The Shanghai Circus comes to Honolulu

The Shanghai Circus returned to Oahu this past weekend.  We were there to see their stunning show for the third year in a row.

The Hawaii Theatre

The Circus' venue in Honolulu is the Hawaii Theatre, located downtown.   It's a beautiful theatre, which first opened in 1922.  Originally used for silent movies, vaudeville shows and plays, the theatre suffered from deferred maintenance as the years passed.  In 1984, Consolidated Amusement, the theatre's operator, terminated its lease of the property. 

Two years later, a nonprofit group was formed with the intent of restoring the theatre.  They collected donations, hired contractors and managed to reopen the theatre in 1996.

Back to the Shanghai Circus

The performers are simply amazing.  Some of the feats they do are just so surprising.  There's a man who rolls a large vase over his shoulders and over his head.  He balances the jug on his head and even tosses it in the air and catches it on the back of his neck.

This lady juggles similar vases with her feet.  After she's thoroughly amazed us, she juggles this large table.

Another lady does this balancing act on chairs that are stacked up.  There's a safety wire in the photo.  It's not holding her up, but if she were to fall it would protect her from injury.

As you can see in the photo, there's a table on the floor.  Four bottles are on the table and four chairs are stacked up with this athletic woman balancing on top.

Another interesting act is a lady that's very flexible.  She bends and fits her body into a barrel-shaped tube, then slides through to the other side.  The average person would get stuck inside the tube and probably have a panic attack.  This woman takes it all in stride.

One act we did not see this year is the bicycle riders.  At prior shows, we watched the bicycle riders go around in circles on the stage and perform balancing acts.  They did things like hold onto each others' arms and stack people on their shoulders.  It was really cool and I hope they bring the bikes back next year.

Check out the Shanghai Circus

If the Shanghai Circus comes to your town, check it out and have some fun!  The affordable seats at Hawaii Theatre cost $22.50 each - about the cost of watching two feature movies.  This is even better because it's a live performance.

Aloha, Mike Bates

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