Circus coming to Vandergrift

It’s not often a circus comes to town.

That’s why Carl Ward, owner of All Visions Media, was surprised when he came across an ad for the Zerbini Family Circus. Ward thought traveling circuses faded away decades ago.

Intrigued, he became involved with the production company that is bringing Zerbini’s circus to Vandergrift.

“It’s something that you don’t see,” Ward said. “And I actually feel that it’s going to be a really big success simply because of the fact that its something odd, you know, something that you don’t see every day.”

The family-owned and -operated circus has traveled the United States from New England to Florida since 1993, bringing a traditional tented show with a modern twist. Now, for the first time in decades, residents of Vandergrift will have the chance to see it.

“You’re not going to see lions and tigers or elephants, but we still have the tradition of being under the Big Top. We do still have animals in our show, like horses and miniature donkeys, but most of our performances are our acrobats and aerialists,” said Melody Ramirez, the circus’ social media director.

”It’s a really fun experience. Whether you’re 4 or 100 years old, there’s something for everyone to enjoy under the big top.”

The Florida-based circus will come to Vandergrift’s Kennedy Park on Aug. 30. They’ll perform shows that day at 4 and 6 p.m.

Audiences can expect aerialists on silk chiffon, jugglers, balancing acts, pony tricks, the only miniature donkey act in the United States, car-robot transformations and more in each 90-minute show.

Despite not previously performing in Vandergrift, the circus is familiar with Pennsylvania, holding performances in several counties each year.

This year, they’ll perform in Erie, Clearfield, Columbia and Butler counties before their last Pennsylvania stop in Vandergrift.

The circus has been visiting some East Coast towns for years.

“We’ve been coming here for 12 years,” Ramirez said from a stop in Fonda, N.Y. “A lady said she used to bring her kids and now she’s going to bring her grandkids to the show. So, they’ve seen our performers grow up.

“It’s a really great experience, and we hope maybe in Vandergrift we can do that, too, and keep coming if the public likes the show. We can keep coming for many years to come.”