The residents of Bonn do not seem to have forgotten how to pay for good entertainment, despite inflation and rising prices. The premiere was sold out, and it was a performance the audience is not likely to forget.

There was loud applause, and clown Jimmy Folco would not have allowed anything else. Right at the beginning, he let the audience know what he thought of mediocre applause. Time and again he lightens up the programme, and his numbers are good. He loves involving members of the audience, and if you don’t want to find yourself the centre of attention, you should be as inconspicuous as possible or stay well hidden. Jimmy Folco was already in Bonn in 2021, as was Circus Director Louis Knie Junior, who performs his horse act. All the other artists are in Bonn for the first time.

Not everything you’ll see is new, but you will see old things in a new guise. Sofia, who plays the violin while suspended from two scarves, starts one of her aerial acrobatics performances from a large glass water bowl and when she twirls around on a strap under the circus tent roof, the first rows can get wet. You've seen somersaults and pirouettes before, but The White Angels use an air-filled "tumbling track" that looks like a long trampoline. And the two members of Illuminous defy centrifugal force on roller skates on a small round platform.

The show is unhurried and does not shy away from the traditional, such as Louis Knie with his free horse dressage. When the animals walk along the edge of the ring it can feel a bit dangerous in the front row. The only other animal act is Nicole Berousek. Her elegant black horse dances to the music, and her six dogs light up the eyes of the children in the audience whilst showing that you don't need exotic animals in the circus ring.

Then there’s Berousek’s sister Vanessa, who, in addition to hula hoops, is a master of rhythmic juggling with gymnastic balls that look like beads of shell. It’s pure elegance. The Dollys Power Dancers bring ballet dance into the performances, sometimes accompanying the other artists - right at the beginning you don't really know where to look because so much is happening in the ring.

The show lasts a good two and a half hours, including an interval, and the children in the audience in particular will be impatiently awaiting the end of the show, and for Danny Luftman with his three-jet boomerangs, and Extreme FXX’s freestyle motorbikes. You can see the bikes in the foreground on the posters all over the city, and it’s no wonder they’re everywhere to be seen. They’re huge attractions in the circus rings of the world.

If you've watched a certain RTL talent show, you'll already know Luftman. Like many others in this year's programme, he comes from the famous Cirque de Soleil. He throws boomerangs that make their rounds above the heads of the audience, first one, then two and more, and finally he performs the act that got him into the Guinness Book of Records with five throwing devices. He throws them quickly one after the other and catches them all again, seeming to glide through the ring. Much of this year's show is astonishing, but this number blows us away.

A large ramp has been set up in the entrance tunnel during the intermission and it comes into play at the end of the show. Now, a large landing ramp is inflated in the ring, and here they come: the five freestyle motocross show jumps that are more impressive every time. It’s now that the people in the cheaper back row seats have an advantage, because you can see the tricks much better from there. The youngsters in the audience at the premiere cheered at every jump.

And then it’s time to go home and be glad that you didn’t miss this circus. According to press spokesperson Thomas Lenz, the artists are also glad, in particular that there are no more Covid restrictions. Lenz also says that prices have not gone up significantly because the circus hasn't passed on the high energy costs for heating the tent and for the light show to the audience.

Original text: Stefan Knopp / Translation: Jean Lennox

Hier geht es zur Bilderstrecke: Eindrücke des Bonner Weihnachtscircus in Beuel