Cirquoise

Visit the Cirquoise at Gates, you will be amazed and astounded when you join us in the Big Top this Summer. Starting from the 26th July until the 11th August with shows at 11am, 2pm and 4:30pm.

A first for Gates as we introduce Cirquoise to the Leicestershire countryside. We’re presenting this unique group of wonderful artistes, with their long heritage of Italian and British circus, in their Big Top on the field next to our main car park, this show is perfect for entertaining your little ones and not so little ones during the school holidays.

The contemporary style Cirquoise family circus features all the acts we love – from laughter-filled clowns to death-defying acrobatics, breathtaking jugglers, and awesome contortionists. The dazzling combination of high energy, jaw dropping talent and electric atmosphere promises a magical and unforgettable experience. The hour long shows are all-human.

Tickets are £8 – £10 per person, with under 2’s free. (the child has to sit on the parents lap) In the big top, we have a pushchair and child travel seat parking area.

Doors open 45 minutes prior to showtime and seating is allocated on arrival. Please bring your e-ticket/booking receipt to the box office.

Book Cirquoise now.

Interesting Facts

The modern circus began 1768 when Philip Astley, a cavalry officer, opened an amphitheatre in Lambeth, London to display horse riding tricks. He called this performance arena a Circle and the building an amphitheatre, but they became known as circus. The first well known clown was Joseph Grimaldi for his role of Little Clown in pantomime in 1781. Astley exported his circus to France in the same year as ‘Amphithéâtre Anglais’ and then continued to build 18 more throughout Europe, all these circuses were in specially made buildings.

1825 saw American Joshuah Purdy first use a large tent for his circus. Thomas Taplin Cooke brought a tent to England in 1838. Because tents were easier to use, they slowly replaced circus buildings. One of the largest (if not the largest travelling circus) was ‘The Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth,’ which toured from 1897 to 1902. Under the wish by Lenin for the circus to become ‘the people’s art form,’ the USSR nationalised Russian circuses in 1919 and opened the State University of Circus and Variety Arts, better known as the Moscow Circus School, in 1927.

What we call a ‘Contemporary circus’ (or nouveau cirque) appeared in the 1970’s in Australia, Canada, France, the USA, and the UK. This circus still has traditional acts but combines them with theatrical techniques to tell a story or present a theme. The earliest examples of the contemporary circus are Circus Oz, formed in Australia in 1978, Pickle Family Circus, formed in San Francisco in 1975; and Cirque du Soleil, founded in Quebec in 1984.

Visit the Cirquoise at Gates Garden Centre

26th July – 11th August | 11am, 2pm or 4:30pm

Book Cirquoise now.

Tickets £8 – £10 per person