SUMTER, S.C. — You can find clowns, jugglers, aerialists, ponies, choo-choo trains and more now that the circus has come to Sumter.
The Zerbini Family Circus is in town at the Sumter Fair Grounds as it makes stops around the country. As Bardo Garcia explains, a lot of work goes into making this happen.
"The circus is not a job, it's a life," Garcia said.
Garcia is an eighth-generation circus performer who moved to the United States from Mexico 40 years ago. Now, he works as the ringmaster for the Zerbini Family Circus, wearing the jacket he grew up watching his father perform in.
Garcia said he started out as a circus "daredevil" riding motorcycles and doing stunts before he met his wife, an aerialist. Now, they both perform along with two of their three kids.
"I was standing down here watching him up in the air, you know. Almost 30 feet in the air, I'm watching him," Garcia explained about watching his son perform for the first time as a skywalker. "I got that emotion. Tears started falling, you know, tears started running… I'm getting emotional about it right now. It's just…you see your kids, like everybody else, you know, of course when we see them graduate, we're all so excited. But there's no more excitement than seeing them do something that you did."
Seeing audience members react to the show is invigorating, Garcia said.
"You come out here, and you do your thing. You turn around, you take your bow, and people go, 'Ahhh,' and you're, like, you get that tingling feeling all over, you know?" Garcia said. "Like, it's a feeling like when you do one of the rides at the Six Flags, you know, that drop? That feels awesome."
Garcia performs for people all across the country, like Sumter resident Sharon Smith, who plans to bring her daughter.
"I think it's pretty cool, especially for my youngest. She's never experienced that, so that will be something that she will want to see," Smith said. "The fair comes every year, not necessarily the circus. You don't hear too much about the circus; you hear about the fair every year, so it does give a little different options to take the kids to to enjoy."
As the popcorn pops and the cotton candy whirls, Garcia said it's all about creating fun for visitors like Noah Smith and Precious Paylor, who are bringing their kids King and Kalani.
"I've never been to the circus," Noah Smith said. "It'll be a good experience to experience with my children."
"I think that's very important honestly," Paylor added. "It gets people out and exploring and trying out new things, which is always a good thing. It's good to stay in the house every now and then but you know get out and have some fun."
"That's what it's all about," Garcia said. "Making them forget their troubles; having some fun with the family."
In total, Garcia said 38 people travel with the circus and 12 who perform.
After the two shows on Friday, the circus will be in Sumter one more day. On Saturday, shows start at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. before the circus will move on to Lancaster. Tickets are available online and at the door.