Whether you play as a person who comes to the circus and happens to get sucked into it (say it activates some hidden power that you have or you are selected to be a stagehand of some sort) or as someone who has been trapped there for centuries is completely up to you. I want you to have the choice of being introduced to the sorrow of the performers or to be able to have struggled as part of the circus for years. ^_^

Hope that makes sense!