The day the clowns cried: A look at ‘Circus Fire’ and the Hartford circus fire episode artwork

EPISODE · May 14, 2026 · 1H 2M

The day the clowns cried: A look at ‘Circus Fire’ and the Hartford circus fire

from The Colin McEnroe Show · host Connecticut Public Radio

The Hartford circus fire in 1944 was the deadliest disaster in the history of Connecticut. Our friend Jacques Lamarre (if you listen to The Nose most Fridays, you know Jacques) has written a big-deal new play about the fire and its aftermath that TheaterWorks Hartford is currently world premiering. This hour, a conversation recorded in front of a live audience at TheaterWorks about the play Circus Fire and the actual Hartford circus fire. Note: This podcast version of the show is more than 12 minutes longer than the episode as it’s airing on the radio, and it includes our full interview with circus fire survivor Charles Ericson. GUESTS: Charles Ericson: A survivor of the Hartford circus fire Jacques Lamarre: A playwright and a frequent guest on The Nose; he wrote and co-conceived Circus Fire Rob Ruggiero: Artistic director at TheaterWorks Hartford and a co-conceiver of Circus Fire TheaterWorks Hartford is a current underwriter of Connecticut Public. The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show. Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks to Kate Cudworth, Dennis Dowding, Ethan Pervere, and Katherine Plutnicki at TheaterWorks Hartford. Colin McEnroe, Robyn Doyon-Aitken, Dylan Reyes, and Lily Tyson contributed to this show.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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The day the clowns cried: A look at ‘Circus Fire’ and the Hartford circus fire

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This episode was published on May 14, 2026.

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The Hartford circus fire in 1944 was the deadliest disaster in the history of Connecticut. Our friend Jacques Lamarre (if you listen to The Nose most Fridays, you know Jacques) has written a big-deal new play about the fire and its aftermath that...

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