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Sarasota Circus Clowns Do The Harlem Shake

Circus Sarasota trying to attract donations in the 36-Hour Giving Challenge through a Harlem Shake video.

If anyone does a Harlem Shake video, we'll pretty much link to it. Especially if it's a good cause like the 36-hour Giving Challenge. One of the latest is the esteemed Circus Sarasota, bringing out their best clowns to shake what the circus ring gave them along with tons of teens from its Sailor Circus program for teens and children. As for presentation, this is one of the best Harlem Shake videos considering the perspective inside the Sailor Circus dome on Bahia Vista Street. The Arts and Cultural Alliance and the HuB teamed up for several Harlem Shake videos for organizations in Sarasota, and they are all listed on the HuB's special Shake Up page. To give to Circus Sarasota, which produced this year's Nik Wallenda show, visit www.…

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Video: Nik Wallenda Walks High-Wire Over Sarasota

Nik Wallenda performed a 600 feet walk 200 feet above U.S. 41 earlier Tuesday morning.

Nik Wallenda, a Sarasota resident known for his fantastic feats of wire walking, performed a 600 feet walk 200 feet above U.S. 41 Tuesday morning. "I truly love this city and anything I can do to shine an international spotlight and attract more visitors, I'm more than willing to do," Wallenda said. From 200 feet up, Wallenda got a great view of downtown Sarasota.  "It looks amazing. Just as amazing as it does down here. It's a beautiful city," Wallenda said. Watch our video to see more Wallenda's promotional walk for Circus Sarasota. Let Patch save you time. Get great local stories like this delivered right to your inbox or smartphone everyday with our free newsletter. Simple, fast sign-up here. Related Nik Wallenda Coverage:

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Weekend Things To Do

Nik Wallenda Circus Sarasota Show Opens

Weekend Events: Nik Wallenda | Big Cat Habitat | Tampa Bay Lightning | Pinecraft Pie Contest | Van Wezel Shows

1. Before Nik Wallenda walks by the Sarasota Bayfront, he'll start to command the Big Top off of 12th Street for his Circus Sarasota show. The show runs from Friday, Jan. 25 to Friday, Feb. 15 under the Big Top across from Ed Smith Stadium.  The show includes Wallenda's family performing trademark Wallenda acts, legendary aerialist Dolly Jacobs, a juggling married couple and a ventriloquist. For more information, visit circussarasota.org. 2. The Big Cat Habitat Animal Extravaganza features more than lions and tigers. Come out for a petting zoo or hop on an elephant, came or pony for a ride. The annual fundraiser runs each weekend through Feb. 24 with gates opening at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. with two-hour animal demonstrations starting at …

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Sarasota OKs Nik Wallenda's Tightrope Walk Over U.S. 41

Nik Wallenda will have to gain approval from Florida Department of Transportation to walk on a wire over Tamiami Trail on Jan. 29.

The only major hoop Nik Wallenda will have to walk through to walk on a wire across U.S. 41 in Sarasota is to get the OK from the Florida Department of Transportation. The Sarasota City Commission approved 5-0 Wallenda's request to walk across U.S. 41 on Tuesday, Jan. 29 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Now it's up to the Florida Department of Transportation to sign off, and it remains to be seen whether FDOT will require Wallenda to be tethered to the wire like he was over Niagara Falls.  Commissioner Shannon Snyder requested that the city remove a tether requirement proposed by City Manager Tom Barwin. "Mr. Wallenda should be able to do this without a tether," Snyder said. "It's part of our history here." The commissioner also had high praise …

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Alta Vista Elementary To Learn Fitness From Circus Sarasota

Third graders at Alta Vista Elementary will learn how to make physical education fun through the help of the circus.

Third-grade students from Alta Vista Elementary School will experience the thrill of working in a circus ring under the big top at 9:30 a.m., Tuesday at the Sailor Circus Arena. The entire student population will attend the performance, and family and friends are invited. Circus Sarasota’s professional teaching artists have worked with the students to develop circus acts during physical education classes. Students learned individual and group acts, such as juggling, plate spinning, rope tricks and jump-roping. They also learned how to build human pyramids, become “strong men” and create clown acts and magic acts. “This is the opportunity of a lifetime for our students,” said Principal Barbara Shirley. “So many of our students have never …

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It's Nik Wallenda Day In Sarasota (Video)

King Of The Highwire Nik Wallenda comes home to Sarasota after a summer of incredible feats, including walking across the Grand Canyon.

