The tightrope walker can do a handstand 30 feet off the ground without a net. The crossbow artist once unintentionally parted his hair with an arrow. The tiger trainer says she knows what her big cats are thinking.
Such is the life of a circus performer — at least for these three, part of this season’s revamped Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Everything is new this year, from the music and costumes to several acts, including trainer Vicenta Pages and her white-striped Bengal tigers, Martti Peltonen’s daring crossbow demonstration and the high-wire antics of Los Scolas, in which Jasmin Castro partners with husband Javier Castro and William Correa.
The razzle-dazzle show is called Boom A Ring, a new concept that brings circusgoers up close and personal with The Greatest Show on Earth.
“It’s a one-ring show with so much excitement and energy that it can’t be contained in one ring, so it boomerangs out to the audience, and the audience sends the energy right back before it heads out of the ring and back to the audience again,” said production manager Jason Gibson.
Not to be missed is the free preshow offered one hour before each of the seven scheduled performances. Ticket holders can get to the show in advance and meet the performers, as well as test their own circus performance skills, including learning to juggle and walk a smaller version of the trapeze.
Peltonen says the preshow is one of his favorite things.
“We give autographs and people ask about what we’re doing,” he said. “It’s nice because we can share a few words, and when they see the show, they feel like they know the performers.”
Gibson said getting that close connection before the show adds to the audience’s appreciation.
“We have great, great talent from all over the world,” he said. “People love it, and they can see our performers are having a great time out there.”
MARTTI PELTONEN
The crossbow artist signed on with Ringling Brothers in December 2007.
Q: Describe your act. A: I have eight crossbows, and they all shoot each other. The first one hits the trigger of the second one, the second one hits the trigger of the third one and so on till the last shoots the apple above my head. It’s like William Tell.
Q: Where did it come from? A: I developed it myself. I loved to shoot when I was young and learned how to shoot a rifle in the Army. When I got out of the Army, I joined the Circus Finlandia and took five years to develop this crossbow act before I started performing it.
Q: Have you ever shot yourself? A: Well, I got a new hairline once. And that happened during a show, not during practice.
Q: What’s the trickiest part of your act? A: Trying to stay calm and focusing on what I’m doing.
Q: What kind of response do you get? A: The circus people respect the act because there aren’t many other acts like it. People who come to see the act are usually amazed.
JASMIN CASTRO
This tightrope walker is a third-generation circus performer. She started with Ringling Brothers in 2002.
Q: What’s the most frightening part of your act? A: I’m feet in the air with no net underneath, so different things are scary on different days. But the end trick, where I have to do a handstand on top of my husband and our partner, who are on bikes, puts me about 30 feet up in the air — upside down. That makes it a little scary.
Q: What new acts will you add this year? A: Our partner, William Correa, and I go out on the rope, and my husband hops over both of us. Then he jumps rope and really gets the crowd going by pretending to fall. Every day is different. It’s funny to see the reaction of the people.
Q: How long are you on the road? A: Eleven months out of the year. Q: Does it get tiring?
Q: Do you want your daughter to join the circus? A: She’s 3 years old and loves the circus life. It’s exciting for her. But we want her to go to school and get a nice little career. Then she can decide.
Q: If you hadn’t gone into circus performing, what would you have wanted to do? A: Have an office job with a computer and paperwork. It’s something I’ve wanted since I was a little girl. I used to work in the ticket booth taking tickets and organizing files. I do all of our paperwork for my group and enjoy that.
Q: What special equipment do you use? A: The wire is just 5/8-inch thick, so we have special shoes made for it.
Q: What kind of training did you get to learn to walk the wire? A: My father would make us practice a lot when I was young. He’d have us sitting, standing and walking back and forth to build confidence on the wire.
VICENTA PAGES
A third-generation circus performer, this tiger trainer started her Ringling Bros. career in 2006.
Q: With the recent attacks at the San Francisco Zoo, what precautions do you take to make sure the audience is safe? A: My schedule’s so busy I really don’t have time to keep up with the news. But trainers have a bond with their animals unlike zoos. We have a bond with them inside and outside the ring. They respect me, and I am the one who sets the mood and the attitude.
Q: At 22 you’re young for an animal trainer. Do you think that works for you or against you? A: In my case, it works for me because I grew up around animals. It’s not something I decided to jump into at a moment’s notice, so it wasn’t a big deal when I decided to start working with tigers. When I was younger, I worked with ponies and horses.
Q: Do the tigers have some tricks up their sleeves that still surprise you? A: I learn something new from them every day. But with the amount of time I spend with them, I have to know what they are thinking. And they know what I’m thinking. Sometimes I don’t have to say anything. They just look at me and know what to do.
Q: How long does it take to train the average tiger? A: Every one is different. Some can learn in one day; others may take six months to a year.
Q: What’s the most difficult thing to teach them? A: It depends on the tiger. They’re all different. But what a lot of people don’t know is the things they do in the ring are maneuvers they do naturally in the wild, like walk on two legs, lie down, roll over.
