Santa’s Reindeer are back!
People’s Circus Theatre’s unique blend of world-class circus, live music, and delightful storytelling makes Reindeer Games a must-see holiday tradition for the whole family.
Early Bird Tickets on sale through November 1. Buy now and save!
December 14 (Sat) at 11am
December 15 (Sun) at 2pm
December 21-22 (Sat & Sun) at 11am & 2pm
Children's Creativity Museum Theater at Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco
Tickets start at $25
Approximate running time ~70 minutes with no intermission.
All Ages (recommended for 3+)
Reindeer Games has received the Homegrown achievement! Our production is creating jobs and creative opportunities right here in the Bay Area.
Reindeer Games in the Press!
Santa’s Reindeer anxiously await Christmas Eve when they get to fly Santa’s sleigh. How will they pass the time? Playing Reindeer Games, of course!
Peek inside the secret lives of Reindeer with this festive tale of inclusion, collaboration, and managing emotions.
Enjoy a day with your family in downtown San Francisco with a trip to the Children's Creativity Museum. Explore the museum and see Reindeer Games - it's the perfect holiday outing!
Reindeer Games has received the Open Doors achievement! Our production has taken tangible, intentional steps to increase access for our audiences.
Production Team
Meet the Cast and Crew
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Genie Cartier is a San Francisco native with a background in Chinese acrobatics and aerial rope training. In addition to many other teachers, she studied acrobatics with Master Lu Yi, Xia Kemin and Xiao Hong Weng. She has performed a unique mix of acrobatics and hand-balancing on a folding chair all over the US since 2006, and has collaborated with companies such as Hubba Hubba Revue, Fishnet Follies, Circus Finelli, Picklewater Clown Festival, Literary Foolery and Machina Candeo. A multi-disciplinary artist, she also graduated from UCLA with a BA in English/ Creative Writing and earned an MFA in Creative Writing/ Poetry from SFSU. She was the co-creator and star of Genie and Audrey's Dream Show!, an award-winning two-woman circus, which toured fringe festivals in 4 different cities. In 2016, she performed in Crescent Moon Theater's Isabella and the Jewel Divine, then went on to write the script for their production, Julia's Travels in 2018. She also co-created and performed Yesterday is Tomorrow, a political sketch comedy show with her sister as part of a residency at the San Francisco Mime Troupe in 2016 and 2017. She co-founded Bow & Arrow Circus Theatre Collective in 2017, which produces a yearly Pagan holiday show called Saturnalia, in addition to several other productions a year. She recently made her directorial debut in 2022 with Dark Side of the Circus, a large-scale circus theater show choreographed to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, developed under the auspices of a residency at San Francisco Circus Center. Her solo show, the Curve, premiered in 2023, won the Best of Fringe award at SF Fringe, and was featured at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2024.
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Felicity is the Founder and Artistic Director of People's Circus Theatre. She recently made her Off-Broadway directing debut with the world premiere of {IN}TANGIBLE at Theatre Row in Manhattan. Felicity was one of the directors on the 2024 remount of The Speakeasy: The Age of Scofflaws, San Francisco's longest running immersive show.
Felicity is well known for her outstanding work as Artistic Director at Circus Center from 2021-2023, including her groundbreaking adaptation of The Secret Garden in 2021 and remounted at the Children’s Creativity Museum in 2022.
Before the pandemic in 2020, Felicity's solo show Cara Vita: A Clown Concerto toured to San Francisco, Asheville, and London. Felicity directed and produced Circus Pop Ups! in 2021, a series of pop up performances at iconic SF locations that incorporated live circus and music. Felicity's film documentary of Circus Pop Ups! won the Audience Choice Award in the Circus International Film Festival 2022.
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Claire is an aerial and flying trapeze performer with over ten years of experience. She started doing rhythmic gymnastics at the age of ten and migrated into the circus world when she was 15. She joined Les Aerielles, an all aerial circus troupe, and began performing in gigs around the Bay Area. While at university, she directed a dance team and also danced competitively. After graduating, she directed the youth circus troupe at Trapeze Arts in Oakland. During the pandemic, she realized her passion for film and producing and has delved into the production world. She has worked as a producer on many independent and student films including her first major short which she also wrote and directed. She currently works as a freelance producer, circus coach, and People’s Circus’ production manager.
