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Aerialist Melany smiles as she whips around during The Great Pages Circus at the Mercer County Fairgrounds on Monday evening.
CELINA - The bright lights, dazzling costumes and larger-than-life, gravity-defying acts proved the perfect 90-minute escape from everyday life for more than 100 people gathered Monday at the Mercer County Fairgrounds.
The Great Pages Circus came to Celina to perform a total of four shows Monday and Tuesday. The acts included aerial acrobats, jugglers, camels, ponies, dogs, motorcycle daredevils, a trio of clowns, contortionists, tightwire dancers and balancing performers.
The crowd, ranging from toddlers to adults, roared with laughter Monday as the clowns danced and performed slapstick comedy.
The talented Juggler Pablo easily juggles three pins before attempting six.
Jugglers fearlessly tossed flaming batons into the air, acrobats twirled on metal rings and a contortionist shot an arrow with her feet, popping a balloon on target.
Two motorcyclists rode inside Earhart's Globe of Death, a metal ball.
Circus manager Jorge Pages, 27, said the performance Tuesday was better because of high audience participation.
Liam, 3, Lily, 10, and Elizabeth Hibner, 8, Coldwater, smile and laugh as they ride on a camel during intermission at The Great Pages Circus at the Mercer County Fairgrounds on Monday evening.
He's been in the industry all his life because the traveling circus based out of Sarasota, Florida, is a family affair.
"I wouldn't change it for the world, growing up with lions and tigers and elephants," he said. "My mom raised the little ones, bottle-fed them."
He said growing up on the road was "definitely different being in a spot every day because back when we had the original circus, we did seven towns a week. It was the most amazing, one-of-a-kind childhood you could think of. My cousins that grew up with me are some of my best friends to this day."
The circus previously featured elephants and tigers, but the family retired the animals because the company changed names following the death of his grandparents, Pages said. They donated the elephants to the Memphis Zoo and the tigers to a private sanctuary in Tennessee.
He said he wants to dispel the rumor that circus animals are not taken care of.
Although some individuals in the industry may not take care of their animals, Pages said his are well cared for and properly fed.
Frida strikes a finishing pose with her two camels.
Pages has been managing the circus for years but the business only recently re-opened following a bout of family illness and COVID. He said his grandfather died in 2017, and the circus closed indefinitely in 2019 following the death of his grandmother and then the COVID pandemic.
The family in 2021 started preparing to reactivate the show and brought it back on the road in 2022 under a different name.
Pages said he strives to provide a family-friendly, yet exciting atmosphere.
"That's our goal because if the kids enjoy it, they want to come back," he said. "We have people who say, 'Oh, we're bringing our kids' and their kids are coming to see us. They remember me and my cousin when we were little."
The acts are self-trained and most of the performers grew up in the circus business, Pages said.
Hula hoop artist Kelsie smiles towards the crowd during her performance for the Great Pages Circus at the Mercer County Fairgrounds on Monday evening.
Although the circus is a family business, not all of the acts are members of the Pages family, noted acrobat Kelsie Delmonte.
The performers are professionally trained, but they are always practicing, she said.
For example, when Pages and another motorcyclist rode around the globe on Monday, they reached out and held each other's hand.
Pages said he and the other performer just introduced that part a few days ago and decided to keep it in the act. The motorcycle act is his favorite part of the show, something he's been doing for 15 years.
Many of the acts are high stakes and involve great heights. There was a thin foam mat on top of the concrete inside the building, but there were no safety nets or wiring.
The circus travels nine months of the year and has been making stops in Celina for 15 years, Pages said.
To build the audience's experience, Pages said he wants to "dress the performance up" by adding more ceiling lights in addition to the exciting ring lights.
For more information and events, visit pagescircus.com.
One of three clowns, who call themselves the pastillitas, excites the crowd.
