Emma J Hawkins (The Divine Miss Em) has an extensive and impressive list of achievements in performing, directing and producing in the performing arts. She co-founded and runs ‘Atypical
Theatre Company.’

‘The Fair Ground Project was an open playing field. It gave me the opportunity to find the joy and space to investigate new forms, new bodies and endless possibilities. It allowed me to stretch and test myself, as an experienced artist who was uncertain of my future. Validating my worth and place in the arts sector in Australia. I know that I certainly still have a lot to give and share. Integrated companies such as the Fair Ground Project are crucial as they create new ground-breaking work and I am excited to see what will come next…”

Loki ‘Wheels’ Rickus comes from a gymnastics, dance and circus background at the age of 8 he became a contortionist and an aerialist. In 2006 Loki fell and broke his neck. Post his accident; he reinvented his performing arts career by working in cabaret and musical theatre. In 2013 Loki came back to circus, his first love. Growing up Loki remembers seeing artists such as Asphyxia (deaf circus performer, artist and puppeteer) and Andy Bray (circus artist with disability) perform but by 2013 there was no access to circus for professional artists with a disability. Driven by a vision Loki was hell-bent on creating professional pathways for circus artists with disability. The Fair Ground Project was born and it, ‘is about nurturing and supporting artists not creating a niche performing arts company. The project came out of the need to make an inclusive environment in the Australian Circus Arts and our aim is to support artists to join any professional circus arts company in Australia and Internationally’.

My name is Rima Hadchiti and I have been a performer all my life. It’s something that has been natural and it is a huge part of who I am. Over the years I have wanted to expand my skills and challenge myself. The Fair Ground Project has been so enriching for me in that campsite. It is truly amazing when you realize how many doors can open when you keep trying to increase your skill-set. I realized that there is no disability just limitations and challenges, which you work through with yourself and your community. I love how The Fair Ground Project has opened my eyes to that.

Thomas Gundry Greenfield has danced his way into the hearts of many an Australian contemporary dance company. But The Fair Ground Project saw him dancing with the circus arts. ‘The Fair Ground Project gave me; pride, honour, challenges, awareness, new skills and a new creative community. This project created accessibility into a sector of society and the performing arts that was not accessible to me before as a physical performer.

Sarah ‘Doogs’ McDougall burst out of NICA in 2014 with a passion for aerials, hoops and the absurd. Since then she has been ripping it up working in lots of independent circus arts projects. She is also the prime mover and founder of Paradox Circus Entertainment. ‘The Fair Ground Project fused some of my favourite aspects of circus together: fun, creativity, absurdity, determination, hard work, exploration and the supposed impossible! To be in a space where everyone and everything is born essentially from the unknown is an exciting place to create work. Nothing is impossible until it is tried and explored; no suggestion or idea is met with ‘No’, because we were traversing unchartered territory, where no two bodies or abilities were the same.The most important and amazing thing about circus for me is that everyone has a place. You can try every aspect, discipline or style and if you don’t fit, it is both accepted and celebrated for you to create your own niche. The Fair Ground Project did exactly that, in a brilliant fashion!’

Reece Cooper has a strong background in the circus arts. He graduated from The National Institute of Circus Arts in 2014, specializing in hand balancing, roué cyr and Chinese pole. ‘The Fair Ground Project has been a fun, creative and exploratory process for me. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses and unique ways of moving about the space. Utilizing movement and physical improvisations, we were able to create a unique physical choreography. I have learnt a lot about the other artists, a lot about myself and I have also learnt from the other creatives who came in to explore improvisation, movement, dance, aerial and manipulation skills with us. Having done this creative development with the Fair Ground Project, I am now able to talk more freely about disability and I know that there will always be new ways in which we can incorporate everyone into a new circus work’.

Jon Bonaventura is a talented circus artist who rocks a number of specialties such as duo corde lisse, aerial rope, hand balancing.

‘As a physical performer recovering from a serious injury, accessibility in the arts was something I became acutely aware of in a very short amount of time. The Fair Ground Project, for me, was a chance for me to learn from those who were more experienced than myself, test the limits of my body, and to create incredible work with a largely untapped resource of brilliant artists. thanks!’

Olivia Porter is renowned for her innovative and unique juggling style, her deadpan comedic stage persona and her bold theatrical physicality. Olivia has performed with: Vulcana Women’s Circus, Circa, Wilde Applause, Lady Torpedo, Circus Oz and 3 is a Crowd. Post the Fair Ground Project Olivia headed to Denmark and London to perform in the internationally renowned cabaret, ‘La Soiree’.

‘For me, circus is limitless in its potential. Circus is a place for absolutely anyone. It’s a powerful platform that enables us to be challenged, explore and express ourselves. The Fair Ground Project values all these aspects and above all reminds us that our uniqueness is what creates incredible work that goes beyond any limitation that the world might put on us’.

Kim Kaos: coming soon