Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s The Greatest Show on Earth is back on tour with a new, revamped show that highlights incredible feats by humans rather than animals.
The circus hit the road last year for the first time since 2017 when the historic big top went dark amid declining ticket sales and increasing pressure from animal rights groups. The Greatest Show on Earth makes a local appearance at the Denver Coliseum on Oct. 11-14, and when it does, attendees can expect to see gravity-defying tricks and stunts.
The circus cast includes 75 performers from 18 countries who aim to wow on the 25-foot-tall triangular highwire, a criss-cross trapeze, and a human rocket launcher. Other focal points of the show include live music, World Record unicycling, and awe-inspiring acrobatics that longtime fans have come to expect.
Production company Feld Entertainment retooled some classic acts to make them more suited to current audiences. For example, the laugh-inducing Nick Nack and the Equivokee trio offers a “modern take on clowning that leaves the makeup behind,” per a statement.
Local ties to the circus abound in Denver, perhaps the most noteworthy of which is the neighborhood Barnum. It’s named for the entertainment mogul Phineas T. Barnum, who bought 760 acres of land west of the urban center in 1878.
Barnum was rumored to have purchased the land to house his circus animals in the winter, but that never happened, according to the Denver Public Library. Instead, Barnum sold much of the land, which was a suburb at the time. He sold the remainder to his daughter, Helen, for $1. The city of Denver annexed Barnum in 1896.
The circus’ return to the Mile High City is welcome news for Jeff Smith, the self-appointed ringmaster of the circus-themed LUKI Brewery in Arvada. Smith’s grandparents and great-grandparents were performers for Ringling Bros. as far back as the 1920s. His great-grandmother Freida was known as Mademoiselle Chloe, an elephant rider and snake charmer. Her husband, Richard, was an advanced ticket salesman who traveled ahead of the circus to build hype in cities it planned to visit next.
Smith’s paternal grandparents left the circus to raise a family, but the ethos remained. Drinkers can see it on display at LUKI Brewery where circus posters hang on the walls and beer names often play on big top themes. In a way, you could say Smith joined the family business.
“That was always the joke – you didn’t run away from home, you ran away to join the circus,” he said.
Smith said the return of The Greatest Show on Earth is positive not only for new generations of fans but also for lesser-known troupes that have persisted in its absence. Next month, for example, LUKI’s staff is taking a company trip to see the Garden Bros. Nuclear Circus, which will be in Denver from May 30 to June 9.
Smith disputes that Americans have lost interest in the circus, even if its allure no longer amounts to scheduling a holiday so locals can attend. Just look at popular media, such as TV and TikTok.
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“I laugh when I see something like ‘America’s Got Talent.’ It’s so popular, and I’m like these are just circus acts,” Smith said.
He supports the discontinuance of animals in the shows and hopes the circus can overcome the lingering stigma associated with their use. A new production from the biggest names in the biz may help.
“From what I’ve seen from their social media, they look like they’ve got an exciting show,” said Smith, who may have to choose between the circus and the Great American Beer Festival, which takes place the same weekend in October. “I was worried they were going to be very artsy like Cirque de Soleil, but it looks like high energy and human acrobatics, which I love.”