Most Jamaicans familiar with the Suárez Brothers Circus over the years are aware that it is a traditional family business which has lasted 152 years and is still going strong.
Currently, the business is managed by Ivan Suárez Sr, but if you were to visit the grounds of the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre in St Andrew where their gigantic blue and white striped tent was pitched last week, you will see his 14-year-old son, Ivan Suárez Jr, in action and with a walkie-talkie in hand, especially during the show’s proceedings.
The confident, hardworking and determined teenage Suárez Jr, who represents the sixth and future generation of the circus business, told The Sunday Gleaner during an interview at the current circus set up on the grounds of the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre on Friday that he already knows exactly who his market is and how to get their attention.
“The circus is already really attractive, [but I] believe way more social media has to be [involved], because I feel like the people we should be targeting are more of the young people [who use social media] because the older persons want to come because they’ve been to this circus before, all the times we were in Jamaica, but next time we come to Jamaica… [the] new generation [are] the people [we] have to see about [getting to] the circus too, so I feel like social media is a new way to target the people,” Suárez Jr, who has been the manager of the sound and lighting for the Suárez Brothers Circus for the past three years, told Lifestyle.
He is also confident that when the time comes for him to take over from his dad, he will be very much ready, and able to continue the rich family heritage.
“It’s good because it’s a family tradition, so I am happy that I’m going to be able to run it. It’s good because it’s a circus and you get to entertain the people and it feels good when you see the people happy [and] laughing,” Suárez Jr said.
Becoming the controller for sound and lighting was a responsibility he stepped into after the departure of a former employee.
“I’m still not specialised. I’m still learning. In the pandemic, we had a guy who was doing the lighting and the sound, and then he had some problems with his family. He needed to go back to his city and we were in Brazil [at the time], and he was from some city in Brazil and we were in another one, and he needed to go back, so he taught me how to do it and I started doing it and it went on,” he explained.
With regard to school and training, Suárez Jr is currently homeschooled, but often enrols in a special school in whatever country he is in for the circus. In Jamaica, his family has already identified a school for him to be enrolled in while here for the next five weeks.
Suárez Jr, who is multilingual, says his favourite subject is geography because it helps him better understand the world.
“I know almost all the countries in the world!” he shared joyfully while explaining why he likes the subject.
While in Jamaica, Suárez Jr says he is also excited to see the island, especially the beaches.
“It’s nice. It’s a nice place,” he said.
His father is very proud that his son sees the business as one worth investing in and continuing, even as the circus takes on an adjusted format locally with no animals a part of the show.
Suaréz Sr said at the media launch event on Thursday evening at the Suárez Brothers Circus’ tent that new regulations and restrictions have made it extremely difficult to transport animals to countries from his homeland in Mexico.
“The animals have always been a part of the circus family, but the world has changed a lot which makes it hard for animals to move in the country. Today, it’s something that is almost impossible to move live animals, and that is something that we’ve tried to change and maintain the tradition,” Suárez Sr said.
“People like to see live animals and the animals have always been a part of the family, and we always train them and they understand what the [steps] they have to do, who is the person handling them, the person feeding them, so they are growing up with that,” he said. Suárez Sr also noted the cost associated with feeding and training the animals.
The biggest circus from Mexico, the Suárez Brothers Circus will be in Jamaica for the next five weeks leading up to Christmas and will include nightly shows with a signature clown, jugglers, acrobats, trapeze artists, a fantastic pendulum and The Great Globe of Death.
The circus is also expected to move around the island to the towns and parishes of Montego Bay, St James; Ocho Rios, St Ann; Manchester, Mandeville; and Black River in St Elizabeth.
The Suárez Brothers Circus, founded in 1872 in Mexico, has been a popular touring circus known for its animals and fanfare for decades. Its management has been passed down from generation to generation.