The Midnight Circus is a safe haven for those who have abilities that set them apart from the rest of humanity. The show starts at midnight and the illusions are more real than the crowd could ever believe. There is, however, only one rule -- once you join, you cannot leave.

Current Location:
Jeonju, South Korea

FOUNDED | DECEMBER 28, 2012
REVAMPED | september 29, 2018
ADMINS | misstravelingman, shroudedbanshee
MUSES | 19

the story of the midnight circus

The Cirque du Freak was founded by a woman named Hyori in 1999 in Paris, France. Though it held the title of Circus, it was a freak show. Each member of the circus had some sort of extraordinary ability or physical quality that set them apart from the rest of humanity. On their own, these abilities or qualities caused pain in the world of humans. Together, they found acceptance and power in being able to awe the people who had once mocked and hurt them.

The Cirque Du Freak was operational for two years in Paris until the French authorities shut it down upon learning of its existence. They had come to the conclusion that Hyori had been forcing these special humans to perform against their will, something that had become illegal in the country. Each “freak” attempted to come to Hyori’s aid, telling the authorities that they were wrong, but nothing could be done to sway their decision. Thus, the circus was closed and Hyori was deported back to South Korea.

It wasn’t long after returning to South Korea when Hyori came up with a new idea. Despite the fact that Korea, too, had a ban against Freak Shows, Hyori managed to come up with a way to keep them from finding out. Instead of allowing the members to leave when they wanted, she would make only one rule – if you join, you cannot leave. While some members eventually disregarded the rule and ran, most took the rule to heart. It was supposed to be a safe haven for their kind, and if someone left, it could put everyone in danger.

This Circus became known as the Midnight Circus, named after the fact that the Circus opened to the public at Midnight. Despite each member’s ability being very real, the public considers them but mere illusions whose only supernatural aspect is the difficulty to figure them out. This was a blessing of safety to all those who reside in the circus.

In December of 2012, everything changed. Just before moving the Cirque to the second largest city in South Korea, Busan, Hyori went missing.The only item of hers that remained behind was a letter detailing that she had willingly and purposely left the Cirque. She placed three members of the cirque in charge and two of them composed a highly convincing lie to keep the other performers calm - That Hyori left the Cirque with the intent to find more freaks. A few months later, the death of one of the leaders and some of the other freaks left the circus in turmoil, leaving the two remaining leaders scrambling to pick up the pieces.

And then, as swiftly as it had begun, the Circus came to an end. Between Hyori leaving and the death of one of the following leaders, members of the circus began to leave until no one was left but an abandoned campsite and the dream of a woman for a better life.


Four long years have passed since the Midnight Circus lie abandoned in Asahikawa, Japan. After the disappearance of the previous ringmasters, members of the circus had fled, fearing for their own security. The circus no longer seemed safe, cursed by the loss of so many different leaders.

One member, however, stayed behind. Song Somi was devastated by the run down condition of the circus. Things were missing or broken. There was no money left. She had no grasp of the language and nowhere else to go. It took four years of hard work and frustration before she could finally see the fruits of her labours. Four long years, and finally the circus was set back up. Finally, it was ready for everyone to come home.

Her only job now was to bring everyone with special abilities, like her, back to the circus. Back home, where they belonged.

cirque setting

Welcome to your new home! Get used to it, you’re stuck here.

The Cirque Grounds

The Cirque’s leaders always pick a location where the cirque and all of its tents can be hidden by the woods or by trees. They always find a suitable clearing hidden from the city, or a place where the trees are spaced enough that the tents can be set up between them.

Bathrooms consist of porta-potties, or if you have to go bad enough, you’ll have to go off into the trees where someone can’t see you. Showers are home-rigged and you will generally not get hot water. If you want a hot bath, you will have to visit a bath house.

There are no fires in the Cirque. As we are always in the middle of large trees and canvas tents, fires are a hazard. Instead, the camp is lit by white party lights that are strung around the tops of the outside of tents and linked between tents above the walkways.

Also, there are always two separate campgrounds. The living camp and the performance camp, while both set close together, are kept apart so that the Cirque’s living quarter is kept peaceful from the people who visit to see the performances.

The Living Quarters

Each tent will be assigned Jobs for the living quarters. These jobs are listed {here} and will change (for the most part) every time the cirque changes areas.

