Difference between revisions of "Carlos Guity"
From Circopedia
(New page: ==Acrobat== Born in and raised in the South Bronx, New York, Carlos Guity started tumbling in the streets of the Bronx when he was seven years old. In 1979, he was accepted into the New Y...) |
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| + | [[File:Carlos_Guity_Portrait.png|right|300px]] | ||
==Acrobat== | ==Acrobat== | ||
| − | + | ''By Dominique Jando'' | |
| − | |||
| − | + | Carlos Guity was born on April 2, 1971, in the South Bronx, New York, where he was raised among his six brothers (he was the fifth son of the brood). His parents were Garifuna people—an Afro-Indigenous ethnic group of mixed free African and Amerindian ancestry that originated in the Caribbean—and had emigrated to the United States from Honduras to provide a better life to their children. | |
| + | |||
| + | The South Bronx was the birthplace of the Hip Hop movement, which included breakdancing. Part of it was called "flipping" (i.e. tumbling), for which Carlos had a natural talent: He started tumbling in the streets of the Bronx when he was seven years old. Then, in July 1977, the [[Big Apple Circus]] gave its first performance in Manhattan, in a landfill near Battery Park. the show featured a young and very talented African American acrobatic group, [[The Back Street Flyers]]. | ||
| − | Carlos | + | Age fourteen to sixteen, hailing from the now-defunct Charles Evans Hughes High School in the Chelsea District on Manhattan's West Side (of ''West Side Story'' fame), they had practiced tumbling at a YMCA, until their teacher brought them to the newly established New York School for Circus Arts—of which the Big Apple Circus was then the performing arm. They were to become a staple of the Big Apple Circus’s early productions and, in 1980, they won a Silver Medal at Paris’s prestigious [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]]. They became an inspiration for other African American kids in New York. |
| + | |||
| + | ===The Big Apple Circus Years=== | ||
| + | |||
| + | In 1979, Carlos was accepted into the New York School for Circus Arts and, for over ten years he trained there in a variety of circus disciplines, including tumbling, foot juggling and Risley, partnered acrobatics, juggling, and teeterboard. His main coach over these years was [[Phil Beder.]] At a time or another, he had also the good fortune of training alongside some exceptional circus artists who were working with the Big Apple Circus: [[Francis Brunn]], [[Lottie Brunn]], [[Marie Pierre Bénac]], [[David Dimitri]], [[Sacha Pavlata]], and [[Nathalie Enterline]], among others. | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[Paul Binder]], the founder and artistic director of the [[Big Apple Circus]], had noticed Carlos, and he encouraged him to consider a circus career. In 1990, while Carlos was studying accounting at Lehman College in New York, Paul Binder offered him to perform as an acrobat in the Big Apple Circus upcoming production of ''Ballerina, Horses and Clowns, The Golden Age''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | For the next eight years, Carlos performed as a member of the Big Apple Circus's resident company in a vast variety of acts, including teeterboard, juggling, hand balancing, comedy tumbling, acrobatic dance, and group acrobatics. At the same time, he worked as an accounting assistant in the circus's executive office, and coached students in what had become the Big Apple Circus Art in Education Program. Carlos participated in seven different productions of the Big Apple Circus, in which he eventually worked with his future wife, [[Melinda Merlier]], another Company member who came from Hungary. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===From Walt Disney World to Cirque du Soleil=== | ||
| + | |||
| + | After leaving the Big Apple Circus in 1998, Carlos went to perform in ''The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular'' at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, where he would spend the next twenty years as a stunt performer. There he also learned stage combat, high falls and stunts, and eventually became Stunt Captain, responsible for stunt performers' safety, their training, identifying new performers at auditions, and maintaining the show's quality. | ||
| + | |||
| + | In 2007, he received Disney's highest recognition, the Disney's Partners in Excellence award. Then, Carlos was offered the opportunity to be part of Walt Disney World's Emerging Leaders Management Training. After completing his training, he became Entertainment Manager at Disney's Hollywood Studios, managing most show and character venues, a position he kept for a couple of years. | ||
| + | |||
| + | In 2019, he became acrobatic coach for [[Cirque du Soleil]]'s ''Corteo'' on its European tour, which visited Ialy, Germany, France, Spain and Belgium. Over the past twenty years, Carlos has also managed to earn impressive stunt film and television credits, among which ''Sheena'' (15 episodes) ''Burn Notice'', and most notably Marvel's ''Black Panther'', ''Avengers: Infinity War'', and ''Avengers: Endgame''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Carlos Guity married his former partner at the Big Apple Circus, Melinda Merlier (née Fölnagy) in June 2001. Together they had two children, Noah Gabriel, born April 28, 2002, and Maximus Elis, born February 9, 2012. Carlos had already a daughter, Sarashia, born in 1994. Today, Carlos, Melinda, and their two sons reside in Orlando, Florida. | ||
== See Also == | == See Also == | ||
| + | * Video: [[Statues_BAC_Video_(1994)|Carlos Guity, Melinda Merlier, and James Clowney, statue act]], in the Big Apple Circus production of ''Grandma Meets Mummenschanz'' (1994) | ||
| + | * Video: [[Stachowsky_Clowney_Guity_BAC_1996_Video|Carlos Guity, Julian Stachowski, James Clowney (with Barry Lubin), Double-Bar acrobatics]], in the Big Apple Circus production of ''The Medicine Show'' (1996) | ||
| + | * Video: [[Bill_Woodcock_Elephants_and_BAC_Company_BAC_1996_Video|Carlos Guity, Melinda Merlier, James Clowney, and Julian Stachowski with Bill Woodcock's Elephants, Elephants and Acrobats]], in the Big Apple Circus production of ''The Medicine Show'' (1996) | ||
| + | * Video: [[Statue_Act_Video_BAC_(1997)|Carlos Guity, Regina Dobrovitskaya, Melinda Merlier, and Julian Stachowski, Living Statue Act]], in the Big Apple Circus production of ''Twenty Years!'' (1997) | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==Image Gallery== | ||
| + | |||
| + | <Gallery> | ||
| + | File:Carlos_Guity_Portrait.png|Carlos Guity (c.2020) | ||
| + | </Gallery> | ||
| − | [[Category:Artists and Acts|Guity, Carlos]][[Category:Acrobats|Guity, Carlos]] | + | [[Category:Artists and Acts|Guity, Carlos]][[Category:Acrobats|Guity, Carlos]][[Category:Hand-to-Hand Balancing|Guity, Carlos]][[Category:Teeterboard|Guity, Carlos]] |
Latest revision as of 22:46, 29 March 2026
Acrobat
By Dominique Jando
Carlos Guity was born on April 2, 1971, in the South Bronx, New York, where he was raised among his six brothers (he was the fifth son of the brood). His parents were Garifuna people—an Afro-Indigenous ethnic group of mixed free African and Amerindian ancestry that originated in the Caribbean—and had emigrated to the United States from Honduras to provide a better life to their children.
