thumb|Circus Oz performing in 2023|alt=Circus Oz performing in 2023|381x381px
Circus Oz is a contemporary circus company based in Australia, collectively owned by its Membership, founded in 1978. Its shows incorporate circus, theatre, satire, rock 'n' roll and a uniquely Australian humour.
History
Early years
Circus Oz received the Certificate of Incorporation of Public Company on 9 February 1978 in Melbourne. It was funded by the Australian Performing Group (APG), and had its first performance season in March 1978. Circus Oz was the amalgamation of two already well-known groups: the New Ensemble Circus (a continuation of the New Circus, established in Adelaide in 1973); and the Soapbox Circus, a roadshow set up by the APG in 1976.
The founding members were: Sue Broadway, Tony Burkys, Tim Coldwell, John "Jack" Daniel, Laurel Frank, Kelvin Gedye, Jon Hawkes, Ponch Hawkes, Robin Laurie, John Pinder, Michael Price, Alan Robertson, Jim Robertson, Pixie Roberstson, Helen Sky, Jim Conway, Mic Conway, Rick Ludbrook, Peter Mulheisen, Gordon McLean, Steve Cooney, and Colin Stevens. Laurie and Broadway, along with members Jane Mullett, Celeste Howden, Laurel Frank, Hellen Sky, and Ollie Black, formed a one-off group called the Mighty Bonza Whacko Women's Circus. This led to the establishment of the Wimmins Circus in 1979. Wimmins Circus was based at the APG's Pram Factory, and was able to use the Circus Oz gym.
Significant developments in Circus Oz's early years included: a 32-week season in 1979 at the Last Laugh Theatre Restaurant in Melbourne; the company's first international tour in 1980 (including London's Roundhouse, Belgium and New Guinea); the "Nanjing Project" (Chinese acrobatic master classes); and the group's relations with The Flying Fruit Fly Circus. As part of its international touring, Circus Oz has been to many cities all over the world,<!---don't cite numbers - they get out of date---> including New York City, London, and Jerusalem.
The closure that never came
In December 2021, it was announced by the Board and CEO at the time that a decision had been taken to close the company, after its main funding body the Australia Council had given the choice of reforming its structure or losing its funding. The proposal involved recreating its board and membership with a reduced proportion of artists and former employees (a move that would be fundamentally against the company's ethos). The results of an anonymous online poll showed that 62 out of 81 votes chose to reject the new model. During 2021, the company had been the subject of an independent review, commissioned jointly by Creative Victoria and the Australia Council, which had concluded that "systemic issues [were] holding back the company", and recommended that membership criteria be broadened that the board should be made up entirely of members based on their skills and qualifications. Company members were shocked by the sudden announcement. , their website announced a change of use for the Circus Oz venue. At an Extraordinary General Meeting held on Wednesday 16th February 2022, the members voted unanimously to continue the operations of the company regardless of the implications for funding, and accept the resignations of the then Board members.