Recruiting, training and production began in 1993. The first performance took place in 1994 in the parking lot of Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, a couple of years before the stadium closed and demolished the following year. The first season of operations brought formidable debt upon the organization. By 1997 the circus tour grew to 10 cities, 19 cities in 1999, 31 cities in 2000, and 32 cities in 2005. A tour of South Africa, the first international destination, was completed in 2001.