And for something completely different... This is a lovely, heartwarming, spontaneous interview with a living legend... Last of a dying breed I'm sure ..
JOHN EVANS; STRONG MAN
On our way back from visiting Bennerley Viaduct in Awsworth, North Nottingham, myself and my good friend spied an old Dr Who phone box in the back of a trailer, he asked if i wanted to stop & take pictures (which of course i did!) so we pulled up... what we were met with though was something far more beautiful and poignant than the visual excitement of a large toy phone box, it was the life story of a local legend and an invitation into his world.
Most of us dream dreams, have fantastical ideas at points, flights of fancy some might say but very few of us get to make a living out of it, very few of us have the courage of our convictions to see it through and maybe also , most of us don’t have the ability to do our dreams justice. I’m a dancer for example, I’m also a woman in my 40’s and not classically trained, so many of the dreams i have of being ‘airbourne’, will probably remain flights of fancy... dreaming is nice but how amazing to realise not only that you can do it, but do it better than anyone.
John’s story of his life really touched me. Not simply the obvious fact that a deterioration in his health has meant he’s had to stop doing what he loves but how far he took his art throughout the 26 years in which he performed. In many ways, he is part of a dying breed of old school performers, proper old school circus style. Again, this brings me back to my dreams, but this time as a child. I sooooo wanted to literally run away with the circus. I wanted to do trapeze or contortionism or, or something my 7 year old brain hadn’t even dreamt up yet... it was an intoxicating idea. One of the things i have realised as I’ve gotten older is that you don’t have to run away and join the circus, you can create your own (i often refer to me & my daughters as The Cirque de Simei) and i would imagine John never looked at it specifically like that, but that’s exactly what he has done. The power of self belief. Not caring about other people’s standards or aesthetics. Being an individual. These are things that are dying in this generation i feel... obscurity often looks pre packaged to me and individualism is more often than not taken from a set of templates. There are very few mavericks left and that makes me sad.
Meeting John Evans was a pleasure and a privilege and reminded me of what’s important to me. So thank you kind sir and rest up now, in the knowledge that you did something very special and lived a life most folk can only dream of as they chip away at conformity and keeping up with the Jones’.