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Ori Quesada is a queer trans Nicaraguan-American acrobat and circus performer born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. He began training in 1997 at 7 years old under Master Lu Yi and Teacher Xia Ke Min in Traditional Chinese Acrobatics at the San Francisco School of Circus Arts (now Circus Center). He grew up training and performing in a multitude of different acrobatic acts beginning as a flyer for hand to hand and group pyramids and later performing chinese hat juggling, meteor bowls, acrobatic jump rope, hoop diving and chinese pole. At 16, he began specializing in Rola Bola Kick Bowls, which he still performs today. Ori has had the privilege to perform with companies like Troupe Vertigo, Sweet Can, Circus Bella, Circus Nonsense, the Santa Rosa Symphony, in the first Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival, and with the Los Angeles Opera. Most recently he performed as a cast member of The Rainbow is Enuf and in Circus Bella’s Big Top Show Kaleidoscope and Summer Circus in the Parks Tour.
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Rosemary Le is a circus artist specializing in the aerial cyr wheel. She grew up with a varied movement background of dance, gymnastics, swimming, and martial arts, but always felt like a dancer at heart. In the throes of pursuing her PhD at Stanford University, she discovered aerial hoop in 2016, and it was exactly the physical and creative outlet she needed. Her interest intensified upon discovering the San Francisco Circus Center, at which point she decided that a circus sabbatical was in her near future. Those plans were put on hold when the pandemic hit, but she spent that year delving into her own practice and art.
Emerging out of the pandemic, she has performed with companies such as Dahlias Entertainment and People Circus Theatre, at venues such as The Great Star Theater and The Children’s Creativity Museum, in productions such as the Moisture Festival and Paul Nathan's Dark Kabaret, in the Bay Area, Seattle, and beyond.
As of November 2022, she's had the privilege of taking a circus sabbatical, and now pursues her art full time. She's honored that People Circus Theatre is a part of this journey.
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Lex Baesen is a San Francisco based acrobat, dancer, and aerial artist. They’ve performed a wide variety of circus disciplines like dance trapeze, hoop diving, acrobatic dance, flying pole, silks, acrobatic jump rope, and columns/pyramids. They received their BA in Dance with a focus on performance and choreography from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2016. Lex is a company member of The People’s Circus Theatre and was a choreographer for their production of The Secret Garden in summer 2023 and played Comet in Reindeer Games in fall 2023. Lex is excited to perform in Reindeer Games this year as Dasher!
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Mikayla Dinsdale began her training at the San Francisco Circus Center at ten years old. She continued her career at ÉSAC (École Supérieure des Arts Du Cirque) in Brussels, Belgium. Recent credits include: Immortals of Aveum (motion capture artist), Secret Garden, a Circus Center production, Reindeer Games and The Nightengale with The People's Circus Theater, and the off-broadway production of {IN}TANGIBLE. She is thrilled to be working once again with the incredible cast and crew of PCT to help bring Felicity Hesed's beautiful storytelling to life.
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Giamaica has been dancing for about three decades and bouncing around Circus Center for about one. Her first circus performance was as an aerialist and flyer in Circus Addiction at Circus Center, and her latest as Dancer in People’s Circus Theatre’s Reindeer Games. Choreography credits include Fraudway Productions’ “Shamilton” and TNHS “Heathers.” Giamaica is humbled and excited to be working with this incredible cast. When not circusing, she can be found frolicking with her three-year-old; doing crossword puzzles; or yelling "point your toes" at SFYC students, Terra Nova High School's dance students, or anyone within earshot.
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Mia Fan is thrilled to return as a performer with People’s Circus Theater after her participation in Reindeer Games and both runs of the Secret Garden. At age 16, she is no stranger to the world of circus arts. Gymnastics training began as soon as she could walk and musical theater when she could talk. Upon discovering, the circus world was exactly what she was looking for — a magical combination of athleticism and performance. Mia had been specializing in aerials for 7 years when she joined the San Francisco Youth Circus in 2021. She has performed in over 7 productions in the past 2 years with Circus Center and PCT. She continues to train with SFYC in all things circus while specializing in aerial rope, partner acrobatics, and flying trapeze.