At one end of the living quarters lies the large Dining tent. The tent is large enough to have several old picnic tables jammed in closely together. Outside of the tent, there are five more placed around it. Through the partially open back of the Dining tent is a large food truck, where all meals for members of the circus are cooked. The Kitchen Crew will be in charge of meals.

Alcohol will be available in the kitchen tent. The beer is quite possibly the cheapest, nastiest beer available, but it is something. It will not be available to members during performance hours and will be locked up. It will also only be available for a few hours during the day and closely monitored by people on the Kitchen Crew. If it is your job to monitor it, you will not be drinking that day. If you want anything alcohol other than this, you must buy it yourself.

Right next to the Dining tent is the Medical tent. This tent is where our resident healer resides and sees to the needs of the Cirque. As our members can be physically different from most other human beings, we want to minimize hospital visits.

Placed sporadically in a circle around these two tents are the living tents. These tents vary in color (the colors listed on the tents page). Unless given special permission by the leaders of the cirque, up to four members of the cirque will share one tent.

The beds consist of cots. Cots are extremely portable and make moving the Cirque easier. A cot, a pillow and two blankets are supplied for you when you join. Anything extra that you wish to have must be bought and supplied yourself.

Behind all of this are the trucks and other vehicles (if your character has a motorcycle or car), along with a large tent that contains extra cots and other equipment used on the living side of the camp.

The Performance Camp

Situated away from the living quarters, the Performance camp is where the magic really happens. Members will spend their nights on this half of the ‘Midnight Circus’ showcasing their abilities.

In the middle of this camp are two large, white tents that are considered the main show tents. These tents will be busy all night with the main performances. Two of the younger members (npc, under 18) will be situated outside the entrance of each of the tents, collecting money for the shows.

Around these tents will be other, smaller sideshow tents. These are about half the size of the living tents and of varying colors. These will not be open the whole night, as members will have to help go run other booths. When one of these sideshows is open, another young member (npc, under 18) will be standing outside, collecting money.

Behind the main tents is the First Aid tent. This is where the Cirque’s healer will be during performances. Their Medical staff will accompany them when not performing.

Placed sporadically between the different performance tents will be various outside stages, pedestals, tanks and stages for shows that need the outdoors. Along with these are various food and game booths (which, of course, are generally overpriced). When members are not performing, they will be working these booths.

And, of course, there will be a few performers who have abilities that work well as ‘Wandering Performers’ who will walk the crowds and entertain guests while they are eating or waiting for a performance to begin.

At the back of the performance area are two more tents. The larger of the two is the performance equipment tent. All power lines run back here to the generators, and unused equipment will be stored here. The smaller of the two is the costume tent, and is where all circus costumes are kept while not being worn for performances. The Head Costumer can be found there during performances, as well as during the day as needed when the circus isn't open.

Moving

As the Cirque is always moving, it has it’s own modes of transportation. There are four moving trucks. Two of the trucks are for moving members, two of them are for moving equipment.

The Cirque has two old, rusted ferries for when they travel to their home island or to Japan. They are slow moving, so the journeys take a long time.

Home Island

See the Home Island page.

home island

When Cirque du Freak was in its infancy, the members spent their lives entirely on the road; they had no permanent home to which they could return save for their tents at the end of a tiring day. For a long time, the perpetual upheaval and constant state of impermanence didn’t prove to be an issue. The members worked hard, entertained to the best of their ability, and brought the Cirque success. However, at the core of a travelling circus is change, and its performers could not maintain their peaks indefinitely. The energy of the cirque disappeared and lethargy took over, tempers grew short, and members which had previous been the picture of health fell ill. Soon, the poor state of the performers could no longer be hidden from the customers, and whispers of the show’s dropping quality impacted the amount of people who were willing to attend. Nobody wanted to pay steep prices to see a lackluster show.

Hyori knew she needed to find a solution as quickly as possible lest the haven she and the other members had built for themselves and others like them crumbled. So, taking the matter into her own hands, Hyori left a note that she would be gone for a while as she searched for a home for the other members—a permanent place, a sanctuary of stability away from the hustle and bustle of the cirque life as it was then. She knew that if they had to live the rest of their lives looking over their shoulder for fear their new lives would be destroyed by the law, they would fall into insanity and early death.

