Wonderbolt!

• Published in: Canadian Theatre Review
• Main Author: Lynde, Denyse
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: University of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress) 2000
• Subjects: Visual Arts and Performing Arts; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.3138/ctr.102.011; https://ctr.utpjournals.press/doi/pdf/10.3138/ctr.102.011

A circus in Newfoundland and Labrador? Yes, and what a circus! Like all things that emerge from Canada’s easternmost province, however, Wonderbolt Circus Show is like no other. Combining theatre, music and circus skills, the six-member cast delights audiences young and old with their sixty-minute, fast-paced, hilarious extravaganza. The plot is simple but weirdly familiar. We have the Zuma family, who, because of the economic conditions still prevailing in this province, must retrain. There have been many and varied dramatic approaches to the issue of retraining in Newfoundland, from a small community that all retrained as hairdressers to real-life major success stories. But this “retrained” family are restarting life as circus performers. The family – father, mother, children and uncles, with their van of recycled material – are determined to tour their new skills and share a new form of theatre with their province.