We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Abigail Munn. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Abigail below.

Abigail, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I knew I wanted to be a performer for as long as I can remember. At first, the dream was to be a dancer. My father was a lighting designer at the SF Opera so I grew up backstage. I would watch the singers and dancers rehearsing, getting fitted for their costumes, wigs, and makeup, and finally putting everything together for opening night. I knew that somehow I wanted to be a part of this.

At age 9 my parents enrolled me in a kid’s Circus Class with the Pickle Family Circus School on Saturday afternoons on Potrero Hill in San Francisco. From the moment I walked into the space I was in love. I can still picture the room in the upstairs of an old church. There was a picture of Buster Keaton on the wall and a huge rack of costumes hanging high up from the ceiling. I was going to be a Trapeze Artist.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Since our founding in 2008 I have been directing, creating, and producing new work for Circus Bella. Along with the more conventional duties, I also serve as the company’s truck driver, catering service, and laundress. A California gal through and through, I graduated with a BFA in Modern Dance from UC Santa Barbara. As a child, I appeared with the Pickle Family Circus, and later with Zoppe Italian Family Circus, Lone Star Circus, the Moisture Festival, the New Pickle Circus, Cabaret Verdelet, Circus Cabaret, Tease-O-Rama, Va Voom Room, and The Velvet Hammer Burlesque.

I started Circus Bella with a close friend, David Hunt in 2008 with the vision of being a classic Circus for a modern world. We were anxious to bring the idea of a more traditional – i.e. performed in a ring – Circus back to the Bay Area. Years before, there had been a company called the Pickle Family Circus (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickle_Family_Circus) which established a culture of this type of Circus in the Bay Area. I always say that we stand on the shoulders of the pickles. There are a few things that were important that we felt. These ideas are still very much a part of the company now:

1) We perform in the Ring/ in the round – audiences see both the show and other parts of the audience experiencing the show
2) We have a live band, and original music at all of our performances. We have been working with the same music director, Rob Reich since the beginning.
3) Artists bring their own unique circus acts to the show as well as participate in ensemble work such as “the big juggle” a full company juggling extravaganza

Circus Bella’s mission is to produce and present high-quality Circus Arts entertainment, accessible to all audiences.I am proud of the unique look, flair, and vision of the company. We have fantastic costumes (Autumn Adamme), a hilarious clown trio, an extraordinary and diverse company of performers. As an artistic director, I take my inspiration from MGM musicals and The Muppet Show. After 16 years our company has now expanded into three distinct parts:

• Circus in the Parks– A themed series of FREE summer performances in parks and open spaces in the Bay Area featuring an outdoor ring, our live Circus Bella All-Star Band, and the Circus Bella company. Performances are open to the community.

• Kaleidoscope Big Top Show–An original 90-minute circus spectacular, featuring international circus acts, local favorites, and the Circus Bella All-Star band. This annual show which happens in a European Circus Tent set up near the Embarcadero in San Francisco is the ultimate immersive experience that pleases all of the senses–from daring acts to feats of wonder to the engaging delight of our clowns…and we even have popcorn, too!

• Customized Classic Circus Experiences for Private/Corporate Occasions–Give us your vision, we’ll design your circus.

Over the past few years, I have become increasingly involved in advocacy work for the Circus Arts. When transitioning Circus Bella performers to Employees, she became aware that the current worker’s compensation rates and policy descriptions in California were way out of step with the current reality of the Circus Industry. In an act of extreme perseverance, I embarked on a one-woman quest to help change this and after initiating a study from the Workers Comp Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB), rates were significantly lowered (by 80%) for ALL Circus Companies in California. During the pandemic, when all shows were shuttered and we were sitting around (circus people don’t sit around) I joined a regular zoom with other circus professionals and producers around the country. This evolved into what is now the American Circus Alliance of which I am a  founding member and on the board. https://americancircusalliance.org/

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

When I was in 6th and 7th grade I studied with Mr. Lu Yi, a master acrobat and teacher who had come from China. At that time he spoke only a few words of English. I remember holding handstands for what seemed like endless amounts of time (only about a minute). Halfway through he would kind of slap your legs firmly and say “Persist.” This advice comes up again and again.

For me, creating work is about getting up every morning, going to the gym, going to the office and chipping away at your work. I am lucky to be incredibly self-disciplined but also I am completely in love with the Circus and the Show. I love the feeling when everything is packed up and the audience has gone home but you can still feel a tingling in the air like something special has happened.

I have a little postcard that says persist on the wall of my office.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

As an artist and creator I constantly feel that I am pushing a huge boulder forward. Sometimes I have a little momentum and other times I am definitely going uphill. For every season, show and production I have to reinvent the wheel one more time to come up with the funding and support to do the project. I am not complaining and it is worth it when I look around the tent and see all the smiling faces. But, there is a definite necessity for persistence and perseverance and one must have nerves of steel.

Artists are essential for the economic vibrancy of a community. On a purely practical level, when people go to shows they also go to bars, restaurants and the shops near the shows. Next step up, artists create a world of color, humor, thought, and reflection. Creative thinkers are what make San Francisco the weird and wonderful city that it is. (Please ignore all doom loop articles! SF is still magical) After the pandemic, I think we all realized how important arts and culture are for our mental well-being and emotional health. Of course, for artists to thrive there needs to be more resources: monetary, space, and everything else. But I believe there is an economic and humanitarian benefit to this investment.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.circusbella.org
• Instagram: @circusbella
• Facebook: circusbella
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigailmunn/

Image Credits
Aaron Weinstock – Abigail Image Aaron Weinstock – Group Shopt Ron Scherl – Abigail Trapeze Jim Watkins – Umbrellas Jim Watkins – Umbrellas Emil Alex – Tuba