circo Comedia duo, surely, two partners who mix legitimate physical dexterity and bad boy clowning for 60 some minutes of one-ring (halfring?) entertainment.” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review “Their fast paced entertaining show was an adventure for all ages. The show, full of non-stop side-splitting comedy, and dare-devil stunts and tricks was enjoyed by the sell-out crowd who found it hard not to laugh, as the talented duo reached out to involve the audience in their routines.” Standard Free Holder, Cornwall Ontario “Don’t be surprised if your kid says: ‘Wow, I want to be a clown.” Anchorage News “Circo Comedia mixes circus stunts and magic with ‘Laurel and Hardy’ type antics.” Kutztown News

There is no intermission during this event.

Circo Comedia

JEAN SAUCIER A unicycle launched the career of Jean Saucier. At age 11, Saucier was a curious figure in his native Montreal when he delivered newspapers atop his onewheeler. Mostly self-taught until the age of 18, he attended the École Nationale de Cirque de Montréal. Cirque du Soleil noticed his talent and hired him. In 1987, Saucier was awarded the Bronze Medal at the Festival du Cirque de Demain in Paris, France, for his bicycle routine with his performing ensemble. Since then, much has changed as he discovered that he was destined to be a “Straight Man” — the serious side of comedy. From 1999 to 2006, Jean performed with his first Circo Comedia partner, Lawrence Smythe, touring extensively throughout the United States at performing art centers, festivals and fairs from Maine to Florida and from Alaska to Texas, thrilling and entertaining audiences everywhere. Touring highlights included The Philadelphia Festival Theater for Children, Alaska Junior Theatre (Anchorage), Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (West Palm Beach, FL), Smithsonian Institute (Washington, D.C.), Carpenter Center (Long Beach, CA), The John F. Kennedy Center (Washington D.C.), Pittsburgh International Children’s Festival and Flint Hills International Children’s Festival (St. Paul, MN). In their native country of Canada, Circo Comedia performed at all major International Children’s Festivals — Calgary, Saskatoon, Vancouver, Regina and Winnipeg, as well as many comedy festivals and casinos in Montréal and Las Vegas. International touring included performances in Japan, France, Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico and Hungary. In 2004, Saucier began performing with acrobat/stuntman/drummer/roller skater Patrick Côté in Québec theaters, festivals, schools and specials events. In 2005,Saucier & Côté won First Prize (Public Choice) at the Mondial des Amuseurs of Trois–Rivières Festival (Quebec). Saucier is delighted to introduce North American audiences to his very gifted and talented new partner, Patrick Côté.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

PATRICK CÔTÉ Patrick Côté is a comic stuntman, an expert on roller skates and a formidable drummer. While training as a gymnast and acrobat at Montreal’s National Circus School (École Nationale de Cirque) in 1989, Côté discovered a passion for burlesque stunts and created his own lexicon of unique, humorous and spectacular moves, becoming a true artist in the genre of physical comedy. Also in the late 1980’s, Patrick created his well-known alter-ego/comic characters “PatPatinFou” for La Maison Hantée (The Haunted House) and “Le Baron Fou,” which he incorporated into 2,500 performances over a ten-year period. He continued to create several new characters for projects such as the Super Cirque, Cirque Comik, Cirque National des Clowns, Cirque du Soleil and the Fabuleux Cirque Estival Tour. In 2005, he joined the troupe Les Parfaits Inconnus. Côté is always ready to explore new horizons, stretching the limits of convention, creating suspense and playing the absurd with finesse. Together, Saucier and Côté are taking the acrobatics, clowning and theatrics of Circo Comedia that worldwide audiences have grown to know and love, to new “heights!”

Friday

APR 10 7:00 pm

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