focused primarily on technique and the individual acts, by 1997 or 1998 the school began to emphasize the artistic side of performances, including integrating those acts into Cirque du Soleil-style narratives. Holiday shows were introduced beginning in 2020 after the planned summer show that year was cancelled on account of the COVID-19 pandemic. The school also hosts an annual gala in late autumn that includes portions of the year's earlier summer performance. Circus Juventas does not utilize animal acts in its shows. Big top summer shows 2001: Mythos, a production dealing with Greek mythology was performed not only in Circus Juventas's newly opened permanent big top facility but also at the Minnesota State Capitol on New Year's Eve, 2001. 2002: Cirque Napoleon, a show that delved into the history of circus, taking place in a French circus in 1859 and honoring Jules Léotard, an early trapeze artist. 2003: Taroq, a production set in Morocco following four traveling nomads on a quest to determine the meaning of life. 2004: Swash, a pirate-themed performance that entailed a quest for lost treasure. 2005: Dyrnwych, a production that included "an amalgam of fairy-tale types, with wicked hag witches, trolls, forest spirits, and warrior women." 2006: Pazzanni, a retelling of the story of Cinderella, inspired by 1500s Venetian carnivales and featuring masks designed by the maskmaker responsible for those used in the 1999 film Eyes Wide Shut. 2007: Atlanticus, a performance set under the oceans in the domain of Poseidon. 2008: RavensManor, a haunted house-themed show, based loosely on the Haunted Mansion ride located in Disneyland. RavensManors story, set in New Orleans, included a tragic romance and zombies. 2009: Yulong: The Jade Dragon (sometimes shortened to Yulong), a presentation derived from Chinese legendary and circus traditions. Produced in collaboration with the Chinese American Association of Minnesota, the show spotlighted three Taiwanese guest artists and included an emphasis on Chinese circus acts such as Chinese pole and hoop diving. 2010: Sawdust, a performance evoking the traditions of historic American circuses. Special guests in the show were veteran circus performers Willie Edleston and Tony Steele who played slightly fictionalized versions of themselves. 2011: Grimm—Happily Ever After! (sometimes shortened to Grimm), a show retelling a number of the Brothers Grimm's fairy tales. Characters included Rapunzel, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Snow White, and the Frog Prince. 2012: Showdown, a Wild West-themed show set in the