The South Bronx was the birthplace of the Hip Hop movement, which included breakdancing. Part of it was called "flipping" (i.e. tumbling), for which Carlos had a natural talent: He started tumbling in the streets of the Bronx when he was seven years old. Then, in July 1977, the Big Apple Circus gave its first performance in Manhattan, in a landfill near Battery Park. the show featured a young and very talented African American acrobatic group, The Back Street Flyers.
Age fourteen to sixteen, hailing from the now-defunct Charles Evans Hughes High School in the Chelsea District on Manhattan's West Side (of West Side Story fame), they had practiced tumbling at a YMCA, until their teacher brought them to the newly established New York School for Circus Arts—of which the Big Apple Circus was then the performing arm. They were to become a staple of the Big Apple Circus’s early productions and, in 1980, they won a Silver Medal at Paris’s prestigious Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain. They became an inspiration for other African American kids in New York.
The Big Apple Circus Years
In 1979, Carlos was accepted into the New York School for Circus Arts and, for over ten years he trained there in a variety of circus disciplines, including tumbling, foot juggling and Risley, partnered acrobatics, juggling, and teeterboardA seesaw made of wood, or fiberglass poles tied together, which is used to propel acrobats in the air.. His main coach over these years was Phil Beder. At a time or another, he had also the good fortune of training alongside some exceptional circus artists who were working with the Big Apple Circus: Francis Brunn, Lottie Brunn, Marie Pierre Bénac, David Dimitri, Sacha Pavlata, and Nathalie Enterline, among others.
Paul Binder, the founder and artistic director of the Big Apple Circus, had noticed Carlos, and he encouraged him to consider a circus career. In 1990, while Carlos was studying accounting at Lehman College in New York, Paul Binder offered him to perform as an acrobat in the Big Apple Circus upcoming production of Ballerina, Horses and Clowns, The Golden Age.
For the next eight years, Carlos performed as a member of the Big Apple Circus's resident company in a vast variety of acts, including teeterboardA seesaw made of wood, or fiberglass poles tied together, which is used to propel acrobats in the air., juggling, hand balancing, comedy tumbling, acrobatic dance, and group acrobatics. At the same time, he worked as an accounting assistant in the circus's executive office, and coached students in what had become the Big Apple Circus Art in Education Program. Carlos participated in seven different productions of the Big Apple Circus, in which he eventually worked with his future wife, Melinda Merlier, another Company member who came from Hungary.
From Walt Disney World to Cirque du Soleil
After leaving the Big Apple Circus in 1998, Carlos went to perform in The Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, where he would spend the next twenty years as a stunt performer. There he also learned stage combat, high falls and stunts, and eventually became Stunt Captain, responsible for stunt performers' safety, their training, identifying new performers at auditions, and maintaining the show's quality.
In 2007, he received Disney's highest recognition, the Disney's Partners in Excellence award. Then, Carlos was offered the opportunity to be part of Walt Disney World's Emerging Leaders Management Training. After completing his training, he became Entertainment Manager at Disney's Hollywood Studios, managing most show and character venues, a position he kept for a couple of years.
In 2019, he became acrobatic coach for Cirque du Soleil's Corteo on its European tour, which visited Ialy, Germany, France, Spain and Belgium. Over the past twenty years, Carlos has also managed to earn impressive stunt film and television credits, among which Sheena (15 episodes) Burn Notice, and most notably Marvel's Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.
Carlos Guity married his former partner at the Big Apple Circus, Melinda Merlier (née Fölnagy) in June 2001. Together they had two children, Noah Gabriel, born April 28, 2002, and Maximus Elis, born February 9, 2012. Carlos had already a daughter, Sarashia, born in 1994. Today, Carlos, Melinda, and their two sons reside in Orlando, Florida.
See Also
- Video: Carlos Guity, Melinda Merlier, and James Clowney, statue act, in the Big Apple Circus production of Grandma Meets Mummenschanz (1994)
- Video: Carlos Guity, Julian Stachowski, James Clowney (with Barry Lubin), Double-Bar acrobatics, in the Big Apple Circus production of The Medicine Show (1996)
- Video: Carlos Guity, Melinda Merlier, James Clowney, and Julian Stachowski with Bill Woodcock's Elephants, Elephants and Acrobats, in the Big Apple Circus production of The Medicine Show (1996)
- Video: Carlos Guity, Regina Dobrovitskaya, Melinda Merlier, and Julian Stachowski, Living Statue Act, in the Big Apple Circus production of Twenty Years! (1997)
Image Gallery
Carlos Guity (c.2020)
