First let me say, I have a big nostalgia for the circus. Although we have only been to see Ringling brothers maybe twice 20 years.
But looking at them purely as a business venture I can see that as a business they could not make it.
I’d like to ask, does anyone on this board have any personal experience with Ringling Brothers or any other circus?
A friend in college came from a family that operated a small circus/traveling show and I went to a couple gigs with them as a general roustabout. It was fun but seriously a marginal existence even back then (the 70s) when the main competition was TV and movies. Now with a ton of cute animal videos and clips from the major European acts on YouTube I’m surprised the greatest show on earth didn’t fold years back. I can see some acts moving to the amusement park circuit but I think some of the art and skills are going to be gone for a while.
No, but here’s something: we were watching this story on the news last night, and my wife of 25 years turns to me and says “Well, there goes my last chance to go to Clown College.” I laughed, thinking she was joking. Turns out, way back in the day in San Francisco, she reached a fork in the road of life, and needed to choose between two options (in her mind): go to Clown College for a year, or go work to support Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers. She chose the latter, only because she thought that clowns had to do flips and other acrobatics. I literally sat here in this chair with my mouth hanging open.
The woman continues to surprise me, year after year. She also saw the Beatles at Shea Stadium, went to Washington to hear MLK’s “I have a dream” speech, and has a thank you letter signed by Jim Jones.
You need to be armed at all times; she probably works for Malory Archer (can’t say ISIS any more.)
I used to do a juggling / unicycle act, and while most of my performing was in other venues, I had some contact with the circus world. Never thought much of Ringling - I always preferred smaller shows like the Royal Hanneford Circus and the Big Apple Circus.
But the closure of Ringling is a big deal, despite the heyday of American circus being long ago.
Circus people were always interesting, and I enjoyed spending time around the animals. I personally never saw animals treated anything other than lovingly. Usually the animal acts were run by families, and more than once I saw an adult caution small children (age 4 or so) not to be rough with the animals (elephants weighing tons). That was pretty funny.
I have been to a bunch of circuses since I was a small child. I hated every single one of them. I always thought the atmosphere was creepy and it wasn’t just because of the clowns. They are just an odd mix of slapstick humor, slapdash props and barely willing participants both human and animal. I always worried about the trapeze artists, not because of their skill but because an equipment mistake might result in a death right before everyone’s eyes.
I am sure circuses were the coolest thing ever in 1890 but they aren’t today. Dragging large animals all around the country along with an entourage of people that don’t fit into normal society is simply not a good idea from a business standpoint or otherwise. I will not miss their passing.
Don’t fret though. Travelling carnivals are still a thing. They can provide all the parking lot entertainment that you could ever wish for and provide a valuable service by keeping pedophiles and meth addicts employed and on the move.
Cross posting from the other thread, because if you like circus, there is a ton of it out there!
If you happen to be in Chicago (or Montreal), there is a ton of human-based circus to see. There are multiple circus schools in both cities. People with Cirque de Soleil-type skills, but local and generally under $30 per performance.
Chicago has the Actor’s Gymnasium and Aloft Loft (both schools with periodic excellent performances), and Acrobatica Infiniti (new nerd theme every month), and others I can’t remember off the top of my head. If you want something more kid-friendly (Acrobatica and Aloft can get pretty racy), Midnight Circus in the Parks runs all summer. You should go!
If you’re in Montreal, you have an embarrassment of riches. I recommend Cirque Eloize - they’re phenomenal!
If you’re in the D.C. area, check out Black Rock Center for the Arts - they just got a grant to bring in new contemporary circus acts, and their curator is excellent. I went to see Gravity and Other Myths there last year, and it was amazing!
Took my son to a circus 15 years ago in a tent in the parking lot of the mall that I’m pretty sure was Ringling Brothers. Some of the acts were exciting for a kid but there was too much of the run-down carnival feel and we felt sorry for the sad looking animals.
AndCircus Flora in St. Louis.
In the 1950’s, my grandfather took me to the circus, Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Baily, “The Greatest Show On Earth”. As I think back to my experience at the time while sitting in the bleachers, it was quite a spectacle with different simultaneous performances in each of the three rings making it difficult to concentrate on or truly appreciate any one performance. Two main highlights to the show at the time were the high wire performance and trapeze artists and as a child, I was quite amazed. The clowns will fill the time between the various performances and yes, they did have the tiny clown car filled with countless clowns.
My memory of the animal acts is not a pleasant one because to me, they seemed so sad, although I didn’t know why back then. When the circus arrived the following year, I had no desire to go again.
Saw Ringling Bro’s with my dad in the 60’s. What impressed him most was the flea circus side show.
Took the kid to see a small circus with motor cycles and contortionists and dogs and cows. Cows are cheaper than elephants, but circus in Aus is in the same fight about animals.
I think that part of the reason is the disconnect modern people have with working animals, and, even more, the disconnect they have with manual physical human labor. Actual working is cruel, right?
I think it’s kind of sad to see the last circus elephants go, because they were a link to a time past, when the elephants provided the power to erect the Big Top, and local school boys were paid with free tickets in return for help setting up the seats. My dad was old enough to remember that time.
I used to be on another board years ago with circus people.
One elephant trainer told some stories. For example he would sometimes take the elephants to a local car wash to clean them. Also yes, the elephants were used as beasts of burden, but they seemed to like it. He never once had one refuse to put on a collar or do a job. He mentioned times when he had elephants pull wagons that were axle deep in mud which a truck couldnt move and the elephant calmly just pulled it right out.
The others would talk about their lives of living on a train and sometimes raising a family on a train. I think it would have been an interesting life to do for a year.