The pressure’s on. Don’t choke. But this thought doesn’t worry senior swimming champion Nick Kwan as he strokes quickly through the water, tags the next swimmer in, cheers for his teammates in the varsity boys’ 200 freestyle relay for his team and yells in victory as senior anchor Stanton Huang breaks the All-City record at the AAA Swimming Championships with a time of 1:32.11.

Circus music blared as a ferocious lion, a gaudy clown, a mime, an intimidating bearded woman and a brawny woman appeared from behind the red velvet curtains. The starry stage backdrop lit up while a shadowed figure emerged from a trapdoor invisible to the audience. Top hat on and hoop in hand, the ringleader took center stage. The stage lights flashed on.