Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey doesn’t have to worry about competition from Circo Mexican, a family-run enterprise in Mexico.
Aaron Schock’s documentary “Circo” takes viewers behind the scenes of this one-tent circus, which travels the back roads of Mexico, never staying in one town for more than two days. But times are tough for this and other small-time circuses.
Circo Mexico has been run by the Ponce family since the 19th century. Today’s boss is ringmaster Tino Ponce, whose wife, four young children and brother all work for the show.
The kids can’t read or write, but they can do high-wire stunts with the best of them.
Just how long the hardworking family can keep the business going is unclear. People aren’t going to circuses the way they used to, and Tino’s wife longs for a less nomadic existence.
“Circo” is more like “The Smallest Show on Earth” than “The Greatest Show on Earth,” the 1952 Oscar winner, but it does provide a look at a unique family and a disappearing way of life.