The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air)
| Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Presentation | |
| Starring | Julian Koster |
| Format | surrealism, paranormal |
| Language | English |
| Production | |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 24 |
| Publication | |
| Original release | October 4, 2016 – June 17, 2020 |
| Related | |
| Website | Official website |
The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air) is a fictional radio drama podcast written and created by Julian Koster, and published by Night Vale Presents.[1] It is the fourth podcast to be released under the Night Vale Presents name. The podcast stars Koster as Julian the janitor, a shy, sensitive employee of the Eiffel Tower who dreams of joining the fictional radio show also titled The Orbiting Human Circus of the Air, which is broadcast from a large ballroom at the top of the tower. Listeners of the podcast hear Julian the janitor's inner thoughts as he discusses his situations with The Narrator, played by Drew Callander, an imaginary voice only Julian can hear. In addition to the conversations in his head, Julian interacts with the staff and talent of The Orbiting Human Circus of the Air, notably voiced by actors such as John Cameron Mitchell, Cecil Baldwin, Tim Robbins, Charlie Day, and Mary Elizabeth Ellis.[2] One of the most prominent themes of the podcast is the pain of loneliness.[3]
The first season of the podcasts comprised eight episodes as well as a bonus question and answer episode in which Koster answers questions submitted by fans. From June to July 2017, the podcast released "an Orbiting Human Circus Special," titled "The 2nd Imaginary Symphony," which served as the official wide-release of Koster's 2002 album.[4] It was announced in January 2017 that the podcast would return for a second season. The season, titled "Naughty Till New Years," premiered on November 6, 2019.[5], and the podcast concluded with a finale on June 17, 2020.
A series of live shows were made through international tours in 2023 and 2024. This began with a US tour in fall 2023, a Japanese tour in spring 2024, and finally a tour across the US and Europe in the summer of 2024. This last tour was conducted jointly with The Music Tapes, and concluded with a final performance at Egersund Visefestival from July 4-6, 2024.[6] Koster was accused of sexual assault later that month; the group has not toured or performed live since.[7][6]
Production
[edit]The podcast was in development for several years prior to its eventual release, based on ideas Koster had been developing. Some of Koster's dialogue was recorded in his spare time during the Neutral Milk Hotel reunion tour, while Mitchell recorded much of his during his run in Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Broadway, both events having occurred over a year before the series' release.[8] Koster cites British humor, specifically The Goon Show, as inspiration for some of the podcast's absurdism, in that jokes are delivered with little time for the audience to process the information.[8]
To ensure authenticity, Koster employs equipment appropriate for the radio show world. All of Drew Callander's lines as the narrator are delivered through an authentic RCA Ribbon microphone from the 1930s.[8]
Episodes
[edit]Season One
[edit]| Title | Running Time (Min:Sec)[9] | Release Date[9] |
| Episode 1 | 27:01 | Oct. 11, 2016 |
| Episode 2 (The Cricket) | 32:08 | Oct. 25, 2016 |
| Episode 3 | 26:46 | Nov. 8, 2016 |
| Episode 4 (The Janitor's Nights) | 21:12 | Nov 22, 2016 |
| Episode 5 | 22:02 | Dec 6, 2016 |
| Episode 6 | 23:52 | Dec 20, 2016 |
| Episode 7 | 20:21 | Jan 10, 2017 |
| Episode 8 | 30:15 | Jan 24, 2017 |
| The 2nd Imaginary Symphony - An Orbiting Human Circus Holiday Special | 67:04 | November 20, 2018 |
Season Two
[edit]| Title | Runtime | Release date |
