Bring on the animals
Published 10:12 pm Thursday, March 5, 2015
Gregory Popovich and his performing troupe of more than 30 animals will woof and meow their way into Suffolk this weekend for a show at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts.
Popovich’s antics alone are enough to entertain audiences, but once you put cats, dogs, birds and rodents in the mix, anything can happen.
Gregory Popovich, a fifth-generation circus performer, will bring his troupe of about 30 performing animals to Suffolk for a one-day show this Saturday. Cats and dogs are the main performers, but birds and rodents also play a role. (Submitted Image)
“It’s a great family show,” said Jackie Cherry, executive director of the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts. “He came from a heritage of jugglers and animal trainers. His mom was an animal trainer; his dad was a juggler.”
Popovich is a fifth-generation circus performer, and all of the animals used in the show have been rescued from shelters across the country.
“I honestly don’t know for sure what (animals) he’s bringing,” Cherry said. “My guesstimate would be everything from mice to doves. The animals are all rescue animals, so it’s a great story there.”
The animals perform acrobatic stunts, such as jumping through hoops, riding on each other’s backs, jumping rope, riding scooters, balancing on balls and more.
Human acrobats are also featured, and Popovich and his human companions perform balancing and juggling acts.
“Some of the juggling — what I would call old-fashioned that you would expect to see from years ago — he does a lot of that,” Cherry said.
Popovich has been featured on “The Tonight Show,” the “Late Show with David Letterman” and in “USA Today” and People magazine.
Saturday’s 7 p.m. show at the center, 110 W. Finney Ave., costs $25 per person. Call 923-2900 or visit www.suffolkcenter.org for tickets.