Within a few months, Hyori returned and the remaining cirque members finally understood what she’d done with the funds she’d taken. She’d found them a home, a true home, not just pieces of collapsible tarmac to keep the elements out.

She described it as this: For a few weeks in each year, at any point in the year, the entire troupe of performers would board the run-down boats she’d managed to find or purchase and travel to a secluded island. This island had no name, but there was no need for one. The performers knew it for what it was: home and that is by which it was known. Much to the troupe’s luck, the previous residents had been forced to leave the island due to an unfortunate virus that had spread among them when they’d lived there. With the residents, the virus had left—though they did not know that and so they left the island uninhabited as a precautionary measure.

In their haste to abandon the island, the previous residents had left their buildings standing. Though by the time Hyori had found the island, the houses were derelict and in need of repairs. Nevertheless, they were buildings, and that was what mattered. At the instruction of Hyori, the cirque members worked together to scout and refurbish the island. Many areas of their new home were quartered off due to the potential danger they held toward the cirque members. The sharp cliffs, dank caves, and the thickest parts of the forest were out of bounds, and people were discouraged from swimming in the deeper, more turbulent inlets of the island. The island was to be a safe place, and great care was taken to ensure that it was.

Even the decrepit mansion on the centre of the island, too, was forbidden to visit. It was an arduous trip to make to get close to the building and even the home itself was dangerous. Parts of its structure had collapsed in on itself due to harsh weather and rotting support, and sharp shards of broken metal and glass littered the yard around it. Sometimes, cirque members who had ventured closer than was good for them claimed to see figures in the windows. Once, a member even claimed to have seen a light lit in what would have likely been the master bedroom—a light in a building that wasn’t connected to the generator Hyori had found for the cirque members. Whether or not the claims were rue, the mansion remained an intriguing presence in the background every time the troupe returned.

Even in its poor state, the mansion reeked of opulence. The houses the cirque members were provided with were nowhere near its level. Perhaps their only charm is the cobblestone road that connects the houses all together. Each house had one or two bedrooms with electricity and hydro provided by the pumps and generators. On the one end, houses with just a single bedroom will have a larger living space, if a slightly smaller overall property area. Conversely, houses with two bedrooms will have a somewhat larger property area—though the living space will be smaller due to the amount of room the bedrooms take. Unfortunately, due to the high maintenance cost, “lights out” was implemented between the hours of 10pm and 7am, and then once more between 9am and 6pm—leaving only 4 hours of electricity in the evening and 2 in the morning.

The island might not be the most extravagant of residences, but it has character and is always there for the cirque members when they have need of it. It is their home island.

travel schedule

Busan, South Korea : Dec. 28/2012 - Jan. 07/2013

Ulsan, South Korea : Jan. 07/2013 - Jan. 26/2013

Home Island : Jan. 26/2013 - Feb. 15/2013

Aomori, Japan : Feb. 15/2013 - Mar. 18/2013

Daegu, South Korea : Mar. 18/2013 - May 11/2013

Gwangju, South Korea : May 11/2013 - Jul. 3/2013

Home Island : Jul. 3/2013 - Sep. 22/2013

Shanghai, China : Sep. 22/2013 - Nov 12/2013

Kawaguchi, Japan : Nov 12/2013 - March 3/2014

Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan : March 3/2014 - (disbandment)

Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan : Jan 16/2018 - April 28/2018

Shibukawa, Honshu, Japan : April 28/2018 - July 27/2018

Home Island : July 31/2018 - September 7/2018

Shizuoka, Honshu, Japan : September 12 - 18/2018

Jeonju, South Korea : September 22/2018 - ???

rules

RESERVING

• We do not accept anonymous reservations.
• While not necessary, we do suggest that you reserve so no one takes the character or ability you want before you have a chance to apply.
• Reservations can be made either through Tumblr or AFF.
• Reservations last 4 days, with a one-time possible extension of 2 days if you message the directory. 
• Out of respect, we will not allow reservations of the following: Kim Jonghyun of SHINee, Ladies’ Code Rise, Ladies’ Code EunB. If you feel anyone should be added to this list, please feel free to reach out.

