MANKATO — When Water Circus Metropolis performer Hannah Lam speaks about the circus being a family, it’s not lip service.
“We back each other up 11 months of the year,” Lam said after the penultimate show in Mankato on Sunday evening. “(The circus) it’s in my veins.”
The performance Sunday evening ended with two members of the circus family sharing a gender reveal for their soon-to-be-born child in front of an applauding audience. A large balloon popped and pink confetti coated the stage.
“I loved that part, the gender reveal,” said audience member Zachary Brown of Mankato, who attended with his partner Haley Gardner. “I’m a father. That was great.”
Cirque Italia’s Water Circus’ run at the big top at the River Hills Mall parking lot ends with a 7:30 p.m. show Monday evening. Then the circus will pack up everything — big top, seating, concessions, equipment, performers and families, and make their way to La Crosse, Wisconsin, for the next series of shows. RVs carrying the families will also be a part of the circus family caravan.
Lam’s evening is more than merely performing; the Water Circus is an all-hands-on-deck production. Backing one another up is real. Performers are involved in sales, setting up equipment, even serving food. The lead character, a clown playing the part of Rafael, was even seen selling chocolate-covered strawberries during intermission.
Lam had a full evening, which included four costume changes, a hoop performance on the ground, one in the air and plenty of choreography. There is also plenty of preparation, warming up, stretching and resting. A lot goes into 11 months of performances; the run in Mankato included seven shows. Last year she battled injuries that kept her on the shelf for a month. “I’m 37; I have to take care of my body, watch what I eat, warmup, rest.”
Circus companies are a lot more understanding than years past, Lam said. “It used to be that if you didn’t perform (because of an injury), you didn’t get paid.”
After the show and the clean-up, children could be seen training for their potential careers in the circus. That career exploration begins early. “Since I was three, I’ve had a hoop in my hand,” Lam said. “Circus kids play circus.”
The kids ran laps around the stage as a warmup after the evening performance. Lam pointed to the group of kids to say her own daughter, a pre-teen, is exploring performing. Lam was quick to point out that the only way her daughter was going to perform in a few years is if her grades are good.
Lam considered being a veterinarian earlier in her life; her parents were both circus performers as well. Her father (of Chinese-Mexican descent) worked with exotic circus animals. Lam was born in Mexico and “raised as an American,” she said. Her mother is of British-Scottish descent. As a traveling circus family, her brother was born in Brazil. “We make great bonds (as circus performers),” Lam said warmly. “There are so many cultures and countries represented here.”
Even though she loved working with animals, the call to perform was great. “I have a passion for the stage,” she said.
What does her branch of the circus family do when they’re not touring? For one month she usually goes to Mexico, where her parents retired from their life of circus performing. “I miss a lot of family events, but it makes the family events during our month off so much more precious,” she said.
The passion for the circus showed in all the performers; the crowd responded with cheers. Some of the movements were death-defying, a testament to the preparation that goes into such athletic moves. An example of performers wearing many hats, Water Circus Manager Morgaine Rosenthal also performed some of the most jaw-dropping moves of the evening as she and her partner Dee Fernandez flung each other around on a small stage on roller skates.
The entire spectacle was worth the trip from Albert Lea for Melanie Sanchez, who came to the performance with Austyn Wacek, 5, and Aubrey Sanchez, 12. “I wanted us to do something different, something fun than the usual weekend movie.”
Besides Aubrey and Austyn loving the aerial performances, Austyn was more than thrilled to have a photo op with some of the circus porformers costumed as K-Pop Demon Hunters; it matched what was on her t-shirt.
“Everything was amazing,” Melanie said.
When Lam spoke about what she wanted fans to know about the circus and performers, she encouraged people to “explore many options for live performances — theater, the circus, whatever. Support the performing arts. The circus is great because it’s romance, thrills and emotions. It’s an emotional experience.”