Filled with pasion and hope, milaros - or little miracles - are sacred objects one keeps in a special place or offers to a loved one. Often shaped corazones (hearts), these colorful offerings are made of embossed and painted tin foil, and are an ode to both the inventiveness of Mexican craftspeople and the spiritual vitality of Mexico. In a tribute to the art of speed juggling popular in Mexico, an artist manages to juggle seven pins at breakneck speeds. The pins whirl so fast they become a metallic blur just like the propellers of an airplane. The juggler engages in a dialogue with the marimba, a musical instrument typical of the Veracruz region in Eastern Mexico.

Our resident clown returns donned in a bathing suit ready to take a dip in the pool of water, but just as he’s ready to dive into the cenote, it magically disappears, leaving him high and dry. Now needing support to put his clothes back on, our tourist grabs onto one of the vines… which then falls free when tugged. Undaunted he tries another, but it too falls free after being tugged. And after trying a third, they all fall around him as if to say GET OUT OF HERE! He obliges. As he takes his leave, the hummingbirds storm the stage in a flurry of feathers and feet in a frenzied attempt to dry themselves (and the stage) off. Watching them slip and slide around is hilarious! Although, I’d recommend curtailing the stage jumps... injuries! (Keep an eye out for the playful couple; it’s a beak-tweaking good time!)

As soon as our resident fool is gone, the musicians spin up a jingle... quite literally... as the spotlight turns to a man in a horrible pair of pants (and a shirt to match) in the middle of the audience. This is Rudolf Janecek and he’s quickly juggling three silver clubs... matching the pace of the jingle the band is playing on the marimba. (The marimba, for the uninitiated, is a percussion instrument consisting of a set of wooden bars struck with mallets to produce musical tones. As such it is a type of idiophone, but with a more resonant and lower-pitched tessitura, or range, than a xylophone.) Then he tosses one forward, jumps on stage to catch it, and begins a highly energetic and fast-paced solo juggling routine to a song that, sadly, isn’t on the soundtrack. I say sadly because, although it’s just the musicians on marimbas, they do get a little help from the brass section, the deep and loud “brrrraaaaaaaaaaaam!” from the tuba is simply fabulous and I must have it.

Rudolf Janecek is the only juggler, who combines high speed juggling with acrobatic skills in an outrageous, breathtaking way. Performing up to 8 clubs he also jumps somersaults while throwing 3 clubs in the air. Being part of the new circus generation Rudy presents the classic juggling skills in modern style. The crowd loved him! When Rudolf catches his last club, a cascade of straw hats tumble from the heavens (a.k.a. are tossed on stage) in celebration for not only a job well done, but a performance well received! (It is, however, a weird moment that harkens back to the chickens in Corteo, which... are better left to the past. Especially since the performers then have to run around and collect the hats while the next act sets up.)