Wozniak Troupe

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Revision as of 18:26, 23 October 2008 by Djando (Talk | contribs) (See Also)

Teeterboard, Russian Swing

By Dominique Jando

Tadeusz (Tady) Wozniak and his wife, Teresa, met when they both were students at the National Circus School of Warsaw, in Poland. Upon graduation, they got further training at Moscow's State Circus and Variety College, where Tady created his teeterboardA seesaw made of wood, or fiberglass poles tied together, which is used to propel acrobats in the air. act in 1975. His troupe, composed exclusively of Polish acrobats, was originally 9-person strong.

The Wozniak Troupe came to the United States in 1976, for a six-year contract with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. Their contract over, they joined the Big Apple Circus, where they stayed from 1983 to 1986, first with their teeterboardA seesaw made of wood, or fiberglass poles tied together, which is used to propel acrobats in the air. act, then with a Russian swingGiant swing used to propel flyers into acrobatic figures onto the shoulders of a catcher, on a crash mat, or into a net. act. Versatile performers, Tady and Teresa Wozniak also appeared there in a bareback riding act in 1984.

During their stay at the Big Apple Circus, the troupe was composed of Tadeusz and Teresa Wozniak, Andrej Olendrzyski, Andrej Nowak, Slawomir Samsel, Julian Stachowski, and Januscz Malinowski. They gave their last performance at the end of the 1986 summer season.

After that, Tady Wozniak went on to work in a technical capacity with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. Julian Stachowski stayed at the Big Apple Circus, and eventually became a member of its permanent company of performers until the 2000-2001 season. Afterward, he remained at the Big Apple Circus in an administrative capacity.

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