The Great Benjamins Circus: coming and going

WASILLA — The Great Benjamins Circus came through town, sharing their eccentric charms and range of colorful skills with the Mat-Su Valley.

Monday was their second and final day at the Curtis D. Menard Sports Center parking lot and Wednesday is their last day in the Mat-Su before stopping through Anchorage and Valdez, then Canada and after that, home in Dallas, Texas, for a month break before touring the country all over again.

“We wouldn’t do it if we didn’t love it, and we love it,” Great Benjamins Circus co-owner and Stage Master, Jairo Ojeda said.

From high-flying acrobatics and fire breathing to face painting or just clowning around with Ravioly the clown, there seemed to be a little something for everyone in the audience on Monday.

“You can’t have a circus without a clown,” Ojeda said.

Walking into the tent, the music was more modern than perhaps expected, ranging from Lindsey Stirling, a dubstep violinist to classical covers of Disney songs like “Part of Your World” from the “Little Mermaid.” During one performance, there was even a dubstep remake of the “Afro Circus/I like to Move it” song from “Madagascar 3.”

“You gotta’ keep up with the times,” Ojeda said.

Ojeda’s wife, Amanda is aerial acrobat and she performed as none other than Ariel, from the “Little Mermaid” during her aerial performance. Her bright red hair gleamed in the light as the gracefully replaced the traditional silks with a fishing net, twirling high above the ground.

Ojeda said that they added the fishnet to a traditional routine. He said that every circus makes acts their own and they like to keep a balance between tradition and modern twists. He explained that this travelling circus is a family endeavor and was passed down to he and his brother, John Davenport, from their parents in 2015.

“Everyone makes their act their own,” Ojeda said.

Most of the current members were brought in through family ties. Gerson Siqueiros, better known by his clown name, Ravioly is a new hire who is used to making each act his own through improvisation. Ravioly has been an official clown for 11 years, starting when he was only 6 years old. He’s worked several circuses leading to the Great Benjamins Circus. He’s always loved the circus and said he will be involved with the circus “forever.”

“It’s a hard life but I love it,” Ravioly said.

He is currently in homeschool and plans to continue his education, aiming for a communications degree so he can learn all about media, from radio to television. His life goal is to establish his own television show as Ravioly the Clown.

Jose, or the “Great Cuevas” who’s in his 20s has been in the circus for four years and has different plans than his nearly 17-year-old counterpart. He is retiring from the circus once everyone makes it home in Texas. He will hang up his multifaceted skill set down to try out the open road instead of the ring for a living. He said that he will try out truck driving for a while and will eventually come back to the Benjamin Circus to visit or perhaps help out some.

The Great Cuevas showed the crowd a variety of talents from the “Russian Swing” and “Globe of Death” to several fire eating tricks like the “Volcano” and “the snake.”

“It catches the attention of the people,” he said.

For more information about the Great Benjamins Circus, find them on Facebook or visit their website at benjaminscircus.com.

Contact Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at Jacob.mann@fontiersman.com.