ALBURY has a front row seat on a modern circus milestone this week.
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To celebrate 40 years of the Flying Fruit Fly Circus, the Borderville Circus Festival will feature a variety of performances and workshops running from Wednesday until Saturday, all focused around the Circus Big Top in Hovell Tree Park in South Albury.
It is the same location as the first performance of the circus in the summer of 1979.
Flying Fruit Fly Circus artistic director Anni Davey said an action-packed week of shows, documentaries and exhibits would mark the milestone.
Davey said founding members of the circus would return for the celebration.
"We have an alumni going back 40 years so we're hoping to see a lot of them coming back for the weekend," she said.
Created by Davey herself, Back in the Big Top involves the circus' present 79 students, aged 8 to 19.
Flying Fruit Fly Circus performer Chelsea Quaill, 12, who joined the circus only this year, said it was a very exciting time for the school.
Specialising in pole, double trapeze and ski contortion, Chelsea moved to the Border from Sydney with her family this year.
"My family will be here for the show as well as some old friends from Sydney," she said.
"I'm looking forward to seeing the feedback from the audience.
"There's a lot of variety in the show."
Other Borderville Circus Festival events throughout this week include Circus Open House, open workshops for children new to circus, Now and Then, a circus documentary double bill with Regent Cinemas, plus Capturing Creativity, an exhibition by Border photographer Ian Sutherland, who has been documenting the circus for the past five years.
Back in the Big Top runs in Hovell Tree Park from Wednesday until Saturday at 11am, Friday at 11.30am and Saturday at 1pm. Saturday's shows are sold out but there are still tickets left for weekday shows.
Under the name Time Flies, the same show will be part of the Sydney Festival, which runs in Sydney from January 8 to 26.