Alex Bistrevsky’s path to becoming a circus entertainer is anything but ordinary. Driven by family, resilience, and a few signs he almost ignored, Alex has built a performance career that honors everything his parents sacrificed when they fled Ukraine as refugees. Find out how GigSalad became part of his success story in this month’s People of GigSalad spotlight.
Becoming a circus performer
Alex Bistrevsky is a variety-circus entertainer and vaudevillian living in Los Angeles. Inspired by an older brother to pick up skateboarding, he found joy in physical challenges and learning new skills. After receiving a few undeniable signs later in life, he joined circus school, and the rest is history.
Finding his footing
Alex grew up in Washington state as the youngest of five siblings. Being the first in his family to be born in the United States, he struggled to find where he belonged. “…I didn’t quite fit in. I wasn’t quite American enough for the American kids, and I wasn’t quite Russian or Slavic enough for the Russian or Slavic kids. It was kind of lonely,” he said. His parents, Tatiana and Vadim, are from Ukraine and fled the former Soviet Union as refugees. “They sacrificed everything they had just so we could have a better life. For that, I’m endlessly grateful,” reflected Alex.
Inspired by his older brother, Alex picked up skateboarding, which was the real beginning of his journey to becoming a circus performer. He said, “It was a chance to constantly challenge myself and try new things — it sparked that sense of adventure in me and got me moving physically. It started with skateboarding, and then became, well, what else can I learn?”
The call of the circus
After moving to Los Angeles for film school, Alex and his brother were sitting in a coffee shop when a woman approached them, telling them they’d be perfect for the circus. “And we’re like, thanks, lady,” laughed Alex. “She goes: ‘No, seriously, I’m a director of a circus school. Here’s my card. Give me a call’,” he said. They decided not to call her, but this wasn’t the last sign.
“My brother, Demetrius, was approached by two girls at the park in Santa Monica who saw him doing splits and handstands. They handed him a card,” he said. It was the same card from the coffee shop! “He called me immediately: ‘Alex, that lady…she wasn’t crazy.'” So, they accepted the signs and started circus school. They trained six to nine hours every single day for about three years. “Over time, we went from one gig every four months to 29 gigs this month,” he said.
Alex attributes his opportunity to pursue a career as a performer to his parents. His mother was a skilled seamstress, and his father was a collegiate basketball player. “By leaving the former Soviet Union, they had to give up on opportunities they’d hoped to pursue,” he said. “My circus career is really a mixture of both of their dreams, and it’s my responsibility to carry that forward. I feel like I owe it to them.” For Alex, success is simple: “As long as I’ve given my honest-to-God best — that’s success. That’s all you can ask for.”
Using GigSalad
Alex Bistrevsky hit the ground running when he joined GigSalad in 2024. Since signing up, he’s booked a wide variety of gigs and quickly learned what it takes to make the most of the platform. We sat down with Alex to hear how GigSalad has changed the way he works and helped grow his career.
GigSalad: How does GigSalad support you?
Alex Bistrevsky: GigSalad supports me by giving me more free time that I didn’t have before because I was busy drafting performance agreements and hunting down information for clients, all the small details you need. GigSalad just handles that. So, I have more time, and I can just focus on the performance quality for the client and make it the best possible experience for them.
GS: How has GigSalad made it easier to book gigs?
AB: GigSalad makes the booking process much easier because I don’t have to draft contracts anymore. They handle the contract process, and I don’t have to chase after a client for payment. They handle that too. Once it’s booked, I don’t have to worry about it. It’s gonna be deposited into my account later, and I can just rest easy. And it’s not more work on my part to draft this agreement and to get every little detail from the client. They already package it all together.
GS: How has GigSalad helped you grow as an artist?
AB: I’ve essentially become my own boss now, and I’m getting opportunities I wouldn’t have had before because I was working with entertainment companies a lot. And with being a boss comes more responsibility. I’ve been put in situations where I had to grow, adapt, and become more efficient. And so GigSalad has provided some extra challenges that I could grow and rise to the occasion.
GS: What do you want performers to know about GigSalad?
AB: What I would like performers to understand about GigSalad is that you get back what you put in. If you take extra time for your profiles, your photos, and your media, that comes back in value.
GS: Why should people use GigSalad?
AB: People should use GigSalad because it offers a very extensive pool of talent. You could spend a lot of time going on individual websites, and you could find somebody, but that’s a lot of time you’re gonna waste. So why not go to a place that just has everything organized for you? Search keywords, and you get exactly what you want. Not only do you get what you want, but you also get, like, 10 or 20 options. And it’s just a matter of finding which one speaks to you the best.
✨ Looking for more inspiration and tips? Check out last month’s People of GigSalad spotlight with Magician Brandon Queen!
Alex’s advice for fellow performers is as straightforward as his work ethic: you get back what you put in. Whether it’s perfecting a new skill, polishing your GigSalad profile, or showing up to every gig ready to give your best, the effort is never wasted. 💫
Matt Holland is a Customer Happiness Agent at GigSalad. With 10+ years of experience performing as a jazz drummer, he has gained insights into the life of a gigging musician as well as what makes an event go off without a hitch. Outside of work, he enjoys traveling, hiking, reading, cooking, and watching the newest TV shows with his wife.