The Collins Brothers
Master trapeze artists and comedians The Collins Brothers (Matthias Fischer and Collin Eschenburg) are actually not brothers. One looks like a matinee idol and the other looks like a cross between Forrest Gump and Mr. Bean, but together as The Collins Brothers they continue to defy audience’s expectations with their combined acrobatics and slapstick humor. Trained at the Artists School of Berlin, they have performed at the Wintergarten in Berlin, with the Big Apple Circus in New York, at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, at the Pallazzo shows in Vienna in 2004 and in Munich in 2005. They made their debut with Teatro ZinZanni in The Royale Invitation in 2006.
The Collins Brothers
Master trapeze artists and comedians The Collins Brothers (Matthias Fischer and Collin Eschenburg) are actually not brothers. One looks like a matinee idol and the other looks like a cross between Forrest Gump and Mr. Bean, but together as The Collins Brothers they continue to defy audience’s expectations with their combined acrobatics and slapstick humor. Trained at the Artists School of Berlin, they have performed at the Wintergarten in Berlin, with the Big Apple Circus in New York, at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, at the Pallazzo shows in Vienna in 2004 and in Munich in 2005. They made their debut with Teatro ZinZanni in The Royale Invitation in 2006.
Elena Borodina
Sensual and strong, artful and athletic, Russian hand-balancer Elena Borodina floats across the "Moulin Rouge" spiegeltent like a gossamer dream. Elena's world-famous handstand routine is no mere feat of gymnastic expertise; it is a work of art, a moving sculpture in which the human body is transformed by a flowing transparent veil. Elena has presented her fascinating and beguiling performance at the Wintergarten in Berlin, Roncalli's Apollo Varieté in Dusseldorf, Circus Princessan Festival in Stockholm, "Weihnachszircusfestival" in Freiburg, Palazzo in Amsterdam and Vienna, Roncalli's Circus with Classic Music in Dortmund, Cirque d'Hiver Bouglione in Paris, and Teatro ZinZanni in San Francisco. Elena's act was decorated with the silver medal at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris, France.
Francine Reed
Probably best known for her duet and back-up vocals with quirky country composer Lyle Lovett, Francine Reed was born to sing. The Chicago-born songstress began her professional career as a child singing in her family's gospel group. In time her repertoire expanded to include sweet soul and brassy blues. Throughout her career she shared the stage with legendary stars such as Miles Davis, Smokey Robinson, Etta James, and The Crusaders. Of course her strongest alliance is with Lyle and she provides him and the Large Band with an indelible stage presence and harmonic textures, which have entranced fans and critics worldwide. In addition to her touring schedule with Lyle, Francine has appeared on recordings by Delbert McClinton and Roy Orbison. Her most recent release is Shades of Blue.
Genevieve Landry
Genevieve Landry has been performing since an early age. At just five years old, she competed with Gymnix, a competitive gymnastics team, in her hometown of Montréal, Canada. Later, she focused her athletic talents on diving and competed internationally until the age of sixteen where she was ranked 5th in all of Canada in the 10 meter platform. Genevieve later graduated from the prestigious école Nationale du Cirque de Montréal, where she received specialized training on the double trapeze. She is thrilled to be making her Teatro ZinZanni debut in Maestro's Menagerie as the character Lola.
Juliana Rambaldi
Hailed as a “bright-voiced beacon” by the New Yorker and lauded as “Radiant!” by the New York Times, soprano Juliana Rambaldi has earned international critical acclaim for her many roles with leading opera companies across the United States and abroad. Her performances have included: Lyric Opera of Chicago: Faust, Don Giovanni, La bohème, Orpheus Descending, and View From the Bridge; Glimmerglass Opera: La finta giardiniera; Seattle Opera: Xerxes; Michigan Opera Theater: La Traviata; Opera Pacific: Don Giovanni; Minnesota Opera: Transatlantic; Portland Opera: Giulio Cesare and La bohème; New York City Opera: Le Nozze di Figaro; Opera Theatre of St. Louis: Cosi fan tutte; New Jersey Opera Festival: Falstaff and Don Giovanni; Florentine Opera: Le Nozze di Figaro; Houston Grand Opera: Les Contes d’Hoffmann and La Traviata; Hawaii Opera Theater: La bohème; Toledo Opera: Cosi fan tutte; Opera Grand Rapids: Le Nozze di Figaro; Castres, France: Don Giovanni. Ms. Rambaldi resides in Seattle with her husband and two children.
Peter Pitofsky
Ever since running away from his home in New York City and joining the Ringling Bros Circus, Peter Pitofsky has been delighting audiences worldwide with his zany combination of slapstick comedy, uncanny timing, and improvisational shenanigans. Peter’s expansive comedy background includes street performing on the infamous Venice Beach boardwalk and working the comedy circuit at the L.A. Comedy Store and The Improv. Peter’s malleable face and willingness to do anything for a laugh have earned him opening slots with some of comedy’s heavyweights including Mel Brooks, Jay Leno, Penn & Teller, and more. Most recently, Peter has been making people laugh until their sides ache in sold out shows in Amsterdam and Munich’s Palazzo. He has been winning the hearts of audiences in both the Seattle and San Francisco tents since 2002.
