Francesco Caballero is determined to keep his family circus legacy afloat

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Francesco Caballero has been juggling a lot — quite literally.When he’s not tending to his online studies at the California Virtual Academies, the 13-year-old can be found in the circus ring — hurling bowling pins, straw hats, hollow rings and rubber balls high up in the air, all in one harmonious cycle.But the bright-eyed teen is also balancing something far greater: a legacy.

The rookie showman is proving his mettle as part of the Caballero Circus, a five-generation family of performers, by enchanting audiences with his charismatic stage presence and sharp coordination.“My family is a circus family.That’s what they did when they were kids and it just passed on to me,” said Francesco, hours before a Wednesday night performance in Santa Ana.Though Francesco is only a month into his journey as a traveling cast member, he pranced about the ring Wednesday with the confidence of a seasoned ringmaster.

For his act, the teen juggled up to five objects at a time; as a couple of stray balls fell to his side, he swiftly picked them up and tossed them into the air, as if it were part of the script all along.And, once the thrill wore off, Francesco marched into center stage with a small motorbike — enclosing himself in a chamber known as the “Globe of Death”: a mesh sphere where riders ramp their bikes using the power of centripetal force to loop around the Globe.He also played the trumpet.“In order to grow as a performer and to be better, you really have to be patient,” said Caballero.

“It’s not something that’s easy, that you’ll be better in like a week.”As boldly charismatic as Caballero appeared on stage, his path to performing in the family circus was hardly clear-cut.At the age of 3, he was diagnosed with leukemia: a cancer that causes the body to produce too many abnormal white blood cells.This made it difficult for his body to fight infections, car...