APPLYING

• You must be 18+ to apply. No exceptions.
• Your character must also be 18+. Character ages can be changed from the face claim +/- five years, but both character and face claim MUST be 18+.
• While based mostly on Asian Celebrities, we accept any faceclaim.
• Please check the masterlist before applying. No doubles are accepted (twins may be an exception).
• Please clear your ability with the directory. Abilities must have valid drawbacks to be accepted – we do not allow all powerful characters.
• Check the abilities section of this page for more information.
• This is an OC rp. Please do not use your FC’s name.
• While this is a supernatural rp, it does exist within the real world. 
• Should you be asked for clarification/revision after applying, you will have 3 days to reply or you application will be denied and your hold will be released.
• Please see the schedule page to be sure that your character’s location corresponds to the cirque’s when joining.

ACCEPTANCE

• Once accepted, please make a MeWe account and add the main and admin account.
• A MeWe account is required for every member. Your account will cover all of your characters, for those that have more than one. The account name should be your nickname/handle, not your character name.
• After you have joined all of the groups, you can add the rest of the members and start participating. 

ACTIVITY

General

• Activity checks are done every other Monday. 
• All OOC should be kept in the OOC group.
• You must notify the Admod team when going on hiatus or leaving the directory. 

Tumblr

• A tumblr character account is not required to join.

MeWe

• A MeWe account is required for every member. Your account will cover all of your characters, for those that have more than one. The account name should be your nickname/handle, not your character name.
• MeWe will be the only location for threads and scenes, and all group activity and events will take place there.
• Timeline posts will be considered the equivalent of social media. These can include photo posts, text conversations, and phone calls. Please make one album per character, and title the album with the character's name. Please #tag posts and comments with the character that is speaking as well.
• Participation in the IC groups can count toward activity requirements. Participation in timeline threads must be significant and allow for interaction with other characters, and can not be only posting photos/profile changes without replying to anything.
• The IC group chats are available for any scenes meant to include all circus members. Please do not use it for one-on-one playing.
• As there are multiple languages used within our RP, formatting the languages are a must on MeWe when characters are speaking. Normal is Korean, Bold is English, Italics is Japanese, and Underlined are other languages as needed and specified.

HIATUS

• Full hiatus can last for up to a month. You do not need to post.
• Semi-hiatus can last for up to two months. Please post or participate on MeWe at least once PER CHARACTER in every 2 week period.
• Please tell us why you’re going on hiatus and give us a date of return.
• You will have three days to begin participating after your date of return.
• Please message the admins when going on hiatus and when coming back from hiatus so that we can update accordingly.
• Stacked or consecutive hiatuses with minimal activity in between will be considered muse squatting, and can result in your character being removed from the directory.

LITERACY

• This is a Literate role play.
• A literate grasp of the English Language is required.
• Scenes must be written in third person and paragraph form on MeWe.
• Social media posts do not have to be paragraph form and should be in first person.
• Texted conversations do not have to be in paragraph form.

ABILITIES

• Your character can only have one type of freakish ability. Characters are not required to have an ability as long as slots are open for no ability characters.
• Their ability must have some flaw or drawback. ’Perfect’ characters are not allowed.
• No duplicate skills, except in the case of immediate family (siblings or parent/child). Similar gifts are accepted as long as the difference is made obvious and the Admins and already established player agree that it is acceptable.
• Go [here] for taken powers and abilities.
• Go [here] for ideas for an ability for your character.
• Normal or no-ability characters will be allowed, though on a strictly limited basis. The current cap for this is TWO, but as member numbers go up, so will this cap. Any character without abilities will still need to perform or otherwise fill a need in the circus.

GENERAL RULES

• No form of godmodding is allowed. If you must take control of a character for a small amount of time, please ask the other typist for permission.
• No OOC drama will be tolerated. If this happens and the admod team does not see it, please message the directory or one of us directly on discord so that we can assist in finding a resolution.
• TWO (2) Characters are allowed without additional admin approval, once a player passes two activity checks with their first character. For additional characters, message the directory or a member of the admod team on MeWe. With additional admin approval, you may be allowed up to six (6) characters total.
• NSFW content is allowed, however it must be tagged and indicated in the title of the thread. If the admod team notices NSFW content left unlabeled, warnings will be issued.
• NSFW images/videos/visuals are not allowed to be directly posted. Linking is allowed, but it must be labeled and tagged appropriately.
• This rp works on a three warning system. The admod team will always try to work through any issues before a formal warning is issued. Should a formal warning be needed, it will be clearly stated why it's being issued.

