Fern Street Circus Announces Annual Neighborhood Tour with Series of Free Public Performances

SAN DIEGO – After an unprecedented year impacted by COVID-19, Fern Street Circus (FSC) announced today that it will kick off its Annual Neighborhood Tour on Sunday, August 8 at Bay Terrace Park and Community Center in San Diego. Running on weekends through August 29, the series of free, public performances at San Diego neighborhood parks showcases the talents of professional artists from around the world alongside local students from Fern Street Circus’s free after-school program in City Heights. FSC has partnered with the City of San Diego’s Parks and Recreation Department, San Diego Parks Foundation and HHSA/Live Well San Diego to put on seven shows during the month of August at a variety of neighborhood parks, including the communities of San Ysidro, Linda Vista, Southcrest, Barrio Logan, City Heights and more. The shows will move to a new park each Saturday and Sunday, with FSC performances starting at 2 p.m. The series of events will also include dance performances from Maraya Performing Arts, as well as food, arts and crafts and more, for a full day of family fun in the park. (See full schedule and locations below.) The theme of this year’s show will be “Come Out! Come Out!” and will celebrate the “new abnormal” of life following the COVID-19 lockdown. The multi-generational shows will feature bilingual ringmaster Memo Mendez, live music and a variety of circus acts, including juggling, clowning, contortion, tumbling, tightwire, puppetry and more. The shows are free and open to the public. All ages are welcome, and no tickets are required. “After the challenges of the past year, we are thrilled to be back out in the community and sharing the magic of circus to bring people of all ages, cultures and languages together,” said FSC Executive Director John Highkin. “We are grateful for our community partners for making these meaningful, shared community experiences possible once again for so many San Diego families.”

FSC has been serving San Diego’s mid-city neighborhoods for 30 years with its signature after-school program and annual performances at public parks, all offered free of charge. During the pandemic, when large gatherings were not possible due to health and safety concerns, FSC completely reimagined its public engagement activities to include a series of 39 pop-up, socially distanced performances at curbside meal distribution sites, using circus as a fun and engaging vehicle for sharing critical information, like 2020 Census participation and voter registration, with more than 11,000 residents in many hard-to-reach communities. FSC also continued to serve local families through its popular after-school program by providing students with live instruction each week via Zoom. FSC also recently opened a new Outdoor Circus Community Center in City Heights.

2021 Neighborhood Tour Schedule:

Sunday, August 8 Bay Terrace Park & Community Center

7373 Tooma Street, San Diego 92139

Saturday, August 14 Penn Athletic Field

2555 Dusk Drive, San Diego 92129

Sunday, August 15 Southcrest Recreation Center

4149 Newton Avenue, San Diego 92113

Saturday, August 21 Linda Vista Recreation Center

7064 Levant Street, San Diego 92111

Sunday, August 22 Willie Henderson Sports Complex

1035 South 45th Street, San Diego 92113

Saturday, August 28 Cesar Chavez Community Center

455 Sycamore Road, San Diego 92173

Sunday, August 29 City Heights Recreation Center

4380 Landis Street, San Diego 92105

About Fern Street Circus

Fern Street Circus is a pioneer in the growing “social circus” movement and is dedicated to creating intriguing shows, performing in under-served neighborhoods and teaching circus skills free of charge in San Diego’s mid-city neighborhoods. Additional information can be found at www.fernstreetcircus.com and on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.