ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – A Broadway-style circus returns to St. Augustine just in time for the holidays.
The Venardos Circus is back for the sixth year in a row with a brand-new tent at the Amphitheater.
It’s an experience that organizers say will create memories that will last a lifetime.
Founder and Ringmaster Kevin Venardos created the circus in 2014 as a relatively small operation.
Nearly 10 years later, Venardos says the experience has taken him and his performers to dozens of cities nationwide with the crew traveling 40 weeks out of the year.
“That inspiration to have something for myself has faded and taken a way back seat to the much greater joy, which is helping create opportunities for the other performers and building communities in all these places we visit,” Venardos said.
The circus doesn’t include animals, but organizers say people will be entertained from beginning to end with acrobats, aerial acts, jugglers, hand-to-hand balancing acts and more.
The Acosta Brothers even let us get in on their act ahead of opening night (watch the video at the top of this article for more).
Venardos said no seat is more than 20 feet from the stage, so everyone has a good view inside the tent.
“Because it’s so intimate, you actually feel like you’re part of the show. You actually feel it happening all around you, but that you are actually in the show, which is something I find people really respond to and they really love about this experience,” he said.
He hopes people will enjoy a show that started as just a dream.
“If they lead by first believing and getting out there, you start to attract people that want to be part of that dream with you. I hope that when people see this, that some part of this stays in their brain and makes them smile to know that great things can still grow here,” Venardos said.
The Venardos Circus is in town until New Year’s Day at the St. Augustine Amphitheater. Go to venardoscircus.com for tickets.