First Female for Ringmaster of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey

[Skywatcher]

Ladies and Gentlemen! Children of all ages! Your Ringmaster is a babe with a bodacious bosom!*

The Orlando Sentinel

[Kristen] Wilson, 35, is scheduled to be announced today as the first female ringmaster in the 146-year history of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. She will make her debut in Orlando, where the circus will perform Jan. 12-16 at the Amway Center.

About 100 applicants were auditioned in Orlando; Austin, Texas; Dallas; New York; and Las Vegas, said Rye Mullis, a director with the circus. Wilson was hired after a second audition at Feld Entertainment Studios in Palmetto, south of Tampa, to become ringmaster for the Circus XTREME show. Feld Entertainment owns the circus.

“At the time, it really wasn’t that we were looking for a woman,” Mullis said. “We were looking for the best candidate, and she was the best candidate. The fact that she is a woman is a great coup for us, but at the end of the day, she was the best choice for the role.”

Wilson is expected to perform in 33 cities in 2017 for Circus XTREME, which includes 107 performers and 50 animals. Sixteen tigers are in the show.

*Quoting Dawn French as the Vicar of Dibley, for those who aren’t aware.