The South Bend Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Alastair Willis team up with Circus Flora for a brand-new circus show, Under the Big Top, at the Morris Performing Arts Center on March 9, 2024, at 7:30 p.m. Prepare yourself for an incredible circus collaboration that pushes boundaries in this mesmerizing program! Under the Big Top is part of the Indiana Trust Pops Series, the second installment in the 2023-24 Season featuring works by Copland, Strauss, Stravinsky, and many more.
Director of Circus Flora, Cecil MacKinnon, excitedly gives more insight, “Circus Flora is known for creating brilliantly curated circus productions, paired with live music, and centered around a theatrical narrative. We are thrilled to collaborate with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra in 2024 and bring its audience an exciting mystery combined with world-class circus acts and, of course, terrific music. When a prominent player in the symphony goes missing, with everyone a suspect, we will need the audience’s help to figure out who the wrong-doer is. Was it a juggler, a strongman, an aerialist, or even some canine friends?”
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra thanks Indiana Trust Wealth Management for supporting the Pops Series. Additionally, the Symphony acknowledges Jordan Lexus of Mishawaka as a distinguished Artistic Sponsor of the 2023-24 Season, reflecting their commitment to fostering artistic excellence and enriching the community through exceptional musical experiences. General Stamping & Metalworks support this concert.
TICKETS range from $19 to $99.
Online – www.southbendsymphony.org
Phone – Morris Performing Arts Center Box Office 574-235-9190
In-person – Visit the Morris Box Office (211 N. Michigan St., South Bend) during the times listed above or two hours before any performance or stop by the Symphony Office (127 N. Michigan St., South Bend) between (10 am – 4 pm, Tuesday – Friday).
To VIEW the 2023-24 Season schedule, visit www.southbendsymphony.org
Dates, programs, and venues are subject to change.
For questions or media appearances, please get in touch with Sarah Perschbacher at sperschbacher@southbendsymphony.org or 574-230-4875.
###
About the South Bend Symphony Orchestra
The South Bend Symphony inspires the community with the transformative power of orchestral music in all its forms by producing 20 mainstage programs, serving more than 23,000 attendees annually. As the region’s only professional orchestra, the Symphony is committed to diverse sound and a robust arts community in Michiana that entertains and connects people to music.
In addition to being recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and other state and local arts funding organizations, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the recipient of the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County’s Leighton Award for Nonprofit Excellence, which recognizes the best-run nonprofit organization in St. Joseph County, Indiana.
###
About Circus Flora
Commissioned by famed Italian composer Gian Carlo Menotti for the Spoleto Festival in 1986, Circus Flora immediately set about creating productions unlike most Americans had seen before – productions that melded the best elements of traditional European circus with modern theater techniques and sensibilities. From the very beginning, every Circus Flora production has been an original performance, its storyline often rooted in history or literature. Through the narrative, individual acts are woven into a cohesive story, further developed and enhanced by live music composed specifically for the productions. With its 30th anniversary around the corner, Circus Flora has become part of the cultural fabric of St. Louis—an anticipated event and harbinger of summer in the city.
Owing to its leading role in revitalizing circus as a professional performing art, Circus Flora has garnered national and international recognition, receiving many special performance invitations over its nearly three-decade history. In 1997, Circus Flora’s big top tent was the first ever to be erected at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; and in 2002, the tent was raised at The Lincoln Center Festival in New York City. Additionally, the Circus has made an unprecedented six appearances at the prestigious Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, and five appearances on the Island of Nantucket.
Circus Flora showcases world-class talent by both new artists and venerable talent. Their performances represent the continuation and evolution of circus arts and ensure its future for generations to come.
Please note: Biographies are based on information provided by the artists or their representatives to the South Bend Symphony Orchestra. More current information may be available on the artists’ or management websites.