UNDER THE BIG TOP / Circo Hermanos Caballero / This is the real deal, a traditional circus with trapezes and clowns

Caption: Circo Hermanos Caballero Credit: Lane Fetching Photo: Lane Fetching

Reyhan Harmanci

Published 4:00 am, Thursday, July 6, 2006

When you go to Circo Hermanos Caballero, you should expect a few things, but Cirque du Soleil-style theatrics and Vegas production tricks won't be among them.

"You'll see a really traditional circus, with a flying trapeze, acrobats, jugglers, clowns, horses, camels, dogs ..." said Ruben Caballero, the ringmaster. "It's 100 percent traditional circus."

Caballero's circus, which he runs with his brother Luis Caballero, hails from Guadalajara, Mexico. He is sixth-generation circus stock; before forming their own circus about seven years ago, his family worked with the Ringling Bros. and Circus Circus in Las Vegas.

And his sons, Ruben III, age 7, and Marco Antonio, age 6, have joined the show. They are trapeze artists who also perform in a four-person motorcycle stunt where the bikes reach speeds of as high as 100 mph inside a 10-foot metal ball.

Caballero says that in addition to his own family's deep tradition in Mexico of circus work, much of the non-Caballero cast and crew have roots in the circus tradition. "Most of the Latin families have been born three, four, five generations into the circus," Caballero said. "It's not like other circuses, like the Chinese or Russians, where you go to school and learn and then join after school.

"I would say all of the Latin people in our circus come from three or four generations of circus."

What this means for the audience is, according to Caballero, a palpable love for the craft as well as intimate knowledge. Certainly, the performers' dedication is amazing: The Circus Caballero spends 11 months a year touring internationally. The two-hour performances are narrated in both Spanish and English, and they feature high-wire walkers, showgirls, gymnasts and clowns.

"The big difference is that we don't like what we do," Caballero says, with a showman's timing. "We love it. When you love what you're doing, it shows. Why would we change something that's working for us?"

The Circo Hermanos Caballero will be around the Bay Area for much of the summer. Check the Web site for scheduled performances. Today-Sun. it will be at the Sheriff's Posse Grounds, 395 Old Natividad Road, Salinas.