I fell in love with the circus when I was about four. It was Billy Smart’s Big Top, where I sat with my parents and brother on tiered wooden benches, eating candy floss, watching parabolas of delight unfurl on the trapeze, high-wire acts hover magically on tip-toe, acrobats build structure from chaos, and clowns colorfully spill across the sawdust. It is a love that has lasted, and I still feel the cold-water shiver of excitement whenever the circus comes to town. These stunning color…