Ridgefield Playhouse to Present THE ZERBINI FAMILY CIRCUS, 7/13

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls and children of all ages! The Zerbini Family Circus is coming to Ridgefield! The Ridgefield Playhouse and Ridgefield Academy Family Series bring fun for the whole family with The Zerbini Family Circus on Wednesday, July 13 at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. at East Ridge Middle School, 10 East Ridge Road, Ridgefield. This is the first time in more than 40 years that a real circus has come to Ridgefield! The Zerbini Family Circus is a real, old time circus filled with exciting circus acts...clowns, acrobats, jugglers, animal acts, aerialists and other performers. Every seat in the tent gives the people a close-up view of the acts and the live show provides excitement for everyone from the age of one to one hundred years in a family environment. Come an hour early and enjoy pony and camel rides! The awesomeness of the Big-Top, traditional animal acts, music and the daredevil is a great time for youngsters and seniors alike. Media sponsor for the day of fun is Danbury's 98Q.

The Zerbini family tradition started in Europe. Their earliest recorded circus performers hailed from Italy in the year 1763. Alain Zerbini, patriarch of the modern day Zerbini Family Circus was born in Marseilles, France. At age 14, he and his brother quit school to join the circus, as was family practice. In 1968, his father, Julian Zerbini, moved the family to the United States, where they all continued to perform in circuses around the country. In 1991, as Alain Zerbini was recovering from a devastating high-wire fall, doctors told him he would never walk again. Determined to prove them wrong, Zerbini did indeed walk again, and for good measure decided to start his own circus, to boot. The Zerbini Family Circus started in the United States in 1992. Then, the "the small big top" seated just 500. In 20 years, the show has tripled in size and the big top now seats 1,500. Zerbini is happy with the growth. Yet, he also values the fact that a crowd of 1,500 is still manageable. After all, one of his favorite parts of traveling the country is talking with the crowd before and after the show, and giving them a little "peek under the tent," he says.

For tickets ($20 General Admission), call the box office at 203-438-5795, or visit ridgefieldplayhouse.org. The Ridgefield Playhouse is a non-profit performing arts center located at 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main Street, Ridgefield, CT.

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