Balancing his entire body on one hand perched four feet above the ground, Christian Stoinev ’13 stretches out horizontally like Superman and rotates in a circle.

The crowd goes wild, partly because of Stoinev’s remarkable feats of strength and stability, but mainly because of the eight-pound Golden Chihuahua named Milo standing on Stoinev’s back, waving his front paws at awestruck onlookers.

“Christian and Scooby,” a hand-balancing act that Stoinev started as a teenager and brought to Illinois State University’s Gamma Phi Circus, has become a nationally beloved NBA and college basketball halftime show over the past 12 years. The duo books about 50 shows a year, including several performances a week during basketball season.

Milo, whose stage name is Scooby, is the third Chihuahua to star in the act alongside—and sometimes on top of—Stoinev.

“I’m a hand balancer/acrobat on my own, and Scooby has, I feel like, taken over a lot of the basketball world with his tricks and the feats that he does,” Stoinev said. “There are other dog acts and other handstand acts, but there aren’t many that combine our skillsets.”

Since graduating from Illinois State in 2013 and finishing in the top 12 on NBC’s America’s Got Talent in 2014, Christian and Scooby have appeared at every NBA arena except for Miami’s. They’ve also performed at dozens of colleges and a handful of NFL, MLB, and WNBA games. They’ve even starred on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

It’s a dream come true for Stoinev, a fifth-generation circus performer and sports fanatic.

“When I perform on an NBA court, sometimes I get more time on the court than some of the bench players,” Stoinev said with a laugh. “That’s pretty cool.”

Stoinev, who has provided halftime entertainment for three NBA Finals games including game three last year in Dallas, is excited to bring his act back to Normal for a pair of “home shows” this winter at CEFCU Arena.

Christian and Scooby will perform during halftime of the Illinois State women’s basketball team’s Pack the Arena game, with free admission, on Sunday, January 12, at 2 p.m. against Drake. They’ll also perform during halftime of the Redbird men’s basketball game against Bradley on Wednesday, February 19, at 7 p.m.

“I was a member of Red Alert when I was in school, and I went to a lot of the games,” said Stoinev. A communication major, he also covered Redbird basketball for TV-10. “That arena has a special place in my heart forever, so just being back there will mean a ton.”

Stoinev said the Christian and Scooby act has evolved considerably since his last appearance at Illinois State in 2017.

“Percy is the pup that took over for the original Scooby, and he added the trick of walking on the basketball,” Stoinev said. “Milo, the younger pup, has added a slam dunk trick (on a Chihuahua-sized hoop) to the routine. Also, I would say, my personality has shined more throughout the years.”

While on campus, Stoinev will visit with his parents, Ivan Stoinev and Maritza Atayde, who are both on the Gamma Phi Circus staff. He’ll also see some old friends, grab a gyro at The Rock Restaurant in Uptown Normal, and a Mexican Mocha next door at the Coffee Hound.

During his performances at Illinois State, Stoinev said Redbird fans will get to see a proud alum who has “a very crazy career.”

“When people ask what I do for a living and I say, ‘I do handstands with my Chihuahua,’ it sounds like a joke,” Stoinev said. “But the reality is that we’ve already had quite the career and, for me, the most exciting part is you never know where it’s going to take us.”