Many youngsters dream of a life in the circus, entranced by the thought of daredevil stunts, cheering and constant travel.
But for Russian Gennady Pekulin, there was never really any option but to sign up for a life in the big top.
The 25-year-old was introduced to the circus when he was just a year old - both his mother and father were performers - so a lifestyle that seems exotic to most of us is more or less all he has ever known.
"It's interesting because each month you change where you stay. You meet new people and you see new cities and countries. You learn more than if you just stayed in one place," he says.
Pekulin, a juggler and unicycle rider, is one of about two dozen circus artistes drafted in to perform in the European Circus, which is based in a 2,000-seater big top on Al Riqqa Street for the duration of Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF).
Other performers - the youngest is just 12 years old - are from Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Korea and Argentina.
Their acts are as diverse as their backgrounds.
There are all the favourites expected of a circus such as jugglers keeping six metal hoops in the air, clowns threatening to drop dozens of eggs on the audience and acrobats whose high-wire antics leave the audience gasping.
But as well as these accomplished performers, the European Circus also has plenty of offbeat acts of the kind only seen once in a while.
There is a lady who belly dances with a gigantic yellow snake, poodles that walk on two legs and pigeons that can be thrown from one person to another like tennis balls.
Perhaps the most memorable act is one based on an old classic of the magician's repertoire - the cutting in half of a woman trapped in a box.
The European Circus's take on this illusional favourite is unique.
Once the chainsaw has done its work and the two halves separate, the section containing the legs proceeds to go for a stroll around the arena, leaving the audience in stunned silence.
Pekulin normally lives in about 12 different cities a year, each for about a month. He is a university graduate but decided to return to circus life after spending several years in Moscow studying.
Despite the attractions, he says no one should imagine that life in the circus is easy. He says it is hard work and at times dangerous.
The European Circus has shows at 6 and 9pm daily and tickets cost between Dh40 and Dh75.
Gulf News
