John Highkin: Over thirty years in art – as musician, circus impresario, theater director and administrator, Mr. Highkin leads Fern Street Circus (1990 – 2003; 2014 – present). He also served as Executive Director of Young Audiences of San Diego and Salina (KS) Arts & Humanities. He studied at Bertolt Brecht’s Berliner Ensemble in East Berlin, and stage managed Circus Flora and Soviet Acrobatic Revue on the road in the late 1980s. He and Cindy Zimmerman, a visual/community artist, co-founded Fern Street Circus, San Diego’s original single-ring social circus. He is an active roots musician (mandolin, mandocello, tenor guitar, tenor banjo and 5-string electric mandolin), building a repertoire of western swing, vintage country and standards. He particularly points to Moon Mullican, Cindy Walker, Ocie Stockard and Milton Brown as key musical inspirations. Currently working on a second album, he released his first CD, “Heart of a Clown,” in 2013 under the stage name, Johnny High-Hat. Highkin holds an MA, Churchill College, Cambridge, and BA, UCLA, both in English; he taught literature for many years. He and Ms. Zimmerman live in City Heights in San Diego with their curly-tailed cat, Sparky.