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Tino, Olinka, Alida and Aurelia
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Alex making his debut on the high wire. |
Olinka, Andrea, Alex, Aurelia, Alida, and Tino |
Aurelia on Tino's shoulders.
The Flying Wallendas Today
There are several distinct branches of the Wallendas performing today. Of the grandchildren, brother and sister Tino and Delilah perform with their respective families. Ricky and Rietta, also brother and sister, have performed as a team, although after a close calamity which resulted in near fatal injuries, Ricky is now concentrating primarily on producing his own (Wallenda) circus. All have performed together in the past and were involved in The 7 Person Pyramid.
As his protege, Tino once engineered many of the riggings for his grandfather's famous sky walks. Now he engineers his own as he and his family log thousands of miles 8 to 10 months out of the year as they perform with various circuses, festivals, celebrations, fairs and special events. Tino started on the wire at the age of 7 when his grandfather Karl took him into the circus backyard, put the balance-pole in his hands, taught him how to place his feet and how to control his body and where to focus his eyes. At the age of 12 he made his first crossing on the wire 35 feet off the ground. At 17 Tino became a full fledged member of the Great Wallenda troupe. For several years, he toured with and under the tutelage of his grandfather. With his wife Olinka, also a sixth generation performer whose family roots were that of aerial performances and high wire, Tino set off to establish his own unique tightrope presentation. Before Karl's death, Tino did return to work under his grandfather's leadership in recreating the 7-Person Pyramid and was supervising a second unit Wallenda troupe in the northwest when the elder Wallenda met with his untimely death. Some of the feats Tino has accomplished in his career on the wire are walking over lions, tigers and man eating sharks; walking between buildings, over rivers and a waterfall. His highest and longest walks have been 179 feet in the air and 1022 feet in length!
Olinka, a native of Czechoslovakia, has proven herself to be an accomplished performer and aerialist. Descended from an honorable and well-respected circus family, the Valla-Bertinis, she has excelled in a variety of circus arts including trapeze, unicycling, and balancing on her head on a trapeze as it spins and descends to the earth. She holds a record in the Guinness Book of Records for a unique walk she did upside down suspended only by her toes! Several years ago she was honored by a popular magazine as being one of the 100 Best Wives of All Time! Tino would also add to the award the title Best Mother. Together they have 4 children - Alida, Andrea, Aurelia & Alessandro - all of whom actively perform on the high wire.
The Seventh Generation
Alida - Tino and Olinka's oldest daughter. She has been performing in the circus since she was four and on the wire with her parents since she was only eight. Her circus skills include bareback riding on horses, trapeze, Spanish web, unicycles and the Cloudswing. Not long ago, Alida made her Sky Walk debut when she crossed over a man-made lake in Houston on the wire.
Andrea began performing when she was four years old and started in the high wire act at the age of nine. She has been featured as the top mounter of the bicycle pyramid sitting on the chair. She also has begun in the area of training and presenting dogs.
Aurelia, the youngest daughter, began her career in the circus at 4 years old when she substituted for her mother in the wire act, who was waiting on the birth of Alex. She has since enhanced her repertoire to include bareback riding, acrobatics and unicycle. She is featured on many circuses as she performs the breath-taking double cloudswing, with her uncle Sacha Pavlata, the creator of the act.
Alessandro made his first appearance with his family when he was less than two years old. At the age of 7, he made his debut on the wire in St. Louis where he crossed a span of over 30 feet. When asked when he planned to do this feat again, his reply was, "Every show from now on!"
TINO WALLENDA | 3650 Henrietta Place | Sarasota, FL 34234 | 941-355-4773
