TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – It’s lights, costumes and a whole lot of comeback spirit under the big top this weekend in Tallahassee!
The Florida State University Flying High Circus is back, ready to soar after a devastating tornado tore through campus last year.
For nearly 80 years, the FSU Flying High Circus has been a staple of campus life, a place where students learn acrobatics, aerial arts, and the thrill of performing under the big top, but it all started humbly in an open field back in 1947.
As the United States celebrates 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, WCTV and its parent company, Gray Media, are taking a moment to celebrate our local history. Our “We The People” series commemorates and honors local history in the Big Bend and South Georgia.
Before the circus had its first official tent in the 1960s, performers relied on simple setups and plenty of improvisation. Photos from those early days show clowns walking tightropes and large contraptions set up in open fields, a far cry from the iconic tent that would later become their home.
In May 2024, a powerful EF-2 tornado tore through campus, leaving the circus site in ruins. Drone footage captured the destruction, showing what was once a hub of performance and practice reduced to an empty field.
“It was crazy, like completely flat,” said performer Camilla Dotti. “We have support beams in our tent that, even when we do take the tent down, you can see them clearly, but nothing. It was a completely empty field; it was crazy.”
From that loss came determination. For months, performers trained inside a small hut, never losing sight of the goal: getting back under the big top.
“You are like having to address all your tensioning devices and all of your cables and locations, so there are all those rebuilds from like a circus rigging standpoint, and we lost all of our cabling for our lighting,” said Chad Mathews, director of the FSU Flying High Circus. “Fortunately, we were able to retain all of our show lighting, but all those pieces we had to kinda rebuild and get new measurements for.”
For the performers, like senior Cooper Garrard, every stretch, every climb, every heartbeat reflects what it took to get back.
“It’s fulfilling to have stuck around and have been where I was three years ago and then watch everything happen and then be a part of the revival, for lack of better words,” said performer Cooper Garrard.
We The People
The Halloween show is more than just a performance. It’s a return to the sights, sounds, and energy of a real circus.
“I think there’s obviously the aesthetic aspect of like, when you look like you’re walking into a tent. It’s like you’re entering the circus, and you feel like it’s the circus,” Dotti said. “On show days, there’s also the atmosphere: popcorn, smells, excitement. It feels like you’re about to see a really cool big show.”
Senior performers like Cooper and Camilla are feeling the weight of final bows after college careers that tested both their strength and resilience.
“It’s like big shoes to fill, and it’s also been so long without a show. I’m very nervous about what the audience is thinking. I really hope we live up to their expectations,” Dotti added.
Mathews said there’s still work to be done, but the team is thrilled to bring back their annual Halloween series.
For more information about the circus, click here.
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