Welcome to the first CCC newsletter to be produced on Charlie’s flash new computer - this is my excuse for all misspellings of names, strange blotches on the page and factual errors by the way…Welcome also to the Sawston Gravity Defiers (Eddie’s weekly juggling workshop) who have been added to our mailing list.

For the first time this year CCC had an official presence at the Strawberry Fair – Charlie and Mark put up their trapeze rig on the Friday night before the fair and various acts performed on and around it on the Saturday. Mark & Charlie both performed solo static trapeze; Claire, Helen, Dizzy, Camilla & Paul brought us the trapeze piece from the Community Show; Paul and Ian performed the "Doll & Box" piece for only the second time in public & Lynn Carroll from Chimera finished the day off with a Cloudswing routine. We had a lot of good feedback from the public and we’re hoping to do even more at the Fair next year – this year’s show made £300 for the Community Circus so massive thanks to all concerned.

A shorter parade and a great deal of luck with the weather made this event a lot of fun – this was probably one of the best Arbury Carnival parades. Highlights included the car disguised as a dog (I’m serious!). Thanks to all who came.

A few weeks after Strawberry Fair we were asked to perform at Sibton in Suffolk to help raise money for restoration and preservation of the village church – the building is no longer used for services but will hopefully become a venue for music and performance in the future. Mark & Charlie again brought their trapeze rig which was put up in record time on a sunny Saturday morning and hosted solo trapeze from Mark, more trapeze from Dizzy, Helen & Claire, acrobalance from Chloe & Simon and a brief juggling show from Charlie and Simon. More CCC members performed walkabout acts around the fete including some ‘first-timers’ – congratulations to Alex B. and Lindsay M.! Once the public had gone home we took down the rig and were treated to a marvelous barbecue by the Milburn family which went on long into the night – an impromptu fire show finished off the evening. Some CCC members even made it to the seaside for a paddle the next day! Sophie Milburn, one of the event organizers, said – "many thanks to all concerned – it turned the fete into something wonderfully different". The fundraising weekend raised in all around £4000 for the church restoration.

CCC was back in action the next week in Fulbourn, providing some walkabout acts on stilts and unicycles and a juggling workshop. Unfortunately the heavens opened at four o’clock – we retreated to Eddie’s for food and drink and endless games of volleyclub. The fire juggling kit came out again – including Mark T’s new toys, two lengths of chain with wicks on the ends – pronounced by all who tried them to be "very, very scary"! Thanks to Eddie, Sarah, Noah & Dan for their hospitality and we hope the scorched grass grows out soon…

The LAST juggling workshop this summer is at Romsey Mill this Sunday (the 5^th July) – from now on we will only be meeting informally outside on Parker’s Piece at around 6 o’clock on Sunday evenings. Workshops return to the Drama Centre on September 6^th.

However this Sunday we will also be running a special Beginner’s Stiltwalking workshop from 5 p.m. onwards – PLEASE NOTE this is not for absolute beginners, you will need to have walked on strap-on stilts before. Numbers will be limited as we only have 4 pairs of workshop stilts and a few personal sets to be borrowed. If you have your own pair of stilts please bring them (and your kneepads) along.

We will be organizing a fire juggling evening (probably on a Sunday night) in the near future - if you would like to learn or improve your fire juggling skills please sign up on the sheet at this Sunday’s workshop or call Charlie on (01223) 315172.

Unfortunately we won’t be running a Juggling Convention this year – we’ve left it a bit late to organize acts for the Public Show and we don’t really have the money to cover any potential losses we might make. We’ll probably be back next year.

Our Annual General Meeting will probably take place in August now; details in the next newsletter. This will be the chance for you to vote in a new Management Committee (which could include you!) and to see how we spent our budget last year, as well as raise any opinions or questions you have on how CCC is run.

We now have some late-breaking information on what’s going to be in the Millenium Dome – lots of Circus!! As some of you may have seen on television or in the papers, Circus Space in London are going to be recruiting 100 performers for acrobatic and aerial work in the Dome at heights of up to 40 metres! Training starts in October with a second course starting in April ‘99. Call (0800) 665499 for an information pack – you must be "16+ with upper body strength, flexibility, good spatial awareness, a head for heights and the potential to perform."

If any CCC members would like to come along and juggle at this local event, please call Charlie on (01223) 315172. Some lifts from Cambridge may be available.

This friendly, small convention in Somerset is to be attended by lots of CCC members – if you’re interested, ask around this Sunday 5^th July – there should also be some flyers available. Performing at the convention will be Heir of Insanity, old friends of CCC.

This is held on Parker’s Piece and usually includes a lot of Circus – last year they had Stretch People, Maynard Flipflap and Skinning the Cat (trapeze) amongst others.

The big one – Charlie has some booking forms available, although you’re too late for any accommodation other than camping. Followed by the Edinburgh Festival.

Small, friendly, a whole week in a field with a bunch of jugglers – what more could you ask for? Details from Charlie.

Lots of workshops but no cabaret (unless the Cambridge crew sneakily arrange one!) – but only £6 . Details from Carol on (01536) 204258 – Charlie already has some flyers.

More on the Juggling Information Service website at www.juggling.org (it’s broken at the moment but hopefully should be back up soon).

Keep juggling and see you soon!