Tandy Beal's JOY Returns for the Holidays in San Jose

Tandy Beal & Company kicks off the holiday season with JOY!, A Holiday Show with Circus, Dance, and Live Music, an exuberant family-friendly mix of brilliant visuals, rib-tickling circus comedy, and stunning acrobatics. Featuring the reunion of Pickle Family Circus stars Pino and Razz, also known as Cirque du Soleil soloists Jeff Raz and Diane Wasnak, this unique extravaganza returns after acclaimed performances last holiday season. Performing original Candy Land flavored tunes and other seasonal favorites, award-winning a cappella group SoVoSó will accompany this magical madcap holiday circus featuring world-class acrobats, dancers, and performers in a zany holiday spectacular. JOY! A Holiday Show with Circus, Dance, and Live Music will play November 23 - December 2 at the UCSC Theater Arts Center Mainstage Theater, Santa Cruz and December 7-9 at the Hammer Theatre, 101 Paseo De San Antonio, San Jose. For tickets ($15-$50, plus box office fees) and more information visit www.holiday-joy.com.

This dazzling extravaganza for the whole family will have audiences in awe over the amazing feats of hoop magic by Natasha Kaluza, the out of this world contortion antics of Fleeky Flanco, the unbelievable feats of balance and gravity showcased by David Poznanter and the Cyr Wheel, along with swirling and twirling dancers, plus much more. The evening will be hosted by the mighty Razz and the tiny Pino, the memorable headliners of The Pickle Family Circus. Razz (Jeff Raz) and Pino (Diane Wasnak) have both achieved international fame as soloists with Cirque du Soleil tours and are reuniting for this engagement of pure holiday JOY!

Beal's riotous vision of circus and dance offers a joyous multi-colored treat, packed with laughs, expert high-energy tumbling, and the company's trademark breathtaking visuals, creating an excellent outing for the whole family. Called "Astonishing and gorgeous. The ideal holiday experience" by the Santa Cruz Sentinel, JOY! A Holiday Show with Circus, Dance, and Live Music truly is "circus at its intimate best" (Performing Arts Monterey Bay).

Tandy Beal & Company has been producing art for more than 40 years - dance, music, media, circus and theatre - creating innovative concerts, classes, and community events. Its award-winning director, Tandy Beal, has helmed acclaimed productions on four continents. Her astonishing list of accomplishments includes directing the Moscow Circus in Tokyo, a show for Carl Sagan's SETI conference, entertainment for Monday Night Football for the San Francisco 49ers, corporate events for Pixar, Oracle, and LucasFilms, creating choreography for Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, as well as many of Bobby McFerrin's world tours, acting as Artistic Director of the Pickle Family Circus for 10 years, and bringing to life 65 life-sized puppets for Frank Zappa.

Jeff Raz has performed nationally and internationally for decades, starring in circuses (Cirque du Soleil, Pickle Family Circus, and more) and plays, including La Bête at TheatreWorks and Comedy of Errors on Broadway. He is a graduate of Dell'Arte International, has written 17 plays, and has directed dozens of circus and theater productions. He cofounded Vaudeville Nouveau in 1982, the S.F. New Vaudeville Festival in 1985, The Clown Conservatory in 2000 and the Medical Clown Project in 2010. His first book, "The Secret Life of Clowns: A backstage tour of Cirque du Soleil and The Clown Conservatory" was launched nationally at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival 2017 in Washington D.C.

Diane Wasnak (Pino) toured for ten years as a clown and acrobat with San Francisco's Pickle Family Circus and its successor, The New Pickle Circus. She has performed internationally with numerous theatrical groups, was featured in Cirque du Soleil's "Mystere," and was stunt-double for Jada Pinkett Smith in the "Matrix" series. Among her stage performances, Wasnak received acclaim for her portrayals of "Puck" in Marin Shakespeare Company's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and as the first woman ever cast in A Tuna Christmas (Actor's Theatre of Louisville), in which she played 11 characters. Wasnak and her dog, Bonzer, made their Broadway debuts in Busker Alley starring Glenn Close. Her career spans three decades, during which she has made frequent appearances on stage, film and in television.

The imaginative a cappella vocal group SoVoSó sings a compelling blend of rhythm and blues, world-jazz, pop, gospel, improvisational music - and an unforgettable, world beat re-mix of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker. The six-voice 'band,' which is based in Oakland, features skilled soloists and composers, trained in varying musical genres. Artists in SoVoSó include: Joey Blake and David Worm (of Bobby McFerrin's a cappella ensemble, Voicestra), Sunshine Becker (Further), Brian Dyer and Ashling Cole (Graham Central Station), Vernon Bush (Glide Soloist).

Photo credit: Steve Bartolomeo

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