Nineteenth-century circus owner P.T. Barnum had an enterprising spirit, silver tongue, and anything-goes approach to advertising—he allegedly coined the phrase “There’s a sucker born every minute.” In honor of the showman’s business acumen, here are some numbers to consider. 100,000: The number of pounds of pachyderm on display in Barnum’s FUNundrum!. 65: The miles-per-hour that seven bikers in the Spherical Miracle act will be speeding their motorcycles around a 16-foot-diameter steel globe. 30: How many feet above the ground performer Andrea Ayala-Raffo will hangs from a steel cable—suspended by her hair. Zero: That’s what you’ll feel like if you miss this spectacle. And should a phobia of clowns, a distaste for cotton candy, or some other lame excuse make you doubt the circus’s appeal, consider another Barnum quote: “More persons, on the whole, are humbugged by believing in nothing than by believing too much.” REBECCA COHEN

Aug. 26-28, 7:30 p.m., 2010