Osaka

Another side of 『Kinoshita Circus』you cannot know just by watching!

Experience Others
2019/02/13

Behind the scenes of a magnificent and dynamic show there is strict training!

Have you ever visited "Kinoshita Circus"?


"Kinoshita Circus" is internationally recognized and has a firmly rooted popularity since olden days but behind the scenes of its magnificent and dynamic show there is strict training.
We have talked with the performers about these hardships and introduce "a story of the other side you don't know by just watching the show"!
Even those who have already watched the show will remember it and once again feel how amazing Kinoshita Circus is!

The surprising method of practising "Katagei", one of the classical arts adopting Japanese style!

In one of the classical arts "Katagei" (shoulder arts) a ladder is placed on the artist's shoulders and another artist demonstrates their skills at the top of the ladder, one part of the program which requires extraordinary balance skills.
In order to acquire stability the artists fill a plastic fuel tank (18l) with sand and use them as weights to train their shoulders.
These tanks weigh more than 40kg!

The white lions of the world-famous show of fierce animals

When we asked Mr. Michael who is an artist and the trainer of the lions we learned that the youngest lions which perform are 10 years old (around 40 human years), the oldest is 18 years old ... around 70 years for humans.
Depending on the lion the training starts 15~18 months after birth it takes a period of around 2 years until they can participate in a show.

For him the lions are "everything"!

As everybody can imagine the training with the lions is dangerous and at the risk of one's life.
Nevertheless the trainer understands the lions well, extends each of their abilities and practices with them daily so that they can perform on the show. Mr. Michael says that the lions are his family, his friends, his co-workers and his "everything". Even though they cannot communicate with words they communicate with feelings and they can accomplish such a magnificent show thanks to mutual trust and respect.

The show highlight "Trapeze"

The Trapeze sometimes reaches a heat of above 50 degrees in summer.
Even if it looks magnificent and successful from the viewer's side, the artists say that sometimes they startle when they seem to slip.
The catchers view the performance every day and fully consider the flyers' characters, their habits and their physical condition on the day of performance.
The audience can enjoy excitement and emotions just because the artists of the "Trapeze", the Circus' highlight, perform with fun!

Name of the facility Kinoshita Circus
URL http://www.kinoshita-circus.co.jp/