Last week the beloved Big Apple Circus returned to City Hall Plaza with its 34th season show “Dream Big,” and 19th-century French author Jules Verne must have been smiling down from on high.

Verne, the Father of Science Fiction with works like 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, Off on a Comet and Journey to the Center of the Earth might well have been the inspiration for this Steampunk salute to the power of imagination. And Verne would doubtless have been enchanted that the New York- based troupe is now principally run by French speakers.

The artistic director for this retro “futuristic” funfest is Guillaume Dufresnoy. The costume/set design and direction are by the renowned team of André Barbe and Renaud Doucet. Guy Simard designed the sound and JP Perreaux, the sound.

Tempted though the new management might be to change the company’s name to Cirque de la Grosse Pomme, they know that a good-old fashioned American circus requires taking audiences around the world in two hours.

In order to materialize the most delightful circus possible, they have their hot-air-balloon-riding ring mistress introduce her “visualizer,” a preposterous contraption that promises “whatever you dream comes to life.” Each routine then is one of the characters’ fantasy made real.

“Dream Big” also marks the farewell tour of Barry Lubin’s central clown character Grandma with her grey curls and white bloomers peeking out from her red shift. While future editions of the circus will feature another jester to do audience participation stunts to cover the set changes, the other circus artists are adding more than a dash of whimsy and comedy to their amazing feats.

The prime example of this combination of comedy and skill is the show’s accident-plagued magic act. Scott is the bumbling magician exasperated by tricks that go wrong and Muriel, his overeager assistant who can’t stifle her infectious giggles. This daffy duo appears at four different points during the show, each time with an even more astounding illusion and even greater hilarity.

Economy dictates that other great acts also be seen more than once on the program. The Shandong Acrobats open and close the first act with fearless flips and a six-man pyramid jumping rope. Animal trainer Jenny Vidbel appears in Act I with a pair of dreamy black Arabians, and then returns for Act II with some adorable pooches along with two rarely seen critters: a portly porcupine and a captivating capybara!

Other solo specialty acts include Swiss hand-balancer Melanie Chy, Russian juggler Dmitry Chernov and his countrywoman Anna Volodko, a blonde daredevil who defies death with her aerial rope routine.
And to “big-top” it all off, the show concludes with the Flying Cortez, a trapeze act that manages to be both heart-pounding and heart-warming.

Performances of “Dream Big” continue through Sunday May 13 right at the Government Center T Stop. For ticket info call 888 541-3750 or visit bigapplecircus.org.