Meet the Daughters
Grace Neville Evans
Phoebe Baker
Jude Whitburn
Irene De Paz Lazaro
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Poppy Plowman
Mahri Donavan
Jess McCrindle
INTRODUCTION
Get to know our specialities.
Phoebe Baker
With over a decade of experience making shows I have created large-scale outdoor spectacles and narrative-based storytelling shows around tightrope and highwire rigs, performing at Glastonbury Festival, So Festival, Western Australian Circus Festival, and GDIF. After a few years break to recover from a major accident and having a child I'm very happy to be making work again and more recently I have been drawn to explore new dimensions of wire walking with a focus on empowering women. Recently I was awarded arts council funding to develop and perform a piece commissioned for Glastonbury festival, called ‘ElevateHer’ working with five other female wire walkers, this led me to create a female wire walking troupe named 'Daughters of the Dust'.
Irene De Paz Lazaro
Irene de Paz began her journey on the tightrope twenty years ago under the guidance of Ernesto Terri. In recent years, she has discovered in high wire a new way of embodying balance and a deep passion for heights. In 2017, she premiered her first solo show, La Madeja, which earned her several awards and significant recognition within the Spanish circus scene, particularly in Andalusia. In 2018, she joined the Spanish company Vaivén Circo, performing in the show Esencial, which continues to tour both nationally and internationally. She currently lives in France, where she collaborates on various projects with companies such as Minuit Compagnie and with the hight wire walker, Olivier Roustan; while also developing her own artistic creations and personal research
Mahri Taffe
Mahri is a Bristol- and London-based performer specialising in highwire, tight wire, champagne bottle walking, and physical theatre.
She holds a BA in Contemporary Circus and Theatre from Circomedia and has performed with renowned companies and festivals, including Daughters of the Dust (Glastonbury Festival), Fairytale of Bristol (Invisible Circus), highwire with Cirque Bijou at Camp Bestival, Christmas at the Spiegeltent, and Social Circus Cabaret at Shambala.
Becoming a mother in 2024 has shaped her vision for the future of her practice, inspiring her to work with companies that champion accessibility for performing mothers and celebrate the balance of artistry and parenthood.
Jess McCrindle
Jessica McCrindle, role creator and performer. Jess is a multi-talented/skilled Circus artist, specialist on Wire, mother of two living in the Tasmanian wilderness. Her Wire walking journey began in Tasmania in the 90’s. At this time, she was a state representative in Gymnastics and founding member of Slipstream Circus - teaching and performing. Shortly after she was accepted into the inaugural year at The National Institute of Circus Arts (2001). More than 20 years on, she has amassed skills in performing, teaching, creating, collaborating, and producing. Her passion and enjoyment of Wire walking has taken her across the globe training and performing. She is one half of “aFineLine”, orchestrating some of Australia’s notable Highwire feats, creating and producing site specific Wire performances, and teaching the art of Wire walking from beginner to professional. She has toured and performed Wire with many circus companies including Circus Oz, Company 2, Circus Quirkus, and Wonderland Spiegletent.
Jude Whitburn
Jude trained as a professional ballet and contemporary dancer attending schools such as Birmingham Royal ballet, Legat School of ballet and London Studio Centre. She turned to Circus 10 years ago and now specialises in Aerial arts and handbalance but continues to integrate her ballet training into her performances.
Jude has performed all over the world on contracts in Europe, the Middle East and works closely with the Palestinian Circus. She has also performed for the Royals and alongside Hugh Jackman at the Brit Awards.
She loves the versatility and creativity of Circus and the diversity of the community it invites you into.
Poppy Plowman - Visit Her Website
Poppy Plowman is a neurodiverse British circus artist with Turkish Cypriot origins. Specialising in tight wire she experienced her lower education in several different circus schools across Europe before graduating from Le Centre National des Arts du Cirque de Châlons en Champagne (CNAC) in 2018.
She later took up hair hanging and high wire, and has since performed in circus companies across Europe including: Le Cirques des Petites Natures, Race Horse Company, The Revel Puck Circus, Gorilla Circus & NoFit State Circus. Poppy has recently started creating her own all-inclusive work around the theme of intersectionality, with the aim of proactively embracing identity and inspiring anti oppressive attitudes to emerge from her audience. Her diverse background and rich knowledge of circus as an art form has enabled her create high level, innovative work that is both deeply personal and universally resonant.
Grace Neville Evans
Grace Neville-Evans, role creator and performer. Grace is a tighwire dancer and funambulist from Liverpool. Having worked on a wire for over 10 years she has travelled the world working as a circus artist with an array of companies such as Imagineer Productions, NoFit State Circus and Pirates of the Carabina.
