FREESTYLE SOCCER BALL

Cory Black, a Seattle native, is a soccer freestyler and juggler who seamlessly merges the two into a fresh and dynamic act. Starting his freestyle journey in 2010, Cory has competed globally, achieving top 8 finishes in the USA Championships and competing at the Super Ball World Championships in the Czech Republic.

After performing numerous freestyle exhibitions for pro soccer teams and at corporate events, Cory sought to create an artistic performance for the big stage. In 2022, he began building a soccer freestyle and juggling routine and is now thrilled to bring it on tour with Flynn Creek Circus.

HAT JUGGLING

Nick started training circus as a college student in the midwest. He has spent the last several decades performing Duo Unicycle with his wife in circuses around the world. He met Blaze & David while touring together in 2013, and first joined Flynn Creek Circus in 2015. Nick has featured in Flynn Creek Circus again in 2019, 2024 and he is thrilled to join the show again in 2025 with his hat juggling. When he is not touring, he and his wife Wendy Harden coach and direct the youth performance troupes at the School of Acrobatics & New Circus Arts in Seattle.

MULTICORDE
Jessica Perry is an internationally recognized aerialist
and movement artist. After touring Europe, Australia
and the US, with AIDA Cruise Productions, Creactive
by Cirque du Soleil, Stufish Productions, Acrobatic
Conundrum and Dream World Cirque, she is now
based in Las Vegas. She frequently travels to Colorado,
Seattle, California, and beyond for artistic projects,
events, and good people.

She spent the pandemic developing a new act on the
elusive multicorde, or as she prefers to call it: the
death spaghetti

e

ACROBAT
Having retired from a noteworthy competitve career on the 3 Meter Springboard, Rylan joined a traveling high dive show where he played such infamous characters as Chili the penguin, Mr.Gibbs the pirate, and the Man in the audience. After a stint of international shows is Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean, he shifted gears to discover his true passion as a flyer on the Russian Swing. In 2021 he bought his own swing. Recently, Rylan has been the captan of a Russian Swing act in conjunction with a high dive show where he also dove from 80 feet. On the side, Rylan has been hosting and participating in Russian Swing training camps. Now, with more than 10 years of show experience, Rylan is teaming up with Flynn Creek for his second consecutive season. He is excited to bestow upon the stage his unique character stylings and his passion for Russian Swing.

 GERMAN WHEEL

Jeremy Cifonie is an American circus artist who specializes in German wheel, aerial rope, and clown. His career began with the Gamma Phi Circus at Illinois State University, where he trained until graduating in 2020. Since then, Jeremy has spent 11 months out of each year traveling with a variety of circus productions. He is the VIVA Fest 2023 Aerial Rope Emerging Pro champion, and most recently has performed with Cirque Mechanics, Flynn Creek Circus, Cirque Dreams, Cirque Us, Westchester Circus Arts, All Wheel Sports, and The Vampire Circus. Outside of work, Jeremy enjoys making coffee, mailing out vintage postcards, and playing his gameboy. @jermichaelcircus

CLOUDSWING

While Jacy has been born and raised in Northern California, she spent most of her childhood traveling the world with her parents while they performed their duo trapeze act. This early exposure to different cultures and areas leads jacy to pursue her own life in circus. She started constructing her cloudswing act in late 2019 and has been improving upon it ever since.

CHINESE POLE

Katie’s performance career began sitting at a piano bench refusing to practice. Still, she fell in love with music—especially the marching arts—where she performed with world champions Phantom Regiment drum corp and Onyx color guard. While attending the Jacobs School of Music for Music Education and trombone performance, she realized she missed the athleticism and community of sports and decided to strive for the circus. She found a local circus arts school that taught her tumbling and trampoline as an adult, paving the way for her to complete a 3-year training program at the New England Center for Circus Arts, focusing on Chinese pole with Sandra Feusi and juggling with Jan Damm and Tony Duncan. She has continued training to be a well-rounded acrobat ever since. Katie loves that the circus blends artistry and athleticism, bringing people together to share a moment of fun and awe for what we can do when we lift each other up.

When not actively training or resting, Katie can be found devouring potatoes, her favorite food group, and playing the piano.

AERIAL ROPE
Shem grew up in a small town called Mendocino, tucked away in the redwoods on the coast of Northern California. From a young age Shem has always been a very active and artistic person.
At 10 years old he enrolled with CircusMeCCA, a nonprofit aerial arts school, where he began to take off in developing his physical skill set and new found passion for aerial silks.
As time went on and his passion for circus and performance arts grew stronger, he pursued opportunities to expand his knowledge and artistry.
Around the age of 13 he was accepted into a 2 week circus camp program at École Nationale De Cirque in Montreal, Canada; as well as another 2 week circus camp program at Le PeTiT CiRqUe in Los Angeles, CA.
Shortly after, he was hired on by Cirque De La Symphonie, where he was flown to various states across the USA to perform with live symphonies in epic cathedrals, and was pushed to expand beyond the silks and explore new territory on the aerial rope; which very quickly became his preferred apparatus.
He later joined Flynn Creek Circus as an apprentice when he was 15 and toured with them for 4 summers in a row becoming a Veteran at FCC. During his 4th summer with Flynn Creek Circus, he was able to expand his resume through the performance opportunity to recultivate a young childhood talent and bring his sleight of hand and card tricks to the stage; while also expanding his skills in stage magic, character work, acrobatics, tricking, teeter board, aerial rope and singing as he collaborated with the 2019 Flynn Creek Circus Band to write the opening song of the show.
Between tours with FCC, he was also accepted into VivaFest Pro-Fest Competition in Las Vegas, where he placed 2nd out of 13 international contestants in 2018.
In his most recent years, Shem has taken a step back from performing to focus on, pursue, and bring to fruition, a dream of his to integrate live music performance with acrobatic dance and aerial rope, creating a very modern, nontraditional, One Man Circus show.
After 6 years of self-taught cultivation in music, Shem is extremely excited to say that he is crossing the finish line with his very first production and will soon be ready to debut the very first run of his show, Medicine Music Movement. Find his solo performances @bigshemshow

COMEDY

Daring Jones Duo is the team that runs the show.  They try their best.  He is most known for his plucky good humor and the trapeze act he and his wife toured Internationally for 19 years. Here’s a few of their awards.

