Hello! My name is Maia Castro-Santos, and I am a new cast member of Cirque Us Stories. I perform dance trapeze, duo lyra, and hula hoops in the show, and I am so excited to be joining so many talented artists on the road! I have been connected with Cirque Us for several years now, coaching camps and performing in one off performances of RagTag (Summer 2022), and One Man’s Trash (Winter 2024). I am so glad to be doing my first full length tour with Cirque Us this fall! In many ways, I have felt that I fall into a strange in-between roll in this cast, as someone who is familiar with Cirque Us but new to the full touring schedule. I am not quite a veteran performer, and also not quite a new performer. I’ve enjoyed being in this roll, because I am familiar with Cirque Us load ins, load outs, van packs, and of course the energy and enthusiasm our performance necessitates. At the same time, I can bring new ideas to the cast of how things could run more smoothly and efficiently.

One of the parts of this tour that I have enjoyed the most is the opportunity to work with long term friends on duo acts that I have always wanted to make. Tyler and I met in 2022 as coaches at Circus Smirkus camp, and I knew that our shared flare for the dramatic would make us a fantastic hula hoop duo. The hula hoop act at the end of the show is always a highlight for me, and it’s a moment during the show when I feel like I get to fully celebrate the joy of circus and performance. The KPop music and ensemble support from the rest of the cast makes the whole act just a pure manifestation of sassy fun energy.  

My other duo act is lyra, and I am so fortunate to get to perform it with Maeve. Maeve and I have been best friends since first grade when we met in school. We both started circus at the New England Center for Circus Arts when we were 9 years old. As our interest and love for the circus grew, Maeve moved towards partner acrobatics, contortion, and handbalancing, while I gravitated towards bar aerials and hula hoops. I am so glad that we finally get to work together again on our duo lyra act. Her flexibility and my lyra experience allow us to play off of our strengths to create the duo act that we have both always wanted to create. There’s a moment in our act where I am holding her with my fingers interlaced behind her head, and getting to see her smile at me while trusting me to hold her up is such a beautiful moment of friendship and trust. I feel incredibly grateful for our relationship and bond that has lasted the majority of both our lives.

This has been my first time performing dance trapeze, and getting to explore this new apparatus has also been a really lovely experience. There’s something about creating an act with a new apparatus that opens the door to so much more discovery and inspiration. I have really enjoyed translating my skills from lyra to dance trapeze, and also learning all of the different things that a trapeze can offer. Over the past few years I have hit a bit of a roadblock with my solo lyra work where I have struggled to find new material that feels inspiring to me, but this tour has pushed me to explore a new solo apparatus and continue my lyra work with a partner, which is entirely different. I’m really glad that this tour has encouraged me to explore new applications of my skills and find a renewed inspiration for my disciplines. 

Although we are about half way through the contract (including creation), tour has really just started, and I am so excited for all of the shows to come! I am excited to see how the show develops throughout the tour and all of the shenanigans that are to come!