Big-Top Brothers

The name might not be familiar to circus laymen, but the Vazquez brothers are like the Ringlings of Mexico, founding a circus in 1969 with nothing but a handmade tarp and rented equipment and emerging as one of the most powerful entertainment brands in their country. After nearly four decades of wrestling alligators, bringing the first baby gorilla to Mexico, and staging elaborate productions of Star Wars, Tarzan, and Planet of the Apes, Circo Hermanos Vazquez finally made its Miami debut in 2008. Now operated by the third generation of the Vazquez clan, the circus will return to the Adrienne Arsht Center (1200 Biscayne Blvd., Miami) for a two-weekend run of its latest extravaganza, which includes animal trainers, ballet dancers, an ice show, clowns (who appear no less scary south of the border), gymnasts, trapeze artists, daredevils, jugglers, a “Pork Chop Revue” of adorable piglets, pole dancers (not that kind), and a seven-piece orchestra. Many of them dress like a ’50s sci-fi television costume designer’s idea of the future; luckily, it’s not a fashion show.
Fridays-Sundays. Starts: Sept. 6. Continues through Sept. 15, 2013