The Circus of Children and Not-So-Children: Movement, Magic, and Community in San Pancho, Nayarit.

When Performing Arts Are Also an Act of Resistance.

"The Sky Is the Limit."

What happens when you combine acrobatics, dance, theater, live music, hula, drums, laughter, teamwork, and resilience?

The result is not just a multidisciplinary performance, but a transformative experience that reminds us of the body’s power as a tool for expression, healing, and community.

The Collective Culture of San Pancho, Where Art Becomes Transformation.

San Francisco, Nayarit — affectionately known as San Pancho — is not only about beaches and golden sunsets; it is also the birthplace of one of the region’s most inspiring community projects: El Circo de los Niños. Founded in 2011 by Gilles Ste-Croix, co-founder of Cirque du Soleil, and his wife Monique Voyer, this circus is unlike any other.

There are no animals or commercial shows here — only children, teenagers, and young people exploring their bodies, voices, and creativity through acrobatics, performance, theater, dance, juggling, and music.

What began as a community workshop has grown into a true school of circus arts, nurturing talent, discipline, and self-esteem. In every rehearsal and every performance, values like teamwork, resilience, and self-confidence are cultivated.

Beyond the stage, the circus is a tool for social transformation — a safe space where children and youth feel seen, supported, and empowered.

The shows they put on each year rival any professional production: the result of months of collective effort, of lights shining to tell stories, of bodies flying — and hearts soaring. This circus proudly waves a cultural flag, and in every performance, you can feel the echo of a community that believes in its next generations.

On the evening of Saturday, June 18 in San Francisco, Nayarit (San Pancho), a benefit show was held for El Circo de los Niños, a collective that had recently suffered a theft that left them with almost nothing — just days before their annual end-of-season performance.

But this was no reason to dim the circus soul of its artists and acrobats.

With open workshops for the community, this collective has built a place of connection and growth through the performing arts: bodies that tell stories, emotions in motion, and a community held together by art.Contemporary circus — unlike traditional circus — avoids the use of animals and focuses on the human element. Bodies that fly, leap, spin, and move us, brought to life by set design, costumes, and a narrative born from the deepest places within.

Grassroots Culture: The Value That Often Goes Unseen

In a world where art is often seen as a luxury or a hobby, grassroots cultural spaces raise their voices to remind us that they are also about work, local economies, the creation of critical public spaces, and cultural diversity.Every performance involves countless unpaid rehearsal hours, personal resources, collective effort, and deep passion.Supporting this kind of project isn’t charity — it’s an investment in a way of creating culture from the ground up, with the purpose of bringing younger generations closer to a different kind of development, one deeply rooted in the arts and culture.

A Night of Warmth, Sweet Treats, and Emotions Floating in the Air

With a donation of 100 pesos per ticket, guests also enjoyed a playful soda fountain stand where they could pick up popcorn, candy, and refreshing drinks — a sweet relief from San Pancho’s tropical heat.

Soon, the space was filled with anticipation: an attentive, organized audience, eager for the show to begin.

"Precise and Subtle Movements That Lift You Up" — El Circo de los Niños

The night began with a delicate performance by the aerial team. Dressed in white shirts — which we might interpret as the costume that hides the stiffness and routine of a hectic daily life, often preventing us from truly enjoying the body and movement as forms of expression — the artists danced, preparing their bodies with a subtle warm-up dance. This was necessary to stretch and get ready to climb the hoops and float in the air with movements that embodied both strength and feminine sensitivity.

A dance balancing bodily control with poetic grace.

The key to breaking the cycle... Resilience.

Soft lights, a young artist on crutches appeared, entering with a shy smile, somewhat embarrassed and nervous, carrying a sadness and frustration spilled from her injured body. However, this was no excuse to withhold a performance accompanied by an inspiring theatrical monologue, which immersed us in the introspection of the feelings caused by motor impairment in an artist’s body.

This act left us reflecting with deep empathy on how powerful and beautiful the body-machine is as the foundation of the human being. When it falls ill, stress can drag us into a hole or a mental block of overthinking that sabotages ourselves and limits us from finding a way out. It causes us to forget our own human vulnerability, resilience, and how the body can become self-healing — a tool of expression and therapy.

By connecting with the body and the power within you, courage and resistance resurface, giving rise to a different creativity that does not paralyze us.

Adán Cano and the Language of the Hoop.

Independent artist Adán Cano hypnotized the audience with his performance — a blend of contemporary dance with clean, subtle flexibility movements that balanced the intensity and strong pace of his presentation with his artistic tool of power: the hula hoop.

He transformed the room into a vibration full of precision, freedom, fire, and stage sensitivity. His performance was a journey of passion, technique, and soul — the natural flow of a performer deeply connected to his purpose.

His energy filled the space, reminding us that art is also joy, the delight of play in motion, and total surrender that fills the soul.

Drums, Vibrations, and the Voice of the Community

The lighting — red lights of strength and presence mixed with hints of mysterious blue — welcomed a powerful performance filled with passion and spirit from the dancers and their rhythmic heartbeats, accompanied by the roar of the drums that undoubtedly injected immense energy into everyone present.

A collective vibration, a shared heartbeat. Each drumbeat felt like a roar of community strength, a fury transformed into movement where dancing with the heart and making it smile can move the world.

The event closed with a performance by the young acrobats — boys and girls aged 6 to 16 — showcasing all that hard work can sow in a generation where movement and the arts are crucial for optimal mental, physical, social, and emotional development. Discipline and perseverance can turn what seems impossible into something achievable, breaking mental limits for children and teenagers. Their jumps, figures, and movements were a powerful reminder of the value of these spaces as nurseries of creativity, confidence, and collaboration.

Supporting Local Is Believing in the Future

Projects like El Circo de los Niños not only need to be seen—they must be shared, valued, and sustained. They are initiatives that promote emotional health, creativity, free expression, and community cohesion.

Because when art is born from the grassroots and sustained with love, work, and self-management, it becomes a true tool for social transformation.

Supporting contemporary circus is also supporting childhood, art, community, and hope for a society striving for better social and cultural coexistence—something the world urgently needs.