‘Small tent with big talent’: Kingdom of Wonders’ Medieval Circus makes 3-day stop in Montgomery | News, Sports, Jobs

“This is our first year of operation. We opened up back in February down in Florida, and we’ve been working our way up the east coast,” Holland, who has had an interest in performing since childhood, said.

“When I was around eight years old, I saw a guy on T.V. who was doing all this stuff and popping his bones out of place, and I thought it was the coolest thing in the world, and said, ‘I’m gonna figure out how to do that,” he said.

Holland would go on to be involved in many productions ranging from small shows to arenas with tens of thousands of spectators.

“This is what I’ve done for a really long time. It’s the thing I love doing, and the thing I’m gonna keep on doing as long as I can,” he said.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Naztia Portugal performs on the trapeze at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus during a performance at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

And now, Holland, along with his collaborators, have been able to bring their own unique spin on the classic circus act.

“Something unique to our show is that it’s a traditional circus, but it has a storyline, so there’s an actual plot and characters, and you get to follow the knight and his sidekick peasant on a journey to rescue the princess,” explained Kristen Noonan, who portrays “the witch” in the production.

“There really is no template for this kind of thing. It even surprises me how organically it came together,” Noonan, who previously ran a theater company in Atlanta for several years, said.

“When you have just acrobatics and nothing that ties it together, you don’t feel like you connect to it. Here we give you a reason to connect with it, like when the witch is on stage. She’s doing these crazy shapes, but you’re connecting that to her casting this spell on the princess,” Holland added.

“For me, it takes it to this whole new level of

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Ben Holland balances a stack of glasses during a performance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

connection between the audience and what’s happening in the show,” he said.

“It’s taking something that people are used to seeing, a circus, and adding a real narrative that people can relate to, so it’s something that’s a lot of fun for kids, a lot of fun for adults, a lot of fun for grandparents, everyone,” Holland said.

Though the troupe has been putting on the production for six months, with eight shows a week, they still attempt to keep things fresh.

“We’ll do brand new lines, and if the audience laughs, we’re like, ‘let’s keep going in that direction,’ or if we hear crickets, we say ‘let’s never try that line again,’” Noonan laughed.

The production, as a whole, has been collaborative in nature, and self-contained.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Ben Holland balances a sword on the tip of a knife during a performance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

“Ben had a premise for the idea of a medieval storyline, and he knew the characters he wanted,” Noonan explained.

“Collectively, it was the four of us that really ironed out the storyline and how the circus acts fit into the plot to serve the storyline,” Noonan explained.

“We have a very talented team of people in all elements of the show, including the technical elements and the logistics of moving something like this around the country,” Holland said.

That team also includes the boyfriend/girlfriend duo of Chinese pole performer Michael Keim and lyra act performer Emily Bricker, who portray the knight, Sir Dance Alot, and Princess Buttercup, respectively.

“Sometimes we get a goofy reaction from the kids when we give each other a little kiss,” Keim joked.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Kristen Noonan performs adagio acrobatics with silks during a performance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

Keim, who hails from northern Illinois and Bricker, originally from Kansas City, met as performers on the production of Marvel Universe Live, during which Bricker portrayed Rocket Raccoon, and Keim worked as a swing character, stepping in for characters such as Thor or any of the bad guys, he said.

For the Kingdom of Wonders’ Medieval Circus production, the pair perform what they call an acro-adagio, a partner dance incorporating acrobatics.

“A lot of people have been shocked to see this quality of a show, and I think for any experienced circus-goer used to seeing bigger tents, my advice is, don’t judge us by our smaller tent, because we fill it out as if it is a 10,000 seat arena,” Keim said.

“Its a small tent with big talent,” Bricker added.

Additionally, the couple say working together in the circus has helped strengthen their real life relationship.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
A group of children watch a performance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

“We get to share every part of ourselves with each other. I see it as such a blessing to be able to create with someone I love and share that creation process and share that adoration in front of an audience together,” Keim said.

20-year-old Leonela Portugal began performing with her father in their native Mexico, before making her professional debut at the age of 12.

“I’ve been going on stage for clown acts and stuff like that with my dad since I was 6-years-old,” the bounce juggler said.

“Part of my family started working where Ben was a manager, and he wanted to build his own entertainment circus and needed artists, so my cousin contacted me and my sister, Noelia, to come over here and work,” Portugal, who portrays the royal advisor, explained.

For Portugal, the meeting of plot and circus was a big attraction.

“The show being different from other shows and having a story and making people laugh and connect with the story as well, that’s one thing I really like about this show,” she said.

The production landed in Montgomery after Holland scouted for ideal locations.

“We looked around for places that looked like they have a large number of families that live there, where it’s something kind of new. So we reached out to the borough directly, and the borough manager, Miss Donna Miller, was very kind, very understanding, and very accommodating,” he said.

The welcoming of the crowds has been humbling for the group.

“I’m surprised by how great the response has been, just because people don’t know what to expect, but they come in and trust us with their evening and their family time,” Holland said.

“And, when everybody walks out with big ole smiles on their faces because they’ve seen stuff that’s funny, original and that amazes them, and they’re having a great time, it’s immensely fulfilling,” he said.

“The circus is all about giving people a kind of escape from the day to day. Everybody has their stresses, and, I think it’s important to give people something to look forward to, something to enjoy with their kids, without sitting in front of a television, or a phone,” Holland said.

For anyone interested in checking out Kingdom of Wonders’ production, Holland’s suggestion is to “come on out and see us.”

Following their three day engagement in Montgomery, the troupe will head off to the Clinton County Fairgrounds for two days of performances Sept. 6 and 7.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
A mix of circus acrobatics and theatre make up performances of the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Noelia Portugal performs with multiple hula-hoops during a performance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Emily Bricker and Michael Keim perform an acrobatic dance at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Kristen Noonan applies makeup as she transforms into a witch for a performance by the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025. The circus continues through Sunday before it moves to Mill Hall next week.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Emily Bricker performs with a lyra at the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus at Montgomery Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
The cast of the Kingdom of Wonders Medieval Circus pose for a portrait following their show at Montgomery Park on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025. The six o’clock evening performances continue through Sunday before the circus moves to Mill Hall next week.