Caceres, 45, is an aerial trapeze performer and the troupe leader of The Flying Caceres, a group his father created in 1982 for previous iterations of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey shows. Based in Florida, Caceres is known as the first flyer ever to perform both a triple and a triple-and-a-half somersault in the same act.
When his father retired in 2006, Caceres took over this uncommon family business and today is helping coordinate and choreograph the next era of jaw-dropping spectacles that will excite and awe audiences. Heres a look at how he makes this unique career path work for him.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Some people run away to the circus, but for you, its home. What is it like to have a job thats also sort of a family legacy?
It was always my dream as a child to work at The Greatest Show on Earth. My father worked here in the late 70s, early 80s, and I always wanted to follow in his footsteps.
My father did actually run away to the circus. Hes the cliché. He was born in Columbia, South America, and a circus played in his little town. It really captivated himthey had flying trapeze there. At first, he worked as someone who helped set up and take the show as it traveled. Later on, he convinced the people that if he set up all their equipment, they could let him try the trapeze. So he ended up doing most of the work in exchange for training. Thanks to that, Im here now.
Image courtesy of George Caceres
You started training on the flying trapeze really young. But how do you sustain that childhood joy and passion and turn it into a career?
I was about 5 years old when I started to practice some trapeze. But there was no joy at the beginning. When youre that young, you dont truly know whats going on around you. I could have done something else, couldve taken a different path. This is the path I chose, but I consciously chose that later in life. I love what I do.
Its not a highly lucrative profession. [Editors note: The average salary in the U.S. for a trapeze performer is roughly $39,000.] Nothing really in the circus is. It comes from the heart, it really is an artistic choice. When people pay to sit down and watch a show at the circus, at Ringling, the performers are really doing it for you, for the kids and their smiles.
I love matinee shows because the kids are so stoked to be there. Theyre the best audience. Youre like superheroes. Spidermans on TV, but actually seeing somebody flying from one side of an arena to the other in real life, its really, really special. And if you miss, the kids love it. If you dont miss, they love it. Theyre just happy to be there.
How do people typically get into a career as a trapeze performer?
Its changed. When I was learning, there were very few schools that taught trapeze. Some of the first schools were in Canada. Now, there are actually more schools around the world that teach trapeze than there are actually shows. Theyre everywhere. You throw a rock, youre gonna hit somebody just out of school.
What you really need is just to apply yourself. You dont need a degree or anything. Just be brave and put in the work. Because it is hard. Youre gonna feel like quitting many, many times before you get to that point where like, well, Im good at this. Youre not going to be for a really long time. So dont quit.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Its just like anyone else at first: I wake up, I have coffee. If its a Saturdaymost circuses have three shows on SaturdayI have to wake up a little bit earlier than normal. To do a show in the morning requires extra planning. You have to stretch and warm up more than usual. Believe it or not, if you do this later on in the day, its a couple of degrees easier.
First of all, you need to be awake., so you cant just roll out of bed. So you need to wake up, walk around, talk, and try to stretch. To do flying trapeze, you also need strength. You need to eat too, but not too much because then you dont feel well.
Typically I do the first show, then I have the afternoon off. Really, its just like anyone elseI suppose I could do whatever. But of course you cant consume alcohol. Then you go back for the later shows. After the shows, I perhaps have a bad habit as a performerand this is probably not just true for circus performersof eating late. Theres always some activity after the show, so usually around 10 p.m. or 11 p.m., I have a meal. Its really when you shouldnt be eating, but youre hungry because youve just worked all day.
John M. HellerGetty Images
You typically perform in a troupedoes that take being coworkers to a whole new level?
We depend on one another and not just in a clerical way, but in a very physical way. Were doing this at 40 feet above the floor. Its not like youre playing basketball; this is different. Were talking about lives. So there is a tighter bond there. There is a more unusual dynamic there than there is in the office, for sure.
There is a trust course, and they have to earn that trust. They cant break that trust. If someone shows up to work hungover, for example, thats bad.
The performers in the upcoming show are from different cultures. We have performers from Chile, Ecuador, America, France, and Brazil. So you dont necessarily speak exactly the same language. But were gonna get together late spring or early summer and start putting the pieces of the show together. Its gonna take some trial and error to figure it out.
Whats it like living on the road as the circus tours? Are there things youve learned that make it easier?
Coffee? This is gonna be a new experience for me. Even though Ive been in the game for a long time, I havent done the plane thing. I havent lived in a hotel room. Now that The Greatest Show On Earth is out of the train, its also going to be a new experience for me. [Editors note: Historically, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus maintained train-based circus shows that traveled from venue to venue.]
How do you balance the health and athleticism required by this type of job?
I can no longer eat a pizza right before I go up. When youre 13, you could. Its true, you do have to take care of yourself a little bit better. I noticed that my body doesnt react as well to certain things or certain behaviors I had in the past and Ive had to cut back or change. Its only normal, I suppose. Any job with any kind of physicality is probably like thatyour body changes and you have to change what you put in it. I still enjoy everything, I just maybe enjoy it with more moderation.
What are the biggest misconceptions you run across being a trapeze performer?
Theres a couple. High wire is not the same as flying trapeze or vice versa. They are separate disciplines.
Its also not like the cartoons; you dont spin as many times as possible before someone catches you. I wish it was that easy. Everything on the trapeze has to be highly, highly trained, highly choreographed. Doing half a somersault more requires six months more training. Its incredible how misrepresented that aspect of it really is.
It looks easy. Ive actually been told that to my face: What you do is easy. Because I make it look easy. But its not. Thats where the training comes in. You do something so many times that you finesse it to a point where it really looks effortless. It takes many years of training. I know it looks sometimes easy, but thats the game, thats where the training comes into make it look, you know, fly.
Youre hard at work planning this latest act for Ringling, but where do you think youll be in five or 10 years?
Thats the ultimate question, right? What do you want to do when you grow up? Id like to be involved, in some capacity, at The Greatest Show on Earth hopefully. If not, the circus world is a big world and well see. Ten years [is] still quite a ways off.