• Tigerpalast 30th Jubilee,  Germany, 2018-2019
• Izhevsk Winners Show, Russia, 2018
• 1^st Place, VivaFest Pro serries, Las Vegas, 2017
• Silver, Wuhan Festival, China 2016
• Bronze Idol, Idol festival, Russia 2016
• Bronze, 15^th Wuqiao International Circus Festival, China 2015
• Silver, 7th International Circus Festival Izhevsk, Russia 2014
• Zapashny Bros Special Award, 38th Monte Carlo International Circus Festival 2014
• Bronze, Moscow International Circus Festival, Nikulin, Russia 2013
• Bronze, Festival Del Circo, Latina, Italy, 2012
• America’s Got Talent,  National TV syndicate, top 48, 2012
• Critic’s Choice Award, Festival Del Circo, Figueres, Spain, 2012

COMDEY

Blaze is the founder of Flynn Creek Circus and a member of Daring Jones Duo, the team that runs the show. She is most known for her extra plucky sense of humor and that same trapeze act that David is know for. Sometimes they throws knives. They try their best.  Here’s a few of their awards.

• Tigerpalast 30th Jubilee,  Germany, 2018-2019
• Izhevsk Winners Show, Russia, 2018
• 1^st Place, VivaFest Pro serries, Las Vegas, 2017
• Silver, Wuhan Festival, China 2016
• Bronze Idol, Idol festival, Russia 2016
• Bronze, 15^th Wuqiao International Circus Festival, China 2015
• Silver, 7th International Circus Festival Izhevsk, Russia 2014
• Zapashny Bros Special Award, 38th Monte Carlo International Circus Festival 2014
• Bronze, Moscow International Circus Festival, Nikulin, Russia 2013
• Bronze, Festival Del Circo, Latina, Italy, 2012
• America’s Got Talent,  National TV syndicate, top 48, 2012
• Critic’s Choice Award, Festival Del Circo, Figueres, Spain, 2012

ACROBATICS

Richie started flipping in his backyard at age fourteen, then joined his high school cheerleading team. Later he found circus through calisthenics and acroyoga. He began training together with Ilana at Pitch Catch Circus, an acrobatics intensive founded by Ilana as a way to continue her partner acro training after a brief stint at circus school in England. When not flipping, balancing, or juggling, Richie makes puns.

ACROBATICS

Ilana Rose is an aerialist and acrobat who will forever call New Mexico home. She has performed and taught across the country and even across the pond for the last 12 years. She’s grateful to have learned from amazing coaches at Wise Fool NM, Circomedia in Bristol, England, and Pitch Catch Circus. When not upside down, Ilana loves to cook for friends and wander amongst green things.

CONTORTION- SENIOR APPRENTICE

Donna Lukin is a contortionist, handbalancer and aerialist from Ashland Oregon. Growing up as a dancer and gymnast she discovered circus at 15 and completely dedicated herself to it ever since, as it felt like the perfect balance of all the physical movements she already loved. She has been performing in the Rogue Valley of Oregon for a couple years and is excited to return for her second season at Flynn Creek Circus. In her other life Donna is an avid outdoorsman enjoying snowboarding, climbing mountains, collecting pretty rocks by the river and spending as much time as she can outside.

LIGHTING & SOUND

David Wagar has the joy and pleasure of returning to Flynn Creek for his fifth year as Lighting Designer. When he is not working up with the lights, he enjoys movie nights, karaoke, and blacksmithing.
He has had the immense joy to work at the Gaylord of the Rockies as an actor, FeverUp as a performer and assistant, Phantom Circus as a lighting designer and performer, and Cedar Point as a technician.
He would like to thank his family and friends for all their support this past year and their continued support of this extravagant lifestyle..

TENT MASTER ASSISTANT

Jon has worked with some of the biggest names in circus including Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey and Cirque du Soleil, and is very excited to continue to expand his knowledge of show business. He returns to the Flynn Creek Circus for his 3rd tour. Originally from North Carolina, Jon has been traveling all his life which now fuels his sense for adventure. His passions include learning new skills and pushing himself to the limit. He takes great pride in overcoming seemingly impossible obstacles and keeping the wheels of the circus “turning”. When he’s not working with a show, you’ll find him cooking, playing guitar or going on nature excursions.

CIRCUS MENTORS APPRENTICE

Rachel is a passionate explorer of the natural world with a deep love for insects, animals and the vibrant artistry of the circus. Her creative spirit extends into sculpture and marine biology. This season, Rachel is thrilled to join Flynn Creek Circus where she looks forward to learning all aspects of circus life.

CIRCUS MENTORS APPRENTICE- ROPE

MARKETING RESEARCH ASSISTANT

Esther de Monteflores is an arts administrator and performing artist based in San Francisco, CA. As an arts administrator, Esther has worked with organizations in circus, theater, film, architecture, music, dance, and opera. This is her fourth season providing pre-tour support for Flynn Creek Circus.