In this July 20, 2018 photo, people buy tickets to enter a show by the International Circus set up in the shantytown of Pro on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. The billboard at left reads in Spanish “Magic, illusion and fantasy show”. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 20, 2018 photo, juggler Alfredo Cordova performs with fire at the International Circus set up in the shantytown of Pro on the outskirts of in Lima, Peru. The mom-and-pop style spectacle is one of about a hundred remaining circuses that manage to eke out a living in an age of viral internet videos and cellphones. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 13, 2018 photo, taxi drivers pass La Panfila Circus tent set up in the shantytown of Villa El Salvador in Lima, Peru. Family circuses maintain much of the old-time traditions of the past: Clowns perform in makeup under tents with a traditional cone-shaped roof and a simple dirt stage. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, a woman with her baby waits for one of her daughters to arrive before entering the Tony Perejil circus tent, set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Tickets cost 6 Soles (2 dollars) for adults, and are half price for children. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, Santiago Astopilco puts on his clown make-up to play the part of “Vaguito” inside his tent at the Tony Perejil circus set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. These days, Lima's circus acts find themselves increasingly pinched for space and money. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, “Vaguito” the clown assists acrobat Brenda Aguila as she prepares to hang from her head, as spectators watch the Tony Perejil circus, set up in the shanty town of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. The circus owner, Jose Alvarez, said he remembers happier times in the 1980s, when his father filled their circus tent with people even though Peru was in the midst of an economic crisis and a war raged between the state and Sendero Luminoso guerrillas. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, Santiago Astopilco, dressed as his clown personality “Vaguito” poses for a portrait behind the Tony Perejil circus tent set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra, before the start of the show on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Circus workers earn a percentage of ticket sales, sell candy and hotdogs on sticks to make extra money, and travel year-round from town to town, with July being the high season in the capital. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 20, 2018 photo, equilibrist Gladys Melendez, the mother of a 2-year-old daughter, gets ready for the opening act at the International Circus set up in the shantytown of Pro on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. The mom-and-pop style spectacle is one of about a hundred remaining circuses that manage to eke out a living in an age of viral internet videos and cellphones. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018, photo, youths play soccer next to the Tony Perejil circus tent set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Urban expansion in the city of 10 million inhabitants makes it tough to find enough space to set up a tent in a centrally located neighborhood, while gangs of delinquents charge up to $10 a day for circuses to set up shop in depressed barrios. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 20, 2018 photo, a sign advertising the International Circus sits on a car parked on a main road in the shantytown of Pro on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. The small circus is one of about a hundred remaining circuses that manages to eke out a living despite waning public enthusiasm for clown and animal acts in an age of viral internet videos and cellphones. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, Catherine Barboza performs a balancing act before a few spectators inside the Tony Perejil circus tent set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Barboza, who cares for her very young son while living with the circus, is known as “Seal Woman”. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 20, 2018 photo, Joshep Balta, a clown named “Cachupito”, peers through the tent curtain to see how many people are waiting for the show, put on by the International Circus, set up in the shanty town of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Balta, a 12-year old clown whose parents work at the circus setting up and breaking down the encampment, was discovered by the circus two years ago when he was performing as a clown at street corners. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, goats named Nina and Carmecita stand leashed to the bleachers of the Tony Perejil circus, where they perform during circus acts, inside the tent set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. A 2011 law prohibits circuses from using wild animals in their shows. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, circus owner and clown Jose Alvarez talks into a speaker system to announce the soon-to-start opening act, as he sits under the circus tent set up in the shantytown of Puente Piedra on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. One night, Alvarez tallied the ticket sales for the circus named after his father and sighed when he realized they'd earned less than $40. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 20, 2018 photo, clowns Joshep Balta, or “Cachupito”, left, and Bryan Jara, or “Fideito Mix” wait to open their show at the International Circus set up in the shantytown of Pro on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Circus workers say the word 'clown' is used incorrectly in Peru, and understood as a pejorative. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)





In this July 8, 2018 photo, homes in the Puente Piedra shantytown light up the landscape around the Tony Perejil circus set up on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. The circus' owner Jose Alvarez, a 52-year-old businessman, said “Lima is lousy” for his circus, and that he'll move it north toward Peru's border with Ecuador. (Photo by Martin Mejia/AP Photo)