Vagabond Adventures is set on the Floating Palace, an actual circus venue that traveled up and down the Mississippi River before the Civil War. This majestic riverboat triggers the season's thrilling caper, picking up where the critically acclaimed St. Louis Symphony performance in January left off.

"It's been 25 years in the making, and we are pulling out all the stops," said Ivor David Balding, Circus Flora's producer and artistic director. "We are especially excited that so many performers who have made this circus what it is today will be back to help us celebrate."

Vagabond Adventures reunites Circus Flora stars from the last quarter century such as the Flying Wallendas on the high wire, the dazzling acrobatics of the St. Louis Arches, the Flying Pages on the flying trapeze, Una Mimnagh on the corde lisse (vertical rope), legendary circus performer and Circus Flora co-founder Alexandre Sacha Pavlata as well as everyone's favorite clown, Giovanni Zoppé as Nino.

"Unlike true vagabonds, who wander about with no home, when we see the performers and crew come together at Circus Flora again each spring, we know they are 'home,'" Balding said.

The 25th season also features new acts, including the Olate Dogs' amazing tricks and the Riding Donnert's horsemanship, including juggling on horseback.

Vagabond Adventures finds stowaways on board the Floating Palace, with dreams of becoming circus performers. From their hiding places, they catch wind of a scheme that threatens the boat. Enthralled by the luscious Lottie Luppu, played by Una Mimnagh, these unlikely heroes uncover her hidden identity – Lola Montes, a spy for a Spanish/Argentinean plot to commandeer the barge and abscond with it to Argentina. Through the stowaways' heroic efforts, the Floating Palace is saved, escapes the treacherous waters of the Gulf of Mexico and returns to delight the audiences of St. Louis – the largest city west of the Mississippi.

Circus Flora takes place under the air-conditioned, red-and-white, big top tent in Grand Center, St. Louis' arts and entertainment hub, adjacent to Powell Hall (corner of Grand Boulevard and Samuel Shepard Drive).

Show times are Tuesday through Thursday at 7 p.m.; Friday and Saturday at 2 and 7 p.m.; Sunday at 1 and 5:30 p.m.; and "Little Top Wednesday" at 10 a.m., a special one-hour show for smaller kids or the "kids at heart." The annual peanut-free preview opens the season June 2 for those with peanut allergies. June 18 is the second annual Scouting Day at the circus. All Boy and Girl Scouts are invited to purchase their tickets through their troops, enjoy the performance together, and stay afterwards for badge-related activities.

Tickets for Vagabond Adventures range from are $8-44. Call 314-289-4040 or visit www.circusflora.org for tickets and more information.

Circus Flora's 2010 production "Ingenioso" was voted one of the top seven local family events of 2010 in the St. Louis Sprout Seven awards.

Photos by Steve Truesdell/Courtesy of Circus Flora.

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