A wide range of motion

A jubilant crowd cheered the Peking Acrobats on Sunday at the Alex Theatre as they jumped through hoops, juggled hats and balanced large vases and tables on their feet.

The acrobats donned bright, colorful costumes and executed balancing acts and gymnastics as Chinese folk music played on the eve of the Chinese New Year, the year of the ox.

The show opened with six girls waving red flags as acrobats dressed in lion costumes balanced themselves on a single step.

The acrobats, who were still wearing lion costumes, jumped onto a large ball, moved the ball with their feet and onto a seesaw.

Elias Cervantes and his family had seen the acrobats before at the Hollywood Bowl and loved the group’s act so much so that they decided to watch them perform again.

“They are really good,” Cervantes said. “If we know they are coming to town, we try to go.”

The Peking Acrobats show was the first ticketed event for the nonprofit Glendale Arts Assn., which generally hosts free events, said Elissa Glickman, Glendale Arts associate director.

The move to ticket the show was made to fund free concerts, artist and business development programs and a community arts website, as well as to create revenue for local businesses and restaurants, she said.

Tickets to the show, which the Glendale Arts and Downtown Glendale Merchants Assn. presented, ranged from $28 to $38, and about 1,000 tickets were sold.

“Given the economy, we are very fortunate this show has been doing really well,” Glickman said.

“This is a family-oriented event that people just keeping asking for,” Glickman said.

Valencia resident Erwin Velasco didn’t mind paying for a ticket to watch the acrobats, he said.

“I think the tickets were very reasonably priced,” he said.

Velasco called the acrobats’ performance “incredible.”

Northridge resident Jim LeQuesne always wanted to see the Peking Acrobats and finally got his chance Sunday.

“I never thought I would get to see them,” he said. “I have wanted to see them for decades.”

Thirty-two performers from ages 13 to 35 made up Sunday’s cast of acrobats, who have been on a national tour for four weeks, group production manager Steve Kirkland said.

After their act at the Alex Theatre, they were heading to New Mexico.

The acrobat show came into town at the perfect time, Steve Kuo said.

He and his family were going to celebrate the Chinese New Year at their Porter Ranch home after watching the show.

Kuo and his family were going to have a large feast of duck, beef and rice cakes in honor of the new year.

 VERONICA ROCHA covers public safety and the courts. She may be reached at (818) 637-3232 or by e-mail at veronica.rocha@latimes.com.