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James Dallape is an aerial artist and acrobat from San Francisco. He graduated from the SF Youth Circus in 2018, and he holds a bachelor’s degree from Brown University. While he was in college, he continued to develop his circus practice with the Brown Aerial and Acrobatics society. He has trained in a range of disciplines over the years, and he specializes in aerial rope. He has performed at the San Francisco Aerial Arts Festival and in People’s Circus Theatre’s recent production of The Nightingale. In his free time, James enjoys running, playing piano, and studying languages.
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Cole Jayme is a 15 year old circus artist with San Francisco Youth Circus. He also dances with Marin School of the Arts. He has been doing circus for 2 years and specializes in straps, acrobatics, and flying trapeze.
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Annie's first exposure to circus was at the age of 6, when she attended summer camp at Circus Center. She spent her teen years as a member of the San Francisco Youth Circus, specializing in hoop diving and acrobatics. Since then, she has developed her skills in partner acrobatics, teeterboard, and unicycle. She is excited to add her skills to the talented cast of Reindeer Games!
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Yasmina is an Alumni of the San Francisco Youth Circus, the pre-professional performance program at Circus Center. She currently attends SFSU, double majoring in Cinema and Race & Resistance, with an interest in combining Film with Circus Arts. (Check out her film “Traversing Tarot” on YouTube, an official selection of the 2023 Circus International Film Festival) Yasmina collaborated with previous People’s Circus Theater productions; she enjoys character work and especially ensemble work! When onstage, she brings her full presence and expressive energy. When backstage, she is very quiet; because it’s backstage; and she doesn’t want to disrupt the show; obviously. Most importantly, she puts her all into everything she does, and hopes her love of Circus rubs off on the audience!
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Zephaniah Strand Bensaid (it/they) has a circus background, but spends a lot more time backstage nowadays. A graduate of the San Francisco Youth Circus and later Circus Center's Clown Conservatory, their real passion is behind-the-scenes work, where they use their aerial and clown training to support artists on stage as a follow-spotlight operator, assistant stage manager, rigger, and more. In addition to working backstage or in the booth for more People's Circus Theater and Circus Center shows than they can list, they've worked with various companies around San Francisco, including but not limited to Circus Something, Boxcar Theatre, Ray of Light Theatre, and Awesome Theater.
Cast
Little Elf Band
The Vivants
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Robert Kennedy is a San-Francisco-based jazz organist, accordionist, pianist, and composer born and raised in the American South and resident in the Bay Area since 1988. He has released two albums as a leader of organ-centered jazz combos, and appears as a sideman on commercial recordings of straight-ahead and acoustic / hot-club jazz, rock, fusion, and pop. Through memberships in The Vivants, Bistro Moustache, Mission Hot Club, and numerous freelance projects he has become one of the Bay Area’s busiest jazz accordionists.
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Marie Cartier (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist born and raised in San Francisco. She has been working as a board operator and lighting designer for the better part of ten years. A Collective Member with the San Francisco Mime Troupe, she is continuously working to improve their recently upgraded studio theater in the Mission, and encourages everyone to come experience community events there. She is also a founding member of Bow & Arrow Circus where she has the pleasure of designing lights in addition to producing and performing. When they brought their show Dark Side of the Circus to Mexico in 2023, she managed to design the whole show in Spanish. Marie has also spent a significant amount of time in the booth at Oasis, a constant source of inspiration.
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Shelli Frew hails from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia but currently lives in the weirdly wonderful city of San Francisco. After running away to join the circus (seriously), she got into writing (novels and short stories), immersive theater (acting, writing scripts, and producing), and costume creation. Her sewing focus is mainly circus costumes, historical recreation, and fantasy inspired. If you’d like to book her for a custom piece, you can find her on instagram @shellifrew.
