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Cirque de Fillmore this weekend

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By Linda Ebbing, Staff Writer 8:04 PM Thursday, May 28, 2009

HAMILTON — Students at Fillmore Elementary School have been practicing for months to fine tune the skills that will be featured in the school’s presentation of Cirque de Fillmore.

“It’s a different kind of entertainment that is high energy,” said Christen Burtis, 12. “It’s kind of chaotic but it’s exciting.”

More than 300 students in third through sixth grades have attended after school programs three nights a week since January to practice their circus skills including song and dance presentations, skits, Chinese yo-yo and Rip Stick demonstrations.

Performances are scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight, May 29, and Saturday, May 30, at the Hamilton Freshman School. Tickets are $5.

“It’s amazing,” said fourth-grader Rachel Thirkield. “It really is a big thing. It’s like everybody comes together to watch their kids and their amazing performances.”

Cirque de Fillmore is a variety show themed around the poems and drawings of Shel Silverstein, said Fillmore Principal Rex Bucheit, adding that Silverstein’s poems reflect the trials and tribulations of childhood.

For instance, after the reading of several of his poems about shoes — a talking shoe and a missing shoe — 70 students will dance to the music of Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots were Made for Walking.”

“We noticed students at recess practicing, learning from each other and showing perseverance and patience,” Bucheit said. “It was really exciting to see the students coming into school with enthusiasm and they are so proud of themselves.

“What really touched my heart was that they were practicing cooperation.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2158 or lebbing@coxohio.com.

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