When people talk about the impact of rising diesel prices, the focus usually lands on farms, freight and heavy industry. But as the cost of diesel remains stubbornly above $3 a litre, the fuel crisis is also hitting something less obvious — the moments of joy that keep regional communities connected.
Ashton’s Entertainment is midway through a seven-week tour of country New South Wales with their Great Australian Circus, moving through towns that often have limited access to live entertainment. And, at a time when cost-of-living pressures are weighing heavily on everyone, a night under the Big Top offers a little fantasy and wonder when it is needed most.
Despite being one of Australia’s oldest travelling circus companies, seeing and surviving all kinds of turmoil, the current fuel crisis pressure is now threatening whether the show can go on at all.
Chantel Ashton-Rodriguez, a performer and tour manager with the family-run circus, said the impact has been immediate.
“We move a lot of vehicles from town to town and, with the fuel price at the moment, that has done some damage to our business,” she said.
For Ashton’s Circus, moving from town to town is not just a drive down the highway. It is a full-scale logistical operation involving a convoy of 13 vehicles, from trucks and trailers to support vehicles carrying performers and equipment.
“And we double trip. So we have one prime mover that moves two trailers.. it goes to the next place, then it’s got to come back again to get the second load. So it’s a huge cost.”
Unlike most venues, a travelling circus brings everything with it — including power. While they use mains power when it is available, they also rely on diesel generators to make the spectacular in the Big Top happen.
“For example, it’s getting cooler now with winter, so we have a heated Big Top, and our heaters are run with diesel,” Ashton-Rodriguez said.
“So it’s all adding up for us, and it’s definitely had a negative impact on our business.”
In Tamworth, the circus was forced to run entirely off diesel generators due to a lack of site power, compounding already rising costs.
“Every day, all day, we had to run a generator. With the fuel prices doubling, that was a big cost,” she said.
Without relief, those costs may soon become unsustainable.
“We’re not there yet, but it definitely is a worry for us,” she said.
“We really need the fuel prices to decrease in the next couple of weeks, otherwise it won’t be possible for us to continue,” she said.
At the same time, audiences are feeling the pinch. Rising fuel costs are not just affecting the circus — they are affecting the people it relies on.
“Fuel prices have not only doubled our bills, but people aren’t going out and going to the circus and doing those extra activities because of this as well,” she said.
“So not only have our fuel costs gone up, but we also have fewer ticket sales. So it’s sort of hitting us on both sides.”
Unlike many industries, the circus received no meaningful assistance during the Covid years, and Ashton-Rodriguez said they are not expecting help in the response to this crisis either. Instead, the future of the tour may come down to community support.
“We’re just a small family business touring, and we’ve done it since the early 1800s, so we don’t want to stop now,” she said.
The family traces its roots back to James Henry Ashton, a bareback rider in Tasmania in the 1800s, with the first Ashton Circus established in 1850. Now eight generations on, the circus continues to tour regional Australia — including deep ties to the New England, where two Inverell women have married into the Ashton family.
“We love coming out to country New South Wales. We’ve done it for years and years and years,” Ashton-Rodriguez said.
The circus is doing what it can to remain accessible, dropping ticket prices in Armidale to $15 for children and $25 for adults.
“We’re doing everything we can for the community as well,” she said.
After their shows at Armidale Showground from April 17 to 26, the tour heads to Inverell Showground from May 1 to 3, Moree Showground from May 8 to 10, Narrabri Showground from May 15 to 17, and Goondiwindi Showground from May 22 to 24.
After more than a century and a half on the road, the Ashton family is determined to keep going. But like many small, regional businesses, they are now at the mercy of forces far beyond their control.
“We wouldn’t want to have to cancel our tour because of the fuel crisis,” Ashton-Rodriguez said.
“We’re just hoping we can all pull together and make this work.”
Tickets for the circus can be booked online and check their Facebook Page for opportunities to win tickets and see lots of pictures from the show.
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