| Firstly, the Janitor | 40:00 | November 6, 2019 |
| Secondly, the Past | 29:20 | November 20, 2019 |
| Thirdly... How to Disappear (Lessons I and II of III) | 23:04 | December 4, 2019 |
| Fourthly... How to Disappear (Lesson III of III) | 12:26 | December 11, 2019 |
| The Orbiting Human Circus Holiday Vacation | 30:47 | December 18, 2019 |
| Fifthly, Do You Dream? | 25:16 | January 8, 2020 |
| Sixthly, the Flea Talks | 23:16 | January 22, 2020 |
| Seventhly, the Gift | 22:21 | February 5, 2020 |
| Eighthly, a Booth by the Seaside | 30:41 | February 20, 2020 |
| Ninthly, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner! | 29:16 | March 4, 2020 |
| Tenthly, a Time for Dreamers | 31:24 | March 18, 2020 |
| Eleventhly, It's a Scream (part 1) + Season Recap | 19:24 | May 6, 2020 |
| Twelfthly, It's a Scream (part 2) | 26:01 | May 13, 2020 |
| Season Finale, Part One | 29:52 | May 27, 2020 |
| Season Finale, Part Two | 49:30 | June 17, 2020 |
Extras
[edit]| Title | Running Time (Min:Sec)[9] | Release Date[9] |
| The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air) – Teaser | 2:35 | Oct. 4, 2016 |
| Bonus Episode (your questions) | 30:10 | Feb. 7, 2017 |
| The Orbiting Human Circus in Naughty Till New Years: Trailer | 3:42 | Oct. 23, 2019 |
| The Orbiting Human Circus Holiday Vacation | 29:46 | Dec. 18, 2019 |
Live shows
[edit]From 2023 to 2024, the show was toured across the United States, Europe and Japan.[6]
| 2023 US tour | ||
| September 14, 2023 | Citizen Vinyl | Asheville, NC |
| September 16, 2023 | First Unitarian Church | Philadelphia, PA |
| September 18, 2023 | Le Poisson Rouge | New York, NY |
| September 19, 2023 | Pie Shop | Washington, DC |
| September 20, 2023 | The Pinhook | Durham, SC |
| September 21, 2023 | 40 Watt Club | Athens, GA |
| September 23, 2023 | Eyedrum | Atlanta, GA |
| 2024 Japanese tour | ||
| March 30, 2024 | Ueno Park | Tokyo |
| April 6, 2024 | Cafe Otto | Fukuoka |
| April 7, 2024 | Pub Voxhall | Kyoto |
| April 8, 2024 | Bar Hachimonjiya | Kyoto |
| April 13, 2024 | 7th Floor Shibuya | Tokyo |
| 2024 tour with The Music Tapes | ||
| June 21, 2024 | The Sultan Room | Brooklyn, NY |
| June 22, 2024 | Quarry House Tavern | Washington, DC |
| June 23, 2024 | Johnny Brenda's | Philadelphia, PA |
| June 28, 2024 | Concerto | Amsterdam, the Netherlands |
| July 1, 2024 | TivoliVredenburg | Utrecht, the Netherlands |
| July 4-6, 2024 | Egersund Visefestival | Egersund, Norway |
References
[edit]- ^ Verdier, Hannah (October 20, 2016). "The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air): for those who like their podcasts strange". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
- ^ "Credits | The Orbiting Human Circus". Orbitinghumancircus.com. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
- ^ Wacek, Michele Pariza (July 2020). Olsher, Steve (ed.). "The Orbiting Human Circus: A Tale of Loneliness and Desire" (PDF). Podcast Magazine. Vol. 1, no. 6. San Diego, CA. pp. 43–46. ISSN 2690-4608. OCLC 1140254648. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "An Orbiting Human Circus Special: The 2nd Imaginary Symphony, Trailer". YouTube. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
- ^ Reid, Mike. "Julian Koster (The Music Tapes, Neutral Milk Hotel) preps second season of The Orbiting Human Circus (of the Air)". Tinymixtapes.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
- ^ a b c "Live Shows". The Orbiting Human Circus.
- ^ Goldberg, Alyssa. "Neutral Milk Hotel's Julian Koster denies grooming, sexual assault accusations". USA TODAY.
- ^ a b c "The Orbiting Human Circus". Feeds.wnyc.org.
- ^ a b c d "Google Play Music is no longer available". Music.youtube.com. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
External links
[edit]- The Orbiting Human Circus of the Air homepage
- The Orbiting Human Circus of the Air podcast page on iTunes
 | External podcast links (?) |
|---|
