Season 2002

The Scandinavian 2002 season is almost over. Circus Scandinavia are looking back.

This year performances didn’t show of any spectacular acts. The Standard was very high in almost all the big international circus in Scandinavia but absolutely nothing extra. 

A tragedy hits Benneweis and especially the Swedish animal trainer Diana Rhodin when one of her two elephants died. What Diana Rhodin is going to do with her remaining elephant is a question there hasn’t been answered.

In Copenhagen Circus Arena, the biggest circus in Denmark started their season in March. As in the other Scandinavian circus there was no sensations on the program but a few very nice acts. The Brazilian Motor cycle act was in a very high level and Duo Camadi was good and highly entertaining. The clowns in Arena were Revelinos from Spain and mostly copies of older Clown acts. The horses in Arena are very young and was performed and trained by Suzanne Berdino. It could develop to a very nice act. It was new for Arena to own and train the animals by them self and next year they have expanded their animals groups with few new sea lions. It looks very nice for the future for Circus Arena.

April the 4 was the day were Circus Benneweis started there season 2002. The premiere was in Hillerod a few miles north of Copenhagen. Nothing exceptional here either but again a few very nice acts. Willer Nicolodi the ventriloquist from Italy was absolutely worth the ticket and and Kris kremo the super juggler was nice to. This year thrill, high wire artist Marina Osinskaya was directly boring. Director Diana Benneweis promised us laughter but the clowns Tony Alexis family couldn’t fulfil the expectations. Lots of animals, horses, elephant and lots of funny dogs saved the performance.

The new circus Baldoni was a nice surprising newcomer. An absolute different concept made their performance worth the ticket. Mr. Baldoni, the director uses a stage and not the ring to perform in. Nice artists but again nothing breathtaking acts. Best artist with Baldoni was Mr. Baldoni him self with his nice and funny ventriloquist act.

Circus Dannebrog, called the Danish National circus, made a nice performance but they suffer radically under that they don’t use a live band. Dannebrog made a nice international performance but partly ruined by a terrible recorded sound. But if you like clowns, of the old fashion kind, it was Circus Dannebrog you should visit this year. Marianis from Portugal was definitive the best clowns in Scandinavian circus in 2002

Small Circus Mascot did a nice performance but as Dannebrog they suffer under a missing circus orchestra. A mix of hired international artists and family performance do the job nothing special but not bad either.

In Norway The oldes circus "Arnardo" did a nice international performance with lots stunning acts. Jia Lei and Sheng Guoyi two fantastic Chineese girls with a Rola rola act. Gartners elephants did their job and a fresh surprise was Anatoli Joukov with his fakir act. The evening’s thrill was absolutely this guy when he was drinking jet fuel and blowing out the whole thing like a volcano in action. The Orchestra was a well playing 8 man band..

Circus Merano did it well.   I have not been in Circus Merano this year but friends in Norway say that Don Christian (Reprise clown) and the Elephant Colonel Joe was the hit. This elephant must have been in all Scandinavian circus now ?? He has been in Benneweis, Maximum and now Merano but anyway it’s a nice act.

In Sweden The nice and medium size circus Olympia was an absolutely positive experience. The ticket price was low, which is absolute unusual in Sweden but the performance was bought by a local store and the tickets was sold to a reduced price.

Many nice acts but the absolute high score in this circus is the family themselves. They are just fantastic with their animal croups. Henrika with her dogs and Herbert with his horses.

Circus Maximum in Sweden had in my opinion the weakest season for many years. The horse act was shrinkt to two horses. The Elephant act was one elephant and a puddle; it was a nice and sweet act but nothing more. Absolutely no head attraction was included. Mr. Dalmatines dog act with his hair colored in black and white did a very nice performance but there was only one Dalmatine dog but lots of puddles and they did it very well. The Clowns this year was the well-known Rossyan clowns. They are not funny but they play music so well that you will never forget them.

Next year will be a Jubilee year for Maximum and Mr.Kallquist have promised an outstanding performance in 2003.

Maybe the greatest positive surprise this year. When I first looked at the program in the start of the Scott season in July, I was a little bit negative. No top acts at all but some how the Bronett brothers succeed and one of the absolute reasons to that success was the one and only Italian Clown - Fumagalli. He was fantastic. The Negative side of this years performance was the animals. Only two Animal acts and it had been okay if the entrees was good but they wasn’t. Everything else in Scott was in a very high artistic level. The surroundings in Scott needs a little paint and the toilets was awfull.

The price for a ticket in Denmark is very low if you compare prices with the other Scandinavian countries. In Denmark you can buy a ticket for 100 Danish kroner ( 12 Euro ) But in Norway and Sweden the ticket prices are almost double price. How can circus expect that a family with two or maybe three kids can afford to go even near the circus? If you are 5 persons, it will cost the family over 1000 Kroner ( 120 euro). It is hard to believe that many familys will spend so much money on a two-hour performance. The cost for a program is 25 % more and to see the animals in circus Maximum the cost was 400% more than in the Danish Circus Benneweis. In Danish Arena and Dannebrog it’s free to visit the animals.

If you compare the performance quality in the Scandinavian countries there is very little or no difference at all. I don’t know why it is so expensive in Norway and Sweden but you will get the same product but to the double price.

Circus Scandinavia are looking forward to the 2003 season.

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