Sun., May 21, 2-4 p.m., $5-$10, Conkey Center for the Performing Arts, 501 W. Springfield Ave., 215-610-2130, www.publiceyephilly.org

Maybe we're just cynical bastards, but PETA's sexed-up campaign to protest the circus seems a little shortsighted. Enter Public Eye: Artists for Animals, a Philadelphia group that promotes cruelty-free lifestyle without relying on cheap shock value. Its latest venture, "The Human Circus: The Kindest Show on Earth," may bring to mind caged pedestrians, but the Meghan Heimbecker-directed event is more your standard juggler-magician-mime affair featuring breakdancers, vegan treats and a history lesson on how animals first came to join the circus. You know, everything folks have come to love about the big top except for the monkeys-in-sequins bit.