Circus coming to Cape Coral Nov. 21-23
The Big Top will soon come to life in Cape Coral as the Cole Bros. Circus of the Stars makes a three-day stop to entertain individuals of all ages for its 127th season.
The performances will be held from Nov. 21-23 for a 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. show each day, featuring Bengal tigers, elephants, camels, horses, llamas, dogs, along with many acrobatics and stunts.
Cape Coral is the second to last stop of the nine month season, which ends on Nov. 27 in Bonita Springs.
General admission tickets for the two-hour show is $19 for adults and $14 for children. Reserved and VIP seating is also available for an additional cost.
A $5 discount is provided for military personnel with their ID badge, along for those who purchase advance tickets. Advance tickets can be purchased at Pets Universe; Cape Coral City Hall; Cape Coral Youth Center and Four Freedoms Park.
After watching his dad perform in Ecuador for 45 years, Kellan Bermudez decided to come to America in 1997 to work for the Cole Bros. Circus.
The show changes every two to four years, he said which provides the performers with the opportunity to try out different acts. Currently Bermudez is a clown, which includes a comedy ladder stunt with his wife.
Four years ago he added an additional role for himself in the circus – the human cannonball.
“It is great,” Bermudez said about a childhood dream of flying like a superhero. “It is fun to see everybody when you fly in the air.”
With intense training, he said he has not had any accidents while he flies out of the cannon at 75 mph into a net 75 feet away.
Some of Bermudez’s family also performs in the circus with him, which includes his two brothers, wife and 8-year-old son.
“Everybody in my family has been in the circus,” the 36-year-old performer said.
His time with the circus has been a great experience because he has had the opportunity to meet people from around the world.
“I am glad to be here,” he said. “We have a great show … one of the oldest shows in America.”
Although his clown career began as a toddler at a family carnival in Atlanta, GA, Lee Andrews did not land a job with the Cole Bros. Circus until this year.
“I have been a clown for 18 years now,” Andrews said. “Hopefully, I can do it for a lot longer.”
Andrews said his grandmother made his first clown costume when he was 2 years old, which he still has hanging in his closet. He said he passes a lot of his old stuff on to younger clowns to ensure they have what they need in clowning.
“A young clown that enjoys doing clowning, I pass it on to them,” Andrews said.
Andrews was provided with the position of the Goodwill Ambassador this year. He turned 20 last month.
The Goodwill Ambassador, which was once known as the Advance Clown, promotes the circus before it comes to town through various public appearances.
“A week before everyone else gets here is when I get to town,” Andrews said.
He said being a clown has both been a life-long venture and passion of his.
“The most exciting part of my job is the fact that I can make a difference in someone’s life,” Andrews said. “To make them forget about the problems of what is going on in their life … that is a great feeling.”
He remembers receiving that call during a clown convention on a Wednesday to join the Cole Bros. Circus family. He said he missed being a part of a circus, so he gladly jumped on the job and he has not been sad about his decision since.
“I am very proud to be here,” he said about joining the Cole Bros. Circus family.
Andrews has been to approximately 150-160 cities this year, which only includes stops up and down the east coast. The traveling appeals to him because he is seeing stuff he would have only seen on TV, through pictures or at school.
“When I get to visit that destination in person, I can say I have been there,” Andrews said, adding that it is pretty cool to view the unknown.
This year the family show will feature a brand new Big Top, trucks and hard back seats for the viewers. There are no more bleacher seats.
“It is the same show, but has a new face,” Andrews said.
The tent, he said is at least 20 feet larger, which is much larger than they have had in years.
“I invite everybody out to the Cole Bros. Circus for two hours to become a part of our family,” Andrews said.