'New' circus star clowns rings around them all
When Bello Nock's name last crossed this column he was performing in the acclaimed, one-ring, Big Apple Circus. That was nearly 10 years ago. Now he is back in town, headlining in what is without a doubt the largest circus in North America, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Did I say headlining? He isn't just headlining. The show is named after and built around him, and his unique blend of amazing daredevil acrobatics and pitch-perfect clowning. "Bellobration," it is called.
And to hear Bello talk about it, the show is Bello, Bello, Bello all the time -- with all the other circus doodads, the acrobats and elephants and showgirls and such, tossed in to fill time between Bello appearances.
Actually, he didn't say that. Not at all. Bello Nock, he of the thick brush of orange hair -- yes, it's real -- is remarkably humble for a guy whose name is splashed across the publicity for the show. The show may contain more Bello moments than we have seen in any previous show, but in our interview he keeps mentioning all the other people he works with, both in the portions of the show in which he appears and in the other parts.
"There is Tabayara, who performs with the tigers he has trained," Nock said, speaking in his trademark frantic pace. "And the Aguilar brothers who are incredible on the high wire." Nock speaks the way he performs, with lots of energy and adrenaline.
"My job is to tell my story, which runs through the show," Nock said.
Nock, of course, tells his story through clowning and daredevilry -- the two sides of the big-haired clown named at birth Demetrius Alexandro Claudio Amadeus Bello Nock. He seemed destined from birth to become a circus performer.
"I've pretty much been a practical joker and clown all of my life," he said with laugh, "so naturally I was drawn to stunts and clowning."
It didn't hurt that he comes from six generations of circus people. Or that Nock grew up among the circus folk in Sarasota, Fla. Or that his uncle, Pio Nock, performed at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus before him.
"I was, I think, an ADD kid," Nock said, "undiagnosed. And I was dyslexic. My parents had to keep finding things for me to do."
And the things they found involved acrobatics and clowning and show business.
"I was the kind of kid, if I saw someone juggling, I had to do that," Nock said.
Bello's first professional gig was appearing as little Michael Darling in a touring production of "Peter Pan." That meant lots of flying on wires, which suited Nock fine. In his late teens and early 20s he was a regular in the Tommy Bartlett Water Show at in the Wisconsin Dells. It was there he developed his skills, his hair and his gift for reaching out to an audience even when he is risking his life, winning laughs as he sways on a pole 100 feet off the ground.
"I love being out there," Nock said. "I love making friends with the audience."
The Bellobration edition of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus opened last night and runs through Nov. 11 at the Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Road, Rosemont. After that it moves to the United Center, 1901 W. Madison, Chicago, where it will run Nov. 13-25. For tickets visit the Ticketmaster website, www.ticketmaster.com, or call (312) 559-1212.