Ann Arbor, you don’t know how special you are to get the chance to see Australia’s Tom Tom Crew. The shows Thursday and Friday night at Power Center are the only two U.S. performances this year from the acrobatic, urban circus troupe that’s earned acclaim worldwide.

What has been called a streetwise version of Cirque du Soleil comes to us courtesy of the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, and Executive Director Robb Woulfe said the gig has been in the works for a while.

“I've been trying for 3 years to get the company to Ann Arbor, ever since they caused a great stir at the 2007 Edinburgh Festival, so to say that I'm thrilled that we finally are bringing the Aussies here is an understatement,” Woulfe said. “Believe me, this is the not-to-be-missed show of the festival. All ages will love it.”

He’s not the only one who’s thrilled. So is Tom Tom Crew director Scott Maidment.

“We’ve only played one other time in the United States and that was in New York in 2009,” said Maidment, who was reached by phone at a tour stop in Bogotoa, Colombia. “Ann Arbor will be our only other American stop in the history of the show, so it is very exciting.”

The Tom Tom Crew combines a team of young acrobats (ages 22-33) with a trio of beatboxing, drumstick-wielding and record-scratching musical talents. Extreme energy and a complete disrespect for the laws of gravity is the result. A check of the troupe’s videos on YouTube reveals jaw-dropping aerial acrobatics (with the kind of flexibility only youth and rigorous practice will allow)—circus at its most extreme, where skill and athleticism meet urban artistry.

“People always try to classify the show; the closest thing we get is it’s a ‘hip-hop circus.’ Well it’s not really hip-hop and it’s not really circus, but if you need to describe it, that’s the easiest way, I guess,” Maidment said.

“Basically the performers arent’ pretending to be anything other than what they are. There are no costumes, they aren’t pretending to be a character. They are just themselves on stage, with their extraordinary talents. It’s the mix of music and acrobatics that makes the show so special, and the way that the audience interacts with them is what’s unique about the show,” he added.

The group got its start at the 2006-2007 Woodford Folk Festival in Australia, said Maidment. They sold out at the 2007 Adelaide Fringe Festival and have continued to do so worldwide.

“The music is really exciting, then add the element of the circus, and that is why the show has been continuously touring for the last five years,” he added.

Besides the music and acrobatics, Maidment said the human beatboxing talents of Tom Thum are not to be missed. One of Australia’s most prolific beatboxers, he’s been named Australia's best beatboxer four years in a row and toured with legendary hip-hop artists Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash.

“If you think you’ve seen beatboxing, wait until you see Tom,” Maidment said. “He does not only amazing beats and rhythms, but he also does voices and soundscapes. He’s doing some great jazz numbers in the show, and he really will make people question what beatboxing is after they’ve seen him.

Maidment had one other observation: “This is a great opportunity for us to show the people in Ann Abor what we’ve been touring the world with. I can guarantee they won’t be disappointed.”