A Chance to Clown Around

You can run away and join the circus--for an hour, anyway--at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s show before the show, where children and adults are invited to step into the ring to try out circus skills. After flying on a trapeze, walking a low wire or trying on a costume, you can safely return to your seat before the professionals take over.

The Three Ring Adventure, as the pre-show is officially known, debuts locally tonight when the circus opens at the Long Beach Arena, the first of several appearances in Southern California this summer. The pre-show is all part of the circus’ attempt to make the show more interactive.

“It seemed where the circus happens was this untouchable place. People never got down there. Once they’ve been in the ring, it gives them a whole other feeling,” said Janis Pastujov, a spokeswoman for the circus.

David Larible, a clown and star of the main show, likens the experience to a backstage tour that brings the performers and audience closer together. “When you swing on the trapeze, you see how hard it is, and you have much more respect later when the performers do the amazing things they do.”

Generally, seven activities are available during the pre-show, but the specifics vary from town to town. Circus-goers can try out a unicycle, walk on a rolling globe or attempt to juggle. The only skill with an age requirement is the bungee jump. To strap on a harness, be hoisted 40 feet in the air, then let go to bounce off your own power, you must be at least 16--and perhaps have a stomach of iron.

“We try not to drop anybody,” jokes Kim “Kip” Anthony Jones, member of a troupe that plays basketball on unicycles. “They get a kick out of it. They even come down saying they feel disoriented from the up and down height of the bungee. It’s something like the astronauts would go through.”

The performers say they feel closer to audience members they have met before the show. “I always look for [them] so I can wave,” says dance captain Marissa Richardson, who helps bring out the elephant during the pre-show.

While there’s a look-but-don’t-touch policy with the elephant, she’s popular because the audience can get so close to her, Pastujov says. The experience also is personalized because children get performers to sign their programs.

To guarantee participating in the skills part of the pre-show, you should arrive early because it can be crowded. For the first half of the pre-show, the skills areas are set up. During the second half, the clowns come out, and participants can see them do their gags up close.

Everything the audience tries before the show comes back into play during it. “To be able to come down on the floor, just to be there, looking around, touching with the hands all the props and things. It’s much more one to one,” Larible says.

Besides seeing how difficult it is to walk a wire, participants can try on elaborate costumes and gaze up into the seats. “You can say I wore one of the famous clown’s costumes,” Richardson says.

The feeling could be infectious. Since January, at least a couple of people who have attended the pre-show have asked how they really go about running away to join the circus, Jones said.

BE THERE

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, Long Beach Arena, 300 E. Colorado Blvd., tonight at 7:30, Friday at 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 1:30 and 5:30 p.m. Performances Wednesday through July 27 at Los Angeles Sports Arena, July 29-Aug. 5 at Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim, Aug. 7-10 Great Western Forum. $11-$16.50 with $2 discounts for children at some performances and $4 off all tickets on opening night. Three Ring Adventure begins one hour before the show. Call (213) 480-3232 or (714) 740-2000.