Flying motorcycles, fire-breathing stilt walkers and a roller-skating troupe are about to take over Historic Crew Stadium as UniverSoul Circus rolls its big top back into Columbus. The production, called “We All Belong,” opens Thursday and runs through Nov. 8, bringing an all-star cast and high-energy circus entertainment to the venue at One Black and Gold Blvd.
The engagement marks another Columbus run for UniverSoul Circus, which is known for blending traditional big-top thrills with music, dance and cultural influences, according to WSYX3. Donald “N.O.” Long serves as ringmaster for the production, which features an elite roller skating troupe, audience dance parties, and the kind of interactive moments the circus has built its reputation on. As reported by 10TV, the show draws on influences from the Harlem Renaissance, Motown and hip-hop culture, folding those touchstones into its acrobatics and stunt work.
What's Under the Big Top
The Columbus lineup leans heavily on spectacle: flying motorcycles, an Ethiopian pole act, aerial performances, acrobatics and that high-energy roller-skating troupe all feature in the show, per Columbus on the Cheap. Fire-breathing stilt walkers round out the stunt roster, and 10TV notes the show also weaves in interactive performances designed to pull the crowd into the action rather than just watch from the stands.
Audience participation is baked into the format. Columbus on the Cheap reports that guests may find themselves dancing in the aisles, singing karaoke or interacting directly with performers throughout the show — a format the touring production has leaned into at stops beyond Columbus. The circus bills the whole experience as a family-friendly mix of daring stunts, music and dance pulled from cultures around the world.
A Message Built Into the Show
Beyond the stunts, “We All Belong” carries a theme its producers describe as central to the production: that people from different backgrounds share more in common than they realize. At the Detroit stop of the tour, which ran through Oct. 25 across from The Aretha, original performer Zeke put the idea plainly, saying, “Even though we're from different cultures and different continents, we all have more in common than we have differences,” according to ClickOnDetroit. UniverSoul Circus has described the broader goal as using music, movement, laughter, culture and human connection to blur the lines between audiences, a framing echoed in coverage of the production's Indianapolis run by the Indianapolis Recorder.
That Indianapolis engagement, held at Lafayette Square Mall from Sept. 17 through Sept. 27, featured an Ethiopian vertical-pole routine, a Mongolian-Ethiopian aerial lyra duo called the Morning Doves, and the Soul Skaters roller-skating troupe as part of its 2026 international lineup, per the same outlet's reporting. Detroit's version of the show, meanwhile, introduced roller-skating acrobats, an aerialist who spins suspended by her neck, and motorcycle riders launching across a 60-foot gap inside the tent, with select seats there priced at $25.
Beyond the Tent
UniverSoul Circus performers are also set to make pop-up appearances around Columbus as part of what 10TV describes as a “The City is the Stage” initiative, extending the circus's presence beyond the stadium gates during its run. The circus traces its roots back three decades: UniverSoul Circus was founded in Atlanta in 1994 by Cedric Walker, according to Columbus on the Cheap, and Detroit has remained part of its national touring circuit since the show went national 32 years ago, ClickOnDetroit reports.
Tickets for the Columbus shows went on sale Oct. 2 through universoulcircus.com, Columbus on the Cheap reports, and are also available through Ticketmaster and the UniverSoul Circus box office at the venue. Performances run at Historic Crew Stadium from Thursday through Nov. 8.
