Circo de los ninos

Photo Credit: Iris Cienfuegos

The hottest ticket in town each March in San Pancho are the live shows put on by Circo de los Ninos.  5 sold-out nights of acrobatic amazement from an incredibly brave group of children, who've trained for months to showcase their skills and tricks.  It all began 5 years ago when the founders of Ciruqe de Soleil came to live in San Pancho and started a circus school for kids, ranging in age from 8 to 18 years old.  You'll see a mix of local, Mexican children working along side kids from Canada and the U.S., as they train to master the trapeze, trampoline, hula hoops, tight rope, and more.  I was lucky to attend last year and it was easily the highlight of the season; such a magnificent, professional and fun show that rivaled any previous Cirque de Soleil show I've seen live.  I was lucky to score a ticket again this year to witness these 52 kids from all backgrounds performing together.  It's hard to wrap your head around the fact they aren't professionals, touring around selling out shows, but rather a group of dedicated, big-hearted kids living in a tiny town in Mexico. With the support of their families, community and hardworking volunteers they can learn the importance of focus, dedication, teamwork, and courage while having fun with friends.  New to this year's show was live music performed by the impressive Youth Orchestra from Puerto Vallarta.  The dozen or so kids mastered their instruments, and even sang, clapped, snapped and laughed along to create a beautiful, fun and catchy live score to the 20 or different acts in the show.  At one point, I was reminded of the ignorant rhetoric the 45th President so infamously spewed during election season, and all I could do was shake my head and hope that the word continues to spread about the beautiful communities that are found in Mexico.  Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, there are so many beautiful people here in Mexico and I'm grateful, yet again, to be able to experience such pure joy, brought straight to my heart by these kids and volunteers.  Gracias Cirquo de los Ninos, hats off to each of you!