FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!
Contact: Jessica Hentoff – 314-226-3633
What: 90 Year Old’s Farewell Aerial Performance
Where: City Museum (650 N. 16th St., 3rd floor circus ring), St. Louis, MO. 63103
When: Friday, December 2, 2016, 8PM
More Info: Call 314-226-3636
90 Year Old Trapeze Artist Takes Final Flight!
When Elizabeth “Bunny” Herring turned 80, she decided on an unusual way to celebrate her 80th birthday— she ran away and joined the circus. Actually, this is something she had done 72 years ago. As an 18 year old St. Louis debutante, Bunny joined Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus to be a show girl. At that time, she promised her parents that she would not do anything aerial. However, Bunny said, “They’re gone now.” So, to celebrate turning 80, she took to the air for the first time and has been living her dream and performing as an aerialist at St. Louis’s only compete circus school ever since. She has done a variety of aerial acts including aerial hoop, single trapeze and flying trapeze. Now, she’s doing it one last time.
Bunny turned 90 in October, and to celebrate, she will take to the air one last time. She has been training at City Museum with Circus Harmony’s aerial coach, Colleen McIntee. “Bunny is an inspiration! She has a fiery spirit, and so much grace from her training in classical ballet. We’ve been working on combining her grace and energy with strength and breathing exercises to make it possible to continue to successfully perform impressive aerial feats on the trapeze!”
Circus Harmony is generally in the business of helping children live the dream of becoming a circus performer. However, they do offer classes to all ages. Circus Harmony is also a social circus that uses circus arts to motivate social change by building character in individuals and building bridges between communities. They are best known for their youth circus troupe, the St. Louis Arches and their Peace Through Pyramids Partnership with a Jewish/Arab youth circus from Israel. Circus Harmony is the home of Ringling’s youngest ever female human cannonball, a young man who is one of the top 40 jugglers in the world and a woman now walking wire with the famed Flying Wallendas. They currently have students performing around the world.
Bunny says, “I hope to have been inspiring to others that I kept working so hard and pushing so hard even in my older years. And, I just want to thank everyone who helped me, encouraged me, and coached me. I hope others can be inspired by my efforts, and believe in themselves to do whatever they want to achieve. It has been my privilege to work with Circus Harmony and all of the wonderful coaches I’ve had!”
Bunny’s show is open to the public and will also feature some of Circus Harmony’s talented youth circus performers. For Bunny’s final farewell flight she is encouraging guests to donate to Circus Harmony’s Flying Children Scholarship Fund to help a child have the opportunity to soar. Bunny has a tattoo on her ankle that sums up her exceptional approach to life. It reads: Esse Quam Videre which translates “To be rather than to seem.” Bravo, Bunny! May we all be flying so high and doing so much at 90 years old!
From KMOX: http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2016/12/02/90-year-old-aerialist-takes-her-final-flight/
From KHTC-TV story on Bunny from April 2015
Circus Harmony teaches the art of life through circus education. Circus Harmony uses circus arts to build character in individuals and to build bridges between communities. For more information, visit www.circusharmony.org