How Can I Turn Circus Into a Job: Gig Life!
Last week I started talking about different types of jobs that you can get after training circus. If you remember, my first performing job was in a theme park, but since it was part time, I had to get other jobs to supplement my income. While I found other theme parks jobs, when it’s all part time, you have to open yourself up to finding different jobs. Another type of circus job is working gigs. A gig can mean a couple different things, but basically, you are not working with a contract and are usually not in the same venue for multiple gigs.
When I started working gigs, I did a lot of things locally. There is a lot of opportunity out there for gigs, and believe it or not, some of my first gigs were as a mermaid! Remember last week how I said I became a Pearl Diver at Sea World? Well one of my coworkers had a mermaid company and asked me to be a part of it. These were great gigs because we would travel to these very fancy houses in Orlando and Miami and either swim in a large tank, or in a luxurious pool. The great part about them is that I got to work for just a couple hours, was paid fairly well, and I got to go home at the end of the night. They were a lot of fun!
Once I started gigging and getting to network a bit more, I was asked to join an acrobatics team. We would train once a week in different disciplines, like acrobatics, dance, aerial arts, and even acro dunking! I was so thankful for this because it exposed me to many new disciplines I never even dreamed of learning. The team leaders also knew a lot of people in town, so they would always help us audition and land new gigs. This type of work was brand new to me. I was so used to learning a routine and performing it, and for the first time I was doing ambiance work. While I would still have to do some specific skills, most of the time I was out there to entertain guests. It was extremely nerve-racking to have to feel a piece of music and move accordingly. But, with tons (and I mean tons) of practice, I was able to feel more confident in my own skin. **This type of work is something we practice in our Event Team classes, which everybody should join because it is so much fun!**
Through the acrobatics team, I got to meet so many new people and performers. Eventually I met the owner of New Image Line Entertainment, who was in charge of hiring circus performers for Life in Color. If you’ve never heard of Life in Color, they are these big music festivals where people go wearing white t-shirts and get sprayed with fire hoses with bright colored paints. Because Life in Color was a traveling show, it meant that for the first time I would have to fly to a different place to do the gig. It was a brand new chapter in my life, and I absolutely loved it! I felt like I was the coolest person! I was still working part time at theme parks, and then on the weekends I would catch a flight and be in a new state and perform what I loved! Once I became more familiar with the shows and with the team, I was asked to travel internationally for shows! I went to places like Mexico, Argentina, Indonesia, and South Africa to name a few! I loved every aspect of my life, but if you were paying attention, you see that I had to maintain some part time theme park jobs, all while working different gigs. It can become extremely busy and tiring, but finding work is a great thing!
If there is one piece of advice I can give, it’s to always be friendly and respectful and work on networking and making great connections with people. If you are just starting out, it is easier to hear about a job from someone you know. Unfortunately, auditions for jobs can be extremely competitive, so it is always good to be positive and friendly. People just want to work with other people who are nice! I know it sounds silly to mention, and you think “well that’s common sense,” but you don’t know how far it can actually take you!
So that’s my experience with gigs! Next week, I’ll talk about landing the big show and dream job: Le Reve the Dream!