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Broadway can sit this one out. The most dazzling performance in town this weekend won’t be found under a proscenium arch, but on the water. The Flotsam River Circus, a troupe of acrobats, musicians and puppeteers, is sailing its ramshackle raft into New York City for the grand finale of its summer-long tour and the whole thing is free to attend.
Flotsam has spent the past six weeks celebrating the bicentennial of the Erie Canal the only way it knows how: by floating the entire length of it and staging whimsical, vaudevillian shows in towns from Buffalo to the Hudson. After hundreds of river miles, the troupe is closing out its season with back-to-back evenings of hijinks and high-wire antics along the East River.
The circus itself is equal parts old-time riverboat spectacle and contemporary performance art. Expect aerial stunts, surreal puppetry, Balkan brass fanfares, foot-stomping fiddle tunes and clowning that veers from absurdist to slapstick. This year’s cast includes international talent: Brazilian aerialist Danila Bim, who performs suspended by her hair; Taiwanese balance artist Amber Gibson; and a supporting lineup of jugglers, sword swallowers, fiddlers, and character actors. The result is a buoyant blend of gasp-inducing feats and mischievous humor that turns any stretch of waterfront into a carnival ground.
There’s also a scrappy charm that sets Flotsam apart from a big-top production. Their stage is literally a floating raft cobbled together by hand, a fitting home for a circus that thrives on DIY inventiveness and community spirit. Since its founding in 2019, the troupe has toured rivers across the country, with the goal of reminding people that waterways are living spaces worth celebrating, not just scenery to overlook.
For New Yorkers, the chance to see it comes this weekend on Randall’s Island, near the Ward’s Island Pedestrian Bridge. Performances run Saturday, September 13, and Sunday, September 14, from 6 to 7:30 pm. Bring a blanket, a picnic and maybe some patience—the crowd is expected to be large and lively. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged to keep the circus afloat.
This is the only circus in town that sails in under its own power and it won’t be back until next year. Consider this your cue to run away to the river, if only for the evening.