ST. CLAIRSVILLE — This year’s Belmont County Fair is a family affair.

Two shows, the Stone Age Show and Steamers Thrill Show stand side by side at the fair, but the two shows are more than just neighbors.

Both shows are presented by the Alvarez family, a fifth-generation circus performing family.

Father Martin Alvarez and mother Meda Alvarez run and star in the Stone Age Show, which is geared toward children, where they dress as Flintstones and juggle.

The couple also use large-scale dinosaur puppets to interact with the children in attendance while informing the crowd of facts about dinosaurs.

Martin said that he and Meda met while working on the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus.

When the circus closed down in 2017, the family created its own traveling aquatic acrobatic show, until it changed course when creating the Stone Age Show.

Martin and Meda’s daughter Ariana Alvarez and her fiance Leder Hernandez operate and star in their show, the Steamers Thrill Show.

The show is a high octane acrobatic show with a wheel of danger, balancing chair act, hula hooping, and various thrills.

Martin said that the two shows aren’t always a package deal.

“Sometimes we split up, like we’ll split up after being here, and then we’ll join up again in a few weeks,” he said.

Martin added that the two shows are based out of Florida and their schedules go from January and ends in November each year.

Ariana said that her whole life has been spent working in the traveling circus industry. She previously worked with her parents during their aquatic acrobatic show. When her parents ended that show to begin the Stone Age Show, Ariana broke off to create her own show with her fiance.

She said that her favorite part of the show each day is seeing all of the kids enjoy her show.

Both shows are experiencing Belmont County for the first time at the fair. Martin said that he’s been to Ohio several times but hasn’t experienced Belmont County but has been having a great time.

The Stone Age Show will have three shows on Friday — 2 p.m. 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. — and three shows on Saturday — 1 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 7 p.m. It will finish on Sunday with shows at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The Steamers Thrill Show has three shows on Friday — 12:30 p.m. 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. — and three shows on Saturday — 1:30 p.m. 3:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Three shows on Sunday — 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. — end the residency.

Not only are the Stone Age Show and the Steamers Thrill Show free, but all shows at the Belmont County Fair are free for all attendees.