The tiny circus came to Clark Park this morning. Performers from the movement arts group Tangle strung a trapeze, hoop and long pieces of fabric called “silks” from a large tree between the bowl and playground and entertained dozens of people young and old.

The West Philly Tool Library supplied the ladder, a key piece of equipment when you do acrobatics while hanging from a tree.

You may have seen the tiny circus in this spot before. This time the performers were promoting their upcoming show “Ampersand” at Philly Fringe on Sept. 8-9 at Philadelphia Soundstages at 1600 N. 5th St. Ampersand combines “trapeze aerial rope and partner acrobatics with power narratives of belonging.”

Their Fringe shows are:

• Sept. 8 – 7:30 p.m.
• Sept. 9 – 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Check out the slideshow below for more photos.

If you dig all things alternative, indy, fringe and so on, then pencil the Philadelphia Alternative Comic Con into this Sunday’s agenda.

The P.A.C.C. returns to The Rotunda (4014 Walnut St.) in West Philly on August 14 from noon to 7. The event will feature tons of exhibitors and vendors dealing in the weirdly wonderful world of off-the-beaten-path comics and zines. West Philly’s own comic genius, Box Brown, will be in the house along with a ton of other artists.

A full list of vendors and exhibitors is available here. Admission is FREE.

Street Movies!, a series of free outdoor short movie screenings and live performances organized by Scribe Video Center (4212 Chestnut St.), are happening this month in communities all around Philadelphia. The films, including animation, documentary, and experimental, focus on environmental justice, healthy foods, new immigrants and urban green spaces.

This Saturday, August 6, Street Movies! will be in West Philly. Four films will be screened in Clark Park’s Bowl (45th & Kingsessing) starting at 7:30 p.m. The film presentation is hosted by the Jubilee School and the Green Guerillas, who will power the screening with their biodiesel waste and vegetable oil-powered bus the “Grease Guzzler.”

Philly-based hip hop artist Alwatan Kwele, who is originally from Tanzania, will open the evening.

There will be another screening in West Philly hosted by Mill Creek Community Partnership on August 27. Stay tuned for more information about that event.

Here are synopses of the films (from the Scribe site):

The Future of Our History
by Jubilee School
K-6 students of Jubilee spend two years studying W.E.B. Du Bois, making a pilgrimage to Great Barrington, MA, where they visit the graves of Du Bois’ wife and young son. (2011, 15 min)

Pumzi
by Wanuri Kahiu
35 years after “The Water War” has ruined earth’s surface, a young woman defies the governing council of her indoor community, escapes to the outside to plant a growing seedling. (Kenya, 2009, 21 min). Philadelphia Premiere.

Green Grease Guzzlers
by Green Guerrillas Youth Media Tech Collective (in person)
A story about alternative and sustainable transportation, this excerpt showcases Green Guerrillas ona move, making their collective’s transportation more “eco-friendly” with the conversion of a 1990 Ford Econoline diesel bus into a lean and green biodiesel/waste veggie oil machine. (2010, 30 min). Philadelphia Premiere.

Save the Future
by Jenny Deller (in-person)
A young girl re-imagines her life as a PSA, blurring the lines between her family troubles and environmental catastrophe. Save the Future is a companion short to her feature “Future Weather” about global warming. The whole production was environmentally conscious. (2009, 3 min)
 

If you have been near the corner of 45th and Chestnut recently, you may have noticed the large, blank, west-facing apartment building wall and thought something wasn’t quite right. That’s because the large mural of Paul Robeson, which greeted eastbound travelers on Chestnut, is gone.

But worry not; the famous actor and All-American athlete and son of a former slave who lived his later years in his sister’s row home at 4949 Walnut St. shall return. A new Robeson mural is being created as you read this.

The original mural, painted by Peter Pagast in 1999 and removed in February, is being replaced with one by Ernel Martinez, who painted the Malcolm X. mural at Ridge Avenue and W. Susquehanna Avenue.

Amy Johnston from the City’s Mural Arts Program said the mural will be back up some time next month.

“The mural is being repainted on parachute cloth in the artist’s studio,” she said.

The Robeson and Malcolm X murals are part of the African American Iconic Images collection, which also includes portraits of Jackie Robinson, Women of Jazz and Malcolm X, among others, and historical scenes of African American life and community.

West Philly artists –  there’s still time to apply for the Lancaster Avenue Arts project.

Lancaster Avenue has been selected by The City of Philadelphia as a ReStore Corridors Through Art location. From September 30 – November 30 qualified artists can use vacant storefronts for their installations. More than a dozen locations are on the list.

Applications are accepted until August 8. Artists working in any medium are welcome to apply.

To see the list of available storefronts and to apply go here.

UPDATE: Holy Cow. We forgot Honest Tom. His rolling shop won “Best Food Truck.” They write: “Fish, plantain or chicken-and-pork tacos – it’s whatever you ate last that you’ll tell everyone you love best.”

Raise your hand and pat yourselves on the backs West Philly restauranteurs. Philadelphia Magazine named West Philadelphia the “Most Underrated Food Neighborhood” in its “Best of Philly” issue, which hit newsstands this week.

The blurb for the award reads: “Desi Chaat House. Kabobeesh. Vietnam Cafe. Abyssinia. Manakeesh. Vientiane. Gold Standard. Dock Street. Kilimanjaro. Heard enough? Next time you’re bored with the Philly food scene, buy a compass, turn west and start walking.”

Other West Philadelphia winners include the West Philly Tool Library (1314 S. 47th St.), which the magazine deservedly named “Best DIYers Secret.” Go check them out. They have a big new space now and more tools than you can shake a pipe wrench at.

Biba Wine Bar (3131 Walnut St.) and its sister establishment in Center City, Tria, were named best place to get a “Wine Education on the Cheap.” Speaking of potent potables, Capogiro (3925 Walnut St.) won for best “Use of a Liquor License” for its sorbet/alcohol combos.

Penn’s Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli won for best, ahem, “Westward Expander.” The magazine noted that he was “the brain behind a 30-year plan for campus and surrounding community that’s already boosted everything from retail to real estate to West Philly’s image.”

But Penn takes one in the bread basket in the “Worst of Philly” category for “Worst Movie Theater” for Rave (240 S. 40th St.), which is housed in a Penn-owned property. The blurb: “We thought the most obnoxious, cell-ohone using and downright rude crowd was at Riverview or Maybe Franklin Mills Mall. But it turns out that it is on Penn’s campus. For Shame.” Yikes.