BE AFRAID, be very afraid – the Circus of Horrors, with its weird and wonderful cast, is on the prowl and looking for victims willing to be scared, thrilled and entertained in equal measure.
Ringmaster Doktor Haze, with the help of flying vampires, witch-doctors, voodoo acrobats, performers with bendy bodies and demon dwarfs, will unleash a rock’n’roll musical show packed with daring acts.
Among them is sword swallower and hypnotist Helmut Kirchmeier, who uses the stage name Hannibal Helmurto.
The international star, who performs with the circus which plays Aberdeen, Inverness, Stirling and Dundee next week, performs a dangerous act with razor sharp swords, but it was his hypnotic powers which landed him in hot water recently.
Practising his hypnotic skills, he sat in front of a mirror and looked a little too deeply into his own eyes, accidently putting himself into a somnambulistic trance for five hours.
He was found by his wife, Joanna Kirchmeier, unable to move and literally staring into space.
Mrs Kirchmeier said: “I was really shocked when I found him as he was just like a zombie staring at himself in the mirror. His pupils had gone really small, which is a sign of someone under hypnosis.
“I asked him what was wrong, but he didn’t answer.
“I looked at the sofa behind him and saw a book named Hypnosis Medicine of the Mind opened at Page 45, and a chapter named Hypnotic Anaesthesia.
“I then realised there was something wrong.
“At first I panicked and tried to talk to Helmut, but he didn’t respond then I noticed next to the book a letter from his mentor, hypnotherapist Doctor Ray Roberts.”
Mrs Kirchmeier contacted Dr Roberts who asked her to hold the phone to her husband’s ear. As Dr Roberts talked to him, Helmut slowly he came out of the trance, but he was unable to remember anything other than getting up at 10am and beginning to practise his hypnosis.
“Hannibal” has now recovered fully and practises auto-suggestion hypnotism only when in the company of his wife, who has a keyword to quote should anything like this happen again.
He does, however, continue to use hypnotism which enables him to swallow swords as part of his act in the Circus of Horrors show, although that act hasn’t been without its problems: during his debut, he accidently skewered himself.
Hannibal Helmurto has now made a full recovery from both incidents, and will be joined on stage by a cast who have a devilishly good show which guarantees to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.
The Circus of Horrors is at Aberdeen Music Hall on Tuesday, February 9. For tickets call 01224 641122.
It is at Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, on Wednesday, February 10 and Thursday, February 11. For tickets call 01463 234234. On Friday, February 12, it plays the Albert Halls, Stirling. Call 0178 647 3544, and on Sunday, February 14, it’s at the Whitehall Theatre, Dundee. Call 0871 702 9486.