Gravity deflying jumps, mid-air double flips and balancing acts high above the ground. No, it’s not gymnasts training in Colorado Springs.
Ladies and gentlemen, the circus is in town.
Back in the Olympic City for the third time in as many years, the Do Portugal circus this month has been showcasing death-defying stunts under its blue and white tent filled with trapeze artists, aerial acrobats and even a fire juggler.
Its goal? To keep you on the edge of your seat, according to its 25-year-old ringmaster, Aldo Portugal.
“Whether you come alone with your partner, with your family, with your friends, whoever you come with, we want to have an experience where you are in disbelief of what is happening [on] stage,” Portugal said.
There are different moments of suspense throughout the nearly two-hour show. One act features a trapeze artist walking a tight rope high above the ground while balancing a long pole. He's also carrying another acrobat on his shoulders.
And it’s not uncommon for the artists to perform multiple types of acts either.
In addition to being ringmaster, Portugal is also an acrobat. His act includes balancing on his head while spinning rings around his legs high up in the air on a metal swing.
Acrobats with the Do Portugal Circus perform high jumps with a seesaw. 
A trapeze artist with the Do Portugal Circus rides a bicycle on a tight rope.
But in a spectacle filled with showstopping acts, Portugal said the most death-defying stunt involves three motorcyclists riding fast inside a round metal cage, commonly known as the Globe of Death.
“They are in sync,” Portugal said. “They don't even have to speak with each other. They make a little sound with a bike or a little movement with their hand and they know what's happening.”
Do Portugal–named after the family's surname, with no connection to the country of Portugal–started in Mexico before traveling to Central America. A few years ago, it started shows across the U.S.
Portugal grew up in the circus. He’s currently the 5th generation of circus performers in his family.
“You get addicted to [being] on a stage and to [getting] a reaction from the public and to take them to another place,” Portugal said. “Every time we go to a city, our plan is to take you out of the city [...] and transport you into something unique and with endless possibilities.”
And just like the show, the performers are also international. They hail from different countries, including England, the U.S., Mexico and Chile.
Portugal said he's happy to perform in the United States, and especially Colorado, where he marvels at the Rocky Mountains that serve as the backdrop for his tent. But he said he can “feel a bit of the roughness” in the current sentiment toward foreigners resulting from the hardline immigration policies from the Trump administration.
“The circus is, and it will always be culture,” Portugal said. “And if we're going to spread something, I want to spread that we all should embrace and share each other’s cultures instead of separate them. That's how we should be.”
The Do Portugal circus, which does not use animals in its shows, will keep its tent raised for a few more days this Memorial Day weekend before moving on to Greeley. Find showtimes here.
