CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Elementary school students in Charleston are getting a taste of “The Greatest Show on Earth” for the first time following a nearly decade-long hiatus of the circus in the Capitol City.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus came to Elk Center Elementary School Wednesday for a special interactive show.
The students got a chance to learn more about what it takes to perform in the circus and even get a chance to be a part of the show themselves.
This comes ahead of the two-week-long series of performances the circus is gearing up to put on at the Coliseum and Convention Center starting this Saturday, Nov. 23 – Sunday Dec. 1.
The Ringling Bros. Circus has not performed in Charleston since May of 2017.
Wesley Williams
Wesley Williams is The One Wheeled Wonder who’s a part of the show. He said it feels great to be returning here after 7 years, and with a complete reimaging of the classic circus for new audiences.
“Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey is back!” Williams said. “In an iconic brand with over 150 years of history, which is older than Coca-Cola, older than baseball, older than the Kentucky Derby.”
The students at Elk Center on Wednesday were just getting to see a sneak preview of the two-hour show, but Williams said they were still getting to see a sample of some of the circus favorites such as acrobatics.
“We have acrobats with us here today from Mongolia, we have a passionate troupe from Argentina, they call them Argendance, they’re a dance troupe,” he said.
He said the entire show they will be performing at the coliseum will feature 75 performers in all and from 18 different countries.
Williams said he remembers seeing the circus as a kid and from then on, he said he knew he wanted to be a part of it. He said he now intends to be an inspiration for all kids.
“At least that’s what I do it for is to hopefully inspire one six-year-old Wesley that’s out there, and maybe that’s not to be a circus performer, but that is just to dream big and do whatever they think they can do in life,” he said.
Williams said the entire two-hour show will consist of all of the favorite acts people know and remember but even bigger than before.
He said it will include the high-wire, but now it’s a triangular high-wire, the Wheels of Destiny but now that act features a double Wheel of Destiny where they jump from one to the other, and the flying trapeze artists who now are crisscrossing one another.
And Williams said as for himself, he rides on the world’s tallest ridable unicycle at an incredible 30 feet.
He said performing at the schools are a great way to give back to the community, because not everyone is able to come out and see the show in the arena.
“Maybe they will have something they will remember and take home, and have a good experience where you remember the circus came to our school, I think that’s amazing too, because, we do stuff on the big scale, but to be able to come back into these schools and give back to them individually is a big reason why Ringling is what it is,” said Williams.
The show is this weekend and next weekend at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center Nov. 23 – Dec. 1. To learn more and get your tickets for the show, you can visit the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey here.