Sergiy Krutikov
Ukrainian musician and juggler Sergiy Krutikov, is one of Teatro ZinZanni's founding artists. His infectious and dynamic personality, legendary balance, and remarkable juggling skills are a testament to the rigorous training he received as a young performer with the Moscow Circus and to his fine performance instincts. Krutikov will dazzle one and all with his circus feats, charm everyone with his infectious smile, and (if you are lucky) serenade you with his playful accordion.
Svetlana
Russian performance artist Svetlana blends modern dance, pantomime skills, magic and contortion in the creation of her sensational puppet act. Undulating, shifting, transforming right before your eyes, Svetlana’s puppet has been warmly received by the audience as both a highly skilled acrobatic performance and as a new comedic and romantic character. Trained in the ancient art of contortion from the age of nine, Svetlana studied at the Kiev State Circus School and has performed at some of Europe’s most distinguished venues including the Wintergarten and the Apollo. She is an original Teatro ZinZanni cast member.
Voronin
Known throughout the world as “The Maestro,” Ukrainian illusionist Voronin has been described as the essence of Buster Keaton and Jacques Tati. After graduating from the Kiev Children’s Studio and Kiev State Circus School, Voronin formed his own theater company, The Theatre of Caliostro. In 1988, he swept first place in magic competitions in Germany, Moscow and Austria. In 1999, he won the Siegfried and Roy prize for Master Magician. When not starring in Teatro ZinZanni, Voronin is one of the most sought-after stars of the European cabaret circuit – in fact, he returns to Seattle fresh from his most recent European tour to collaborate on this all-new production of Maestro’s Menagerie An original cast member, Voronin appeared in the very first production of Teatro ZinZanni in 1998. This is his 21st engagement with Teatro ZinZanni.
Brandon Rabe
Inspired by his grandfather who was a New Orleans riverboat gambler, Magician Brandon Rabe put himself through college performing in various magic shows. Originally from Hawaii, Brandon received early guidance and training from the late magician and optical illusionist, Jerry Andrus. He then started working with Voronin in 2006 during Teatro ZinZanni's production of Royale Invitation. Since then he has traveled the world alongside Voronin, performing in Canada, Germany, Amsterdam and Austria. Brandon is delighted to be back in his eighth engagement in the spiegeltent at Teatro ZinZanni.
The Orchestra DeVille
Norman Durkee - Musical Director, Piano, Keyboards
Norman Durkee's whole life seems to have prepared him for his role as Musical Director of Teatro ZinZanni. Durkee was a piano playing child prodigy and got his first break working for Seattle Opera's youth program, where he created a touring "opera" for kids with director Arne Zaslove. The latter lead to his appointment to lead the band for the opera's memorable production of The Who's Tommy at the Moore Theatre, which gave the young Bette Midler her first starring role on stage. Durkee's work includes 18 ballets, 32 chamber works and commercials for Boeing, Nike, Coca-Cola and many other corporations. He was also musical director for Hair and composed several scores for Daniel Sullivan at Seattle Repertory Theatre.
John Morton - Guitar
With literally thousands of commercials and well over two hundred albums, including Boy Meets Girl, Sheena Easton, and The Brothers Four to his credit, John has played with the likes of Abraham Laboriel, Carlos Vega, Jimmy Johnson and Don Grusin.
Luis "Loco" Peralta - Percussion
Percussionist Luis Peralta of Buenos Aires, Argentina, has moved Seattle audiences since 1975. He has played along side such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Lalo Schifrin and Blossom Dearie. Luis was honored as part of an all-star drummers concert in Carnegie Hall in the company of Grady Tate, Tito Puente, Roy Haynes, Max Roach, Jo Jones, and Art Blakey.
Hans Teuber - Saxophone, Clarinet & Bass
The son of two professional musicians, Hans came to Seattle in 1988 and has established himself as one of the Northwest's top-call musicians. Over the years he has performed with many of the greats, from Dizzie Gillespie to Ani DiFranco. Hans teaches at Cornish College of the Arts. In September 2009, Hans did the arrangements for the premiere of Mirror Tent Music Presents Stone Gossard & The HankKhoir at Teatro ZinZanni.
Tom Kellock - Substitute Piano & Keyboards
Tom Kellock has performed, composed, and recorded with Al Jarreau, Manhattan Transfer, and Richard Elliot, toured with Melissa Manchester, the Paul Allen Band, and Heart. His film scoring credits include the PBS series Over America. He has been the house pianist at Columbia Tower Club since 2000.
For media information and additional photographs, please contact Beth Brooks at 206.281.7788 ext. 240 or bethbrooks (at) onereel.org.
