Test Fly a Trapeze

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 pre-show comes to the Pond of Anaheim on Tuesday. The pre-show is 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. “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.”

Several activities are available during the pre-show; they vary by town. Circus-goers can try out a unicycle, walk on a rolling globe or juggle. The only skill with an age requirement is the bungee jump. To strap on a harness, be hoisted 40 feet in the air and let go to bounce, 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.

There’s a look-but-don’t-touch policy with the elephant. Still, 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, arrive early; it can be crowded. In the second half of the pre-show, clowns come out, and participants can see them do their gags up close.

Everything the audience tries before the show comes 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.

“You can say I wore one of the famous clown’s costumes,” Richardson says, and gaze into the seats.

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

BE THERE

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey. Today through Sunday at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, 3911 S. Figueroa Blvd., Los Angeles. Performances at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. today, 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Friday, 11:30 a.m., 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 and 5:30 p.m. on Sunday. Also Tuesday-Aug. 5 at the Pond of Anaheim, 2695 E. Katella Ave. Performances at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 4-5, 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. July 31-Aug. 1 and 11:30 a.m., 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Aug. 2-3. $11-$16.50 with $2 discounts for children at some shows and $4 off all tickets on opening night. (714) 740-2000 or (213) 480-3232 (Ticketmaster).