If nothing else, circus life apparently gets its performers prepared to handle even the most extreme situations.
Andrea Raffo is a hair suspension performer with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which will bring its Over the Top show to Buffalo this week.
That job entails exactly what it sounds like. Six times a week over four days of performances, Raffo hangs from atop the stadium in which the circus is performing by her hair while performing acrobatic maneuvers.
“At the beginning, it’s painful,” said Raffo, a native of Sarasota, Fla., who is a fifth-generation circus performer. “But once you learn to keep your hair straight, you get used to it ... I don’t even think about it anymore.”
Another thing she never thinks about is life without the circus. Raffo grew up touring the world with her mother and grandmother, who both were hair suspension performers. She kept up on schoolwork along with the other children of performers by circus-provided teachers while meeting people in Europe, Asia and nearly every other continent.
“I have friends everywhere,” she said. “Life on the road is great. We all hang out and have fun.”
The familial connections continue for Roffo today. Her husband is a lion trainer for Ringling Bros., while their child tours with them, as well. As her mother has done for her, Roffo said she hopes to perform as long as her body will allow her to, then stay on the road to support the couple’s child.
Although she spent her childhood surrounded by the circus, Raffo wasn’t forced into a career in follicular aeronautics. Her mother gave approval for her to begin training in the art, Raffo said, and she spent about 18 months of her teenage years getting her act ready to perform. Even after she started performing before live audiences, she said, it took several months of fine-tuning for her to get her routine exactly how she wanted it.
“It’s a very unique act, she said. “When you see people’s faces ... they don’t want to believe it, believe that you just did it. That’s what I love.”
Raffo’s full routine won’t be on display in Buffalo, as the Over the Top show features her only at the beginning and the end (Ringling Bros. shows reset about every two years, she said, and her full routine will be featured on the next cycle). Aside from her ingress and egress, audiences can expect animal exhibitions, clowns, daredevil motorcycle riders and plenty of other spectacles, she said.
Before each show, performers will be on hand to answer questions and sign autographs. Judging by people’s receptions during those meet-and-greets, Roffo feels it’s safe to assume that the circus means as much to today’s audiences as it did to previous generations.
“The show is always pretty full, so the business is doing well,” she said. “They’re just amazed by it ... it’s live entertainment that will just blow you away.”
Contact Paul Laneat 693-1000, ext. 116.
IF YOU GO
• WHAT: Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
• WHEN: 7 p.m. Oct. 22-23; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Oct. 24; and 1 p.m. Oct. 25
• WHERE: HSBC Arena, Knox Plaza, Buffalo
• MORE INFORMATION: Call (888) 223-6000 or visit ringling.com
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