- February 25, 2026
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Circus Arts Conservatory President and CEO Jennifer Mitchell may not fly through the sky like her daughter, aerialist Emma Clarke, or her predecessors, CAC co-founders Dolly Jacobs and Pedro Reis. But she knows a little something about walking a tightrope, one that runs between between honoring tradition and welcoming innovation.
Following in the footsteps of founders isn’t always easy, but Mitchell trained for her role for more than a decade. In November 2024, she was COO and vice-president when Jacobs and Reis stepped away from day-to-day management of the CAC, which includes both Circus Sarasota and its youth education arm, Sailor Circus Academy.
When Jacobs and Reis founded their European-style Circus Sarasota in 1997, there was no professional circus left in the longtime winter home of the famed Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The Greatest Show on Earth moved down the road to Venice in 1960. It was acquired by Feld Entertainment in 1967 before shutting down from 2017-2023.
Today, circus is flourishing in Sarasota. There’s the CAC’s marquee show, Circus Sarasota, which performs annually under the Big Top in Nathan Benderson Park at the height of season.
During the summer, Circus Sarasota moves inside to The Ringling’s Historic Asolo Theater, for the Summer Circus Spectacular. The indoor circus has gradually expanded its run to nine weeks since its 2007 birth as a joint venture between the CAC and The Ringling.
In addition to the CAC’s professional shows, its Sailor Circus of youth performers aged 6-18 show off their skills with programs in December and April. There’s even an annual collaboration between the CAC and Key Chorale called Cirque des Voix that is accompanied by live music, this year from The Venice Symphony.
In addition to expanding its own offerings, the CAC is facing more competition. Famed high-wire walker Nik Wallenda launched the holiday-themed Wonderland Circus with the CAC’s help in 2023. He’s now backed by LECOM, the acronym for Lake Erie College of Medicine.
The adults-only Mr. Swindle’s Traveling Peculiarium, based in Englewood, came to Robarts Arena in January. That’s the same month that a resurrected Ringling Bros. performed in nearby Tampa.
That’s a lot of circus, even for a town that was rescued by John Ringling’s circus in 1927 after the Florida land boom turned to bust.
But the CAC’s Mitchell isn’t worried about all the circus shows that have popped up. The way she sees it, a rising tide lifts all boats. “Anything that’s good for circus is good for Circus Sarasota,” she said in an interview under the Big Top in Nathan Benderson Park.
Told that a server at the Cheesecake Factory in the nearby University Town Center mall was under the impression that a customer was off to a Ringling Bros. tent after lunch, Mitchell took the news in stride.
“For many people, Ringling means the circus. When Ringling announced it was closing in 2017, we got lots of calls because people thought we were closing,” she says.
In her first interview with the Observer since stepping into the top role at the CAC, Mitchell shared her management philosophy and talked about how new media outlets influence a form of entertainment that dates back to Roman times.
Armed with two business degrees, Mitchell is a big believer in research. She says it helps her learn what Circus Sarasota audiences, 62% of whom are visitors to the area, really want from a circus.
According to Mitchell, they want performers they’ve seen on “America’s Got Talent,” who are in the Guinness Book of World Records or who have won medals at the International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo, the crème de la crème of circus competitions.
Those looking for performers with stellar credentials will find them at Circus Sarasota: Epic, this year’s installment of the popular circus. The stars in the show collectively hold more than 18 world records. They include:
Patrons looking for familiar faces will find Sarasota’s own Joseph Dominic Bauer Jr., presiding as the ringmaster, as well as students from the Sailor Circus, who will surprise you with their talent and skill.
A couple of spoilers: If the artistry of Duo Disar’s hair-hanging and mouth-hanging act, which they perform to Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” doesn’t leave you in tears, you’ve got a cold heart.
For thrills and chills, it’s hard to beat Cardenas Team’s daredevil antics on the Wheel of Steel. Azzario and Medini’s balancing teamwork in Duo Rolla Bolla kept me and a few others on the edge of our seats.
Comic Chris Allison combines goofiness and artistry with a clown act that looks deceptively simple. He and ringmaster Bauer go into the audience to recruit volunteers, mostly children and perhaps a ringer or two, to participate in their stunts.
When Allison misses one of his tricks, he pleads, “Hey, the juggler got another chance. Why can’t I?" Watching Allison’s low-tech antics, you realize that he’s making himself look more inept than he really is. It’s all part of the art of engaging with the audience.
With YouTube, TikTok and other social media outlets, you can watch Allison and other Circus Sarasota performers on your mobile device before or after the show. This ability to get to know artists online makes circus an easier sell among younger patrons than one might assume.
Who’s got “rizz” (last year’s shorthand for charisma) and an online following factor into Mitchell’s programming decisions.
Whether it’s no toilet paper in the upscale bathroom stalls, visas that don’t come through on time or music that doesn’t quite hit the mark in Sarasota, Mitchell’s a trouper in the face of unexpected challenges.
“You do everything, even getting toilet paper, because you have that passion for the circus to excel and for everyone to have a wonderful time,” Mitchell says.
On the day Mitchell was being interviewed, the performing pups in the Olate Family Dog Act were getting acclimated to their soundtrack. “They don’t like their music yet, but they will by the time the show opens,” says Mitchell with a smile.
Dressed simply in dark slacks, white shirt and a stylish jeans jacket on a chilly day as well as sensible shoes, Mitchell was ready to roll up her sleeves at any moment.
Somewhat incongruous was the beautiful pearl necklace around her neck. “My mother passed last year and I inherited her jewelry. I try to wear a different piece every day to remember her by,” Mitchell says.
Mitchell’s mother, Pauline Mitchell, died in Venice, Florida, in 2025. Born in Bandung, Indonesia, to a Dutch-Indonesian family, she attended college in The Netherlands and spoke several languages. She met her husband, John H. Mitchell, in Holland. They settled in the U.S. in the 1970s, less than a month before their daughter Jennifer was born.
Like her mother, Jennifer Mitchell is a citizen of the world, but with her feet planted in the sands of Florida’s Gulf Coast. Her love of meeting people from all backgrounds is evident when she talks about Circus Sarasota’s 2017 residency in Washington, D.C., at Smithsonian Folklife Festival dedicated to circus.
“We were seen by 1 million visitors. We were able to say ‘Ringling closed, but the circus arts are vibrant,’” she recalls. “And we introduced people to Sarasota, which is known worldwide as America’s circus capital.”
Mitchell’s respect for the past is evident in many ways during Circus Sarasota’s latest show. When patrons walk in the tent, they are greeted by a giant Circus Sarasota sign with round light bulbs.
“It was the original sign for Circus Sarasota,” Mitchell says. “We had it restored as a tribute to Dolly (Jacobs) and Pedro (Reis) when they stepped down.”
That sign, and a new red, white and blue decor inside the tent exudes Americana, in keeping with the semiquincentennial of U.S. independence. It also provides an eye-catching backdrop for selfies before and after the show with family members and circus performers.
Co-founder Jacobs appears at the end of Circus Sarasota dressed in a beautiful evening gown. After the show, she reminisces with audience members. Older folks remember Jacobs both as an aerialist and as the daughter of legendary clown Lou Jacobs, who spent decades with Ringling Brothers, where she also performed.
Under Mitchell’s management, the past is honored at Circus Sarasota but the future is embraced. Will there be a robot clown or even a ringmaster under the Big Top one day?
There might be — if Mitchell plugs the data into her spreadsheet and it yields a positive result for the CAC and its fans. The descendants of the “Lost in Space” robot and R2-D2 in the original “Star Wars” will no doubt get a “warm Sarasota welcome” if and when they arrive here.