**rules are subject to change as necessary.

taken powers and abilities

NO DUPLICATES

To get help finding an ability, go here or talk to the admins.
This list is alphabetical by ability name.
Please get your ability cleared with an admin before working on your application.

• Ability Negation
• Animal Communication & Control
• Appearance Mimicry
• Avian Shapeshifting
• Cellular Manipulation
• Darkness Manipulation
• Enhanced Lung Capacity
• Horn Protrusion
• Illusion Manipulation & Projection
• Iron Stomach
• Lightning Manipulation
• Merman
• Plant Manipulation
• Precognition
• Supernatural Hearing
• Tattoo Manipulation
• Teleportation
• Time Reduction
• Wing Manifestation

Normal/No Abilities: (0/2)
•

Performance Acts

These are the current acts that are filled in the circus.

• appearance tricks
• birdman
• bird show
• contortionist
• escape artist
• fortune teller
• high wire act
• juggler
• knife thrower
• light show
• pranskter
• ringmaster
• shadow puppetry
• sleight of hand trickster
• strongman
• tattooman
• trapeze artist

behind-the-scenes jobs

These jobs require a separate application after your character has been accepted.

• Circus Leader (2/2)
• Accountant (1/1)
• Chef (1/1)
• Cooking Crew (1/4)
• Costumer (1/1)
• Costuming Crew (0/2)
• Medic (1/1)
• Medical Crew (1/4)
• Mechanic (1/1)
• Maintenance Crew (0/4)
• Security (1/4)
• Teacher (1/1)
• Teaching Assistant (1/2)

masterlist

Since there are seemingly endless choices for faceclaims at Cirque Du Freak, we will only list the characters that are currently taken. We are a predominantly Korean idol roleplay, but we are open to any faceclaim.

This list is updated frequently, so please don’t message asking if a certain face is taken or not. If the list says that they are taken or reserved, then please choose another beautiful creature.

Taken Abilities here as well as next to names.
Names that are struck out are members on hiatus. Their hiatus return day will be next to their names.
Format: [FC Name] - OC Name (Stage Name) :: Ability

Reserved

group || name (ability)
2NE1 (Disbanded)

[Park Bom] - Ka Sunhe (Alexia) :: Lightning Manipulation
AAA (Attack All Around)

[Nishijima Takahiro] - Ikeda Ren (Arture) :: Horn Protrusion
Actors/Actresses

[Alycia Debnam-Carey] - Harper Woods (Chameleon) :: Appearance Mimicry[Daito Shunsuke] - Kiyama Ryuichiro (Zelos) :: Illusion Manipulation/Projection[Jason Momoa] - Oliver Keli'i (Little John) :: Iron Stomach[Mizushima Hiro] - Itou Daiki (Hadad) :: Enhanced Lung Capacity[Narimiya Hiroki] - Koizumi Aoi (Iah) :: Time Reduction[Nathalie Emmanuel] - Ava Grahm (Flora) :: Plant Manipulation[Nose Karina] - Miyama Yuri (Rheia) :: Precognition
BAP

[Bang Yongguk] - Yoo Minhyuk (Xerxes) :: Ability Negation
Block B

[Lee Taeil] - Choi Hyunwoo (Emrys) :: Darkness Manipulation
Model/Ulzzang

[Kiguchi Aya] - Naomi Keli'i :: Horn Protrusion[Nakayama Satsuki] - Sage Jones (Error) :: Teleportation[Park Yury] - Go Kyung (Alicanto) :: Wing Manifestation[Tristan Defeuillet Vang] - Cadao Mortimar (Zimran) :: Merman
Soloists

[Lee Jieun (IU)] - Song Somi (Althaea) :: Cellular Manipulation[Miyavi] - Ishikwawa Kyou (Tebori) :: Tattoo Manipulation
Shu-i (disbanded)

[Park Hyungjun (PJ)] - Tae Sungjin (Echo) :: Supernatural Hearing
TOKIO

[Nagase Tomoya] - Aoyama Mitsuomi (Mitch) :: Animal Communication & Control
Wondergirls

[Ahn Sohee] - Aoyama Ayheon (Willow) :: Avian Shapeshifting