Bondi Boys Run Away With Circus

By Marcus Braid on September 8, 2015 in News

Bondi boys Sebastian Cassie and Michael Carrigan saw each other around the traps regularly, and started to toy with employment ideas they never thought would see the light of day.

With both stemming from corporate backgrounds – Mr Cassie as a lawyer and Mr Carrigan as a risk and compliance officer – the idea to strip themselves of their corporate shackles soon became a reality, and they literally ran away with the circus.

Mr Cassie and Mr Carrigan have spent the past year putting together the brand new production for the Great Euro Circus, which will launch at Lyne Park in Rose Bay on September 23.

“Owners Harry and Marie Weber have been good commercial and business acquaintances of ours for a while,” said Mr Cassie, the show’s executive producer.

“We approached them with the idea of fusing those two worlds together, while coming up with a new form of touring circus that included an extreme element, because of the success of shows like Nitro Circus.

“We wanted to create something that was a bit more modern and appealing to people of all ages, and to still include some of the more traditional circus elements and remove anything that we thought was a bit too old.”

The Great Euro Circus is designed to cater for all ages, from children to those who like to see something extreme or never done before.

“By night, you’ll see the adults running around like little children themselves,” Mr Cassie said. “Some of them even seem like they lose their children because they’re so excited by it.

“We think clowning is awesome, but we thought the traditional presentation of the clown with make-up and very red hair was polarising. There’s a large proportion of young and old people who have a massive clown phobia. It’s one of the most common phobias in the world.

“We thought, ‘Why don’t we strip the guys down and remove all of the scary out of the clown… and have a modern clown that’s just bloody hilarious?’”

This current production is planned to last for two and a half years around Australia, and it will reach every corner of the country. Mr Cassie estimates that if the current rate of ticket sales continues, over three million Australians will see the show.

“There was a gap in the market we saw,” Mr Cassie said. “Coming from Bondi, there’s so much stuff that happens around here that inspired us. Recently, we shot Hamish and Andy out of a canon into the middle of the harbour to relaunch the Hamish and Andy radio show.”

Since taking charge of the production, marketing and advertising for the Great Euro Circus, a core company value of community engagement has been adopted. This includes engaging with local charity groups and community groups, and providing support and opportunities to those groups to assist them with their fundraising and other campaigns.

“There’s a lot of pedigree for something that’s so modern,” Mr Cassie said. “We’ve taken it to that next level where we have to touch wood, because the stunts that these guys are performing are so dangerous.”

For more information about the Great Euro Circus show at Rose Bay’s Lyne Park, visit www.greateurocircus.com.