The Moscow Circus arrived in Bermuda for the Festival of Performing Arts with much fanfare and an array of spectacular acts.

Tickets were sold out within a week and in the lead-up to the first night on Friday, it seemed half of corporate Hamilton had snagged seats.

The circus is unlike an American one, which rely heavily on animals doing tricks. Instead it focuses on acts such as, juggling, acrobats and aerial straps although there was one act with a small dog.

Before heading, I was slightly concerned that the Ruth Seaton James Hall would be unable to meet the demands of a circus which focuses more on art and less on gags, but I was proven wrong.

The set design and music transported you somewhere else and the performances literally took your breath away. Or, as was the case for my mother and me, had you going 'ow!'. I should explain that my mother has had two back operations due to a herniated disk and my gymnastics career was sadly cut short due to my inability to do a simple backwalk-over, in layman's terms our backs don't bend!

So the sight of contortionist Elena Zavyalova bending her body in the most unnatural of positions had us clapping in delight while at the same time reeling in horror. And while Nikolay Danliv swung from the ceiling on aerial straps twisting and turning I immediately thought 'how beautiful', followed closely by 'his poor shoulders'.

The clowns were also a big hit, although Gerald Simons, CEO of Argus Insurance, did not seem too impressed when he was forced to join them in their first number the 'clowns' bell tunnel'. But eventually he got into the spirit of it and rang his bell with pride.

The only downsides of the evening were the audience and the finale. Friday night's performance was definitely the 'big shots' night as it seemed the who's who of the insurance and reinsurance world took up the first several rows. Politicians were there as well, as were the country club lot. All this meant, well, the atmosphere was a little staid.

While the show was wonderful, the performers had to encourage audience members to clap at times. I highly doubt this was the case for the day performances over the weekend for children. I can only imagine how electric the room would have been filled with mesmerised children giddy with anticipation.

The finale was also anti-climactic in that it was a skipping rope number. After aerial acrobatics and amazing hoola hoop numbers many in the audience did not seem to realise that this was in fact it, the last number of a great show. Having said that the night was a great treat and the festival organisers have to be congratulated for another wonderful selection.

After all not many small islands can boast hosting top performances from around the world every year. If the circus comes to town again grab a ticket and a child, you are sure to have a great time.