Nik Wallenda is home in Sarasota again, and he's already planning several of his next big acts. Wallenda, the King of the Highwire, was welcomed home at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, after a summer of walking tightropes across Niagara Falls, Charlotte Motor Speedway and between two casinos in Atlantic City. He's planning to walk across the Grand Canyon on a tightrope without a harness in June 2013 and is also working on walking across the continental divide in Turkey. But first, he has a Circus Sarasota show to plan for that starts Jan. 25. (Tickets go on sale Nov. 1.) That show will involve his family mixed in with Wallenda's trademark and a surprise, as Wallenda has been known to custom make some of his own acts. "We'll close…

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Sarasota Invited To Welcome Home Nik Wallenda

Friday, Oct. 19 set to be declared Nik Wallenda Day in Sarasota County.

Nik Wallenda, welcome home. Wallenda is set to arrive at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport on a JetBlue flight and the public is welcome to say hello to its native son. The King Of The Highwire dazzled an international audience of 16 million by walking across Niagara Falls on June 15 and is working on walking across the Grand Canyon on a tightrope (without a harness). On Saturday, Wallenda walked across Charlotte Motor Speedway before the Bank of America 500. From Jan. 25 to Feb.  15, Wallenda will have his own Circus Sarasota show called Nik Wallenda: His Journey Continues at the Big Top across from Ed Smith Stadium. Friday's event at SRQ Airport is free, and parking will also be waived for those attending the celebration. It …

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Nik Wallenda Crossed the Falls, as Sarasota Held Its Breath

Hundreds gather downtown to watch their hometown high-wire stuntman conquer Niagara Falls.

It took just over 25 minutes and countless prayers for daredevil Nik Wallenda of Sarasota to become the first person to tightrope walk over Niagara Falls Friday night. Hundreds of anxious fans gathered around a jumbo screen in downtown Sarasota to watch the broadcast and celebrate the feat, accomplished by one of the city's own. Mattison's City Grille hosted a block party that drew an enormous crowd standing shoulder-to-shoulder on Lemon Avenue from Main Street to First Street, as Wallenda made his way across 1,500 feet of two-inch cable. He was tethered to the cable and held a giant balance beam that, at times, wobbled and swayed as he battled the winds, mist and a soaking wet tightrope.  "We're so proud of him," said Sarasota County …

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Highlights from Bello Mania at Circus Sarasota

A look back at the sights and sounds from the opening night of Bello Mania at Circus Sarasota.

A packed crowd was on hand under the Big Top Friday night to witness some of the world's most talented performers at Circus Sarasota's Bello Mania. From acrobatic dancers and cute four-legged animals to death-defying stunts, there was something for everyone. And when it came to the main attraction, Bello Nock, he put on a great show that included fun and games, as well as aerial stunts that made the crowd gasp each time. Founded in 1997, this is Circus Sarasota's 16th annual winter engagement. Bello Mania runs through Feb. 16 and is located across from Ed Smith Stadium, at the corner of Tuttle Ave. and 12th St.  Bello Mania has two shows today, at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., with an opening weekend special with $10 and $20 tickets. The show will …

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Circus Performer Bello Trapezes From Helicopter

Sarasota's own Bello Nock dazzled a crowd at the Big Top Thursday when he performed trapeze stunts 500 feet in the air off of a helicopter.

In Patuxentawny, Pennsylvania, they brought out a groundhog named Phil to see his shadow on Thursday. In Sarasota, they brought out Bello Nock on a helicopter to perform trapeze. "If you happen to see Bello see his shadow 500 feet in the air hanging upside down under the helicopter, guess what that means?" Bello asked the crowd. "Three weeks of Circus Sarasota full houses, isn't that right?" Bello saw more than shadows on the ground as a couple hundred people showed up at the Circus Sarasota tent off of Tuttle Avenue and 12th Street where he performed a trapeze act without a safety net or parachute. The free death defying performance served as a tease for his show, Bello Mania, which opens Friday, Feb. 10 at the Circus Sarasota tent. Bello…

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