Glen Nicolodi

Hand Balancer

By Dominique Jando

Born in Valencia, Spain, Glen Nicoldi is seventh generation of an old Italian circus family, the Nicolodis, which has produced in recent generations an uncanny number of very talented artists. Glen’s brother, Willer Nicoldi, is a celebrated ventriloquist, who was part, with Glen’s other siblings, of the famous hand-balancing and acrobatic act of The Nicolodis.

Glen was trained originally by his father, Lucio, and then spent some time studying at the Accademia d’Arte Circense in Italy. He began his professional career as an acrobat in 1989, at age sixteen, and then joined the Big Apple Circus’s resident company, in the United States, in 1992—when his father, Lucio, moved there to become the company’s acrobatic coach.

At the Big Apple Circus, Glen participated in various acrobatic acts, including a Russian Barre act he presented with Julian Stachowski and Marie-Pierre Benac. Meanwhile, he practiced his hand-balancing act under his father’s tutelage. His act was premiered in the Big Apple Circus production of Carnevale in Venice in 1993.

In 1995, Glen presented his hand-balancing act at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris, where he won a Silver Medal. He has since performed it around the world in major circuses, nightclubs, and variety theaters.

See Also

• Video: Glen Nicolodi, Marie-Pierre Benac & Julian Stachowski, Russian barre act, in the Big Apple Circus production of Goin' Places (1992)
• Video: Glen Nicoldi, Hand Balancer, at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain (1995)