High-flying circus acts come to town for sold-out Zhuhai festival

The circus has come to the southern city of Zhuhai, as some 25 top acrobatic troupes from 18 countries take part in the Fourth China International Circus Festival.

An opening ceremony on Thursday marked the start of the festival, which runs for a week.

Tickets sold out weeks before the event in the coastal Guangdong city, Yangcheng Evening Post reported on Sunday.

Award-winning performers at the festival include the Pellegrini Brothers from Italy, One Man’s Dream from Ukraine, Tact from Sweden and magician Kevin James, from America’s Got Talent.

“My kid loves the circus. We came to the festival last year, too – and we’ll come back every November,” one festival-goer, surnamed Zhang, from the nearby city of Guangzhou told the newspaper.

As well as the international acts, there are six troupes of acrobats from China who will juggle diabolo, or Chinese yo-yos, perform the traditional art of face-changing, as well as balancing acts involving chairs and umbrellas.

“These days we pay more attention to the coordination and integration of [various elements of circus] skills and art, which is the general trend in acrobatics,” Bian Faji, president of the China Acrobats Association, was quoted as saying.