Prominent national circus performers to step down from Sarasota nonprofit

Pedro Reis and Dolly Jacobs, co-founders of the Circus Arts Conservatory, are stepping down from the helm of the Sarasota nonprofit they founded to preserve and advance circus arts worldwide.

The husband-and-wife team, prominent entertainment leaders nationally but especially in the area, will be succeeded by Jennifer Mitchell, who has been named president and CEO by the CAC board in a leadership transition long in the making, according to a statement. 

Mitchell was previously CAC executive vice president and COO, a position she held for more than a decade. She joined the circus arts organization in 2008, the release states, when it was known as Circus Sarasota, as marketing and public relations coordinator.