AT A GLANCE

• Con (Sullivan) Colleano was known as the Wizard of the Wire. 

• He was born in Lismore, New South Wales, to an Irish father, and a mother of mixed heritage, including Afro-Caribbean and Indigenous Australian. 

• He was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as being the first person to successfully attempt a forward somersault on a tightrope.

• He performed in circus big tops all over the world. 

• Hitler and Mussolini watched him perform and were so impressed, they granted him medals. 

• His incredible legacy was celebrated with a tightrope show as part of NAIDOC Week in Lismore. 

In a captivating tribute to Con Colleano, an extraordinary tightrope artist with Irish, Afro-Caribbean and Indigenous Australian roots, his birth town of Lismore, New South Wales, recently hosted a breathtaking event, called The Xrossing, during NAIDOC Week. 

The event showcased the incredible talent of Colleano, born Cornelius (Con) Sullivan in 1899, the greatest tightwire artist of all time.

Con was the third of ten children of an Irish father, Cornelius Sullivan, and his wife Julia Robinson. Julia’s father came from Saint Thomas in the Caribbean, and her mother was of mixed heritage, with one of her grandmothers being Indigenous. 

His father was a bare-knuckle boxer and a circus performer, and he taught his children circus skills. As was common among acrobats at the time, they adopted a stage name, Colleano, and travelled in Queensland with their Colleano’s All Star Circus. 

Con practiced up to seven hours a day to hone his skills on the highwire, eventually perfecting the almost impossible feet-to-feet forward somersault on the tightrope. 

He went on to great success on the vaudeville scene in Sydney, where he also secured work for the rest of his family. They then went on to perform with circuses in South Africa, the British Isles, and America, where the family settled. 

Con met his wife, Winnie Trevail, a vaudeville performer, in Melbourne. It was around that time that he adopted a new look from the top and tails he had been performing in – a Spanish toreador outfit and persona. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Con travelled the world, dazzling audiences. His exceptional skills on the wire caught the attention of Adolf Hitler, who admired Con’s performances so much, he issued him a German passport for unrestricted travel. Benito Mussolini, the Italian prime minister, also honoured him with a medal and praised his prowess. Little did they know of his true ancestry.  

Aged 60, Con retired from his career due to failing eyesight. His gave his last performance in Honolulu in 1960. In 1966, he was elected to the Circus Hall of Fame. He died in 1973. He is in the Guinness Book of World Records as being the first person to ever successfully attempt a forward somersault on a tightrope.

Despite Australia Post issuing a stamp in his honour, his remarkable story remained relatively unknown, even to the residents of his birth town of Lismore.

The Xrossing featured a line-up of celebrated tightwire walkers, including Dylan Singh, a Wiradjuri wire walker and circus artist, who delivered awe-inspiring performances on highwires stretching 60 meters across Lismore Quad. 

A speech was given by Deb Hescott, a family relative of Con, and Mark St Leon, a circus historian and author of ‘Con Colleano, Wizard of the Wire’.

Simone O’Brien, co-director of The Xrossing, expressed her excitement about making Con Colleano a household name through this event, which left a lasting impression on the community. 

The performance successfully planted a seed of recognition and appreciation for Con Sullivan Colleano’s incredible talent and heritage.