Piccadilly Circus Arrives in St. Charles

It’s a wet, dreary day in St. Charles made all the more miserable if you have to work outdoors. But the crew with Florida-based Piccadilly Circus were undaunted by the rain and hard at work Monday afternoon, beginning to set up the first of their tents after a 200-mile overnight trip.

Will, the circus superintendent, said the animals come first, and the day’s first work reflected that. The circus crew was hard at it, preparing to raise the menagerie tent. A semitrailer, with camels peeking through a grated door, served as the backdrop as workers first spread out tarps, then unrolled and laid out the tent itself, followed by tent poles, straps and the stakes that soon would be driven into the ground with a jackhammer mounted on a Bobcat, which also served as a forklift to move the huge rolls of tarp from semitrailer to tent site.

The rain, Will said, would slow down the work. He said the work would continue into the evening, when the twin-peaked big top — a massive blue and gold tent made in Europe that Piccadilly Circus began using last fall — would be erected.

There was a time when the animals helped with the labor — it wasn’t uncommon even 30 years ago for circuses to use their elephants, for example, to raise their tents by pulling the bases of poles, already hooked up to the tents, into place.

“That’s the old way. Today it’s all cables and winches to haul it up,” Will said. He pointed to the Bobcat. “That’s one of the best things we have out here — it can do everything: It’s a forklift and a jackhammer to drive in the stakes. We used to have to do that by hand with hammers.”

Will said the circus would continue setting up on Tuesday. Piccadilly Circus has scheduled two shows daily Wednesday through Friday and three each on Saturday and Sunday.

Despite the dampness Monday afternoon, Will perked up when he learned the rest of the week is expected to be fairly dry, although The Weather Channel reports there is a chance of thunderstorms on Thursday.

“They’ve got really nice grass here,” he said, pointing out the field in which his crew was setting up. “We sure would hate to muddy it up.”

After Sunday’s performances, it will be time to take it all down again. Then, it’s on to the next town.

After St. Charles, Piccadilly Circus heads to:

• Melrose Park, for performances Aug. 15-19;
• Grayslake, for performances Sept. 4-9;
• Woodstock, for performances Sept. 11-16;
• East Peoria, for performances Sept. 19-23.

Tickets and show times are available online at www.thefuncircus.com or by phone at 1-877-373-0477. All seats are general admission. Advance deals include free kids and two-for-one adult tickets.

The circus features special deals each day for those who buy their tickets online prior to show day. All seats are general admission.

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