Saturdays find most kids sleeping late, playing video games or watching cartoons. But not Vallejo 11-year-old Paige Grieco.
She can be found flying through the air with the greatest of ease at Oakland’s School of Trapeze Arts — or Circus School, as she likes to call it.
Paige, a sixth-grader at Saint Basil the Great Catholic School in the Vista neighborhood, has been studying trapeze arts since the tender age of 4. It all began when her mother, Mary Victoria, was looking for fun activities to occupy her preschooler. Tight rope walking, plate spinning, juggling and twirling upside down sounded a lot more fun than the usual tumbling classes.
And so the adventure began.
Now, after years of practice, Paige is capable of executing advanced trapeze skills. In the world of trapeze arts, one of the most difficult, breathtaking acts is called “The Catch.” The flyer takes off from a platform, swings out and back on a trapeze and is then caught by “The Catcher” (always a highly skilled instructor). They work together to perform some kind of trick, then they push off each other so the flyer can sail up and out, grab the bar and return to the platform.
Paige performed her first catch at 6 years old. Was she frightened? “Not the first time,” she remembers. “But I was the second time!”
Paige’s Dad, Barney Grieco, is quick to point out that everyone wears safety harnesses, and all performances take place over a giant net below. Still, the net is about 13 feet off the ground.
Grieco was so impressed with his daughter’s school, he enrolled himself in trampoline classes. Now, on a sunny afternoon, the two can often be found bouncing terrifyingly high on their professional backyard trampoline. Mom and Auntie Sue join in as spotters and safety monitors.
Paige says she has too many interests in life to make a career out of her sport. She loves drawing and painting, riding bikes, in-line skating, volleyball, playing the piano, and yes, schoolwork.
Within the Trapeze Arts School students interested in performing for the public can join various troupes — Paige’s is “Les Artillieres.” This past spring the troupe was honored to be invited to join an unusual theatre group, the brainchild of the extraordinary Greg Angelo.
The venue is his home in the tony, exclusive St. Francis Wood neighborhood in San Francisco. For more than 40 years he has been transforming this once conventional house into a magical, phantasmagorical, psychedelic, art-filled theatre space. This extraordinary place has been the subject of many TV shows and can be found on the Netflix show “Amazing Interiors.” See the Circus House episode from 2018. Tours of the fantastic circus house may be found on YouTube.
Paige and her troupe were invited to join “Metamorphosis” — an interactive, magical jaunt through the imagination of a butterfly. Or perhaps it’s a tumble down a Wonderland rabbit hole.
As a neighbor of the Griecos, I invited myself to a performance. It was unlike anything I’ve ever done.
Our “pod” of five was met on the sidewalk, where two Munchkin Monkeys ushered us into an extraordinary garden, packed with exotic plants and mosaic sculptures. Next, we were soothed by a violin-playing caterpillar sitting atop a giant mushroom, a la Alice in Wonderland.
From there, the devil himself gave us a tour of Hades and explained the culture of Hell while snakes writhed in his hairpiece. Paige’s act was near the end of the half-hour experience. The performance must be seen to be truly appreciated — it is completely enchanting.
For information on performances of Metamorphosis, visit the website: gregangelomuseum.com. When purchasing tickets, enter the secret code: PGARTIST to support Paige’s troupe.
The School of Trapeze Arts is in Oakland at 1822 9th Street. Telephone: (510) 419-0700. Website: trapeze arts.com . They offer a weekly summer camp, with after-camp care also available. Individual classes are available in juggling, stilt walking, trapeze and trampoline skills.
— Do you know an extraordinary Vallejo child? If so, please email me and tell me a little about
him/her: marymalarkey@sbcglobal.net.
