Circus News

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus is back — with stop in Dallas

Ringling Circus

Feld Entertainment

The circus is back, and better than ever: Feld Entertainment has revived the highly anticipated North American tour of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey The Greatest Show On Earth, coming to major venues in both Dallas and Fort Worth.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey - The Greatest Show On Earth will hit Dallas, then Fort Worth, as follows:

July 26-28: Six performances at American Airlines Center in Dallas
August 2-4: Six performances at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth

The immersive, live, family entertainment experience is described in a release as unlike anything audiences have ever seen, filled with acts that push the limits of human potential. Emphasis on human: Ringling, along with many other circuses, stopped using animals in its shows.

This reimagined American Icon will promises a surprising, fast-paced, action-packed production with modernized acts.

It'll also feature a local-boy-made-good: Alex "Stix" Stickels from Arlington is leading the way as Show Guide (they no longer call them ring masters). Stickels attended Lamar High School in Arlington and Texas Christian University, with an early immersion in showbiz as a member of the symphonic band, marching band, jazz band, orchestra, and drumline throughout. He's toured the world as a drummer, performing on board with Royal Caribbean and touring with an act called Recycled Percussion.

Stickels is joined by fellow cast members Lauren Irving and Jan Damm (performing as "Aria, Stix, and Nick Nack") who form the soul, rhythm, and funny bone of the show, guiding an interactive and music-filled journey.

He'll be joined by a globally diverse cast of 75 performers, hailing from 18 countries including Argentina, Canada, Cuba, Ethiopia, Italy, Mongolia, Spain, Ukraine, and the U.S.

A video offers a sneak peek into some of the splended acts that will include:

Triangular Highwire, led by The Lopez Family: Three thin wires connected in a triangular formation, creating a chandelier in the air 25 feet above the ground. Performers jump over their partners' shoulders and ride a bike on the thin wire while another does a handstand on top of the moving bike.

Double Wheel of Destiny: Four daredevil performers leap and somersault on top and across two spinning wheels that hang 30 feet in the air and move at incredibly high speeds.

Nick Nack and the Equivokee Trio. A comedic blend of juggling, acrobatics, dancing, and balancing skills.

The Ultimate Playground: The 360-degree stage is the ultimate playground with bright colors and designs that resemble a toy box that has come to life. The stage transforms into a skatepark with BMX bikes, trial bike, and extreme unicycle soar through the air during a high-adrenaline extreme sports act with double-sided ramps and a trampoline that is a launching pad for tricks and flips.

Criss-Cross Trapeze: Nine trapeze artists take on the ultimate swing set as The Flying Caceres soar in every direction in an action-packed act nearly missing each other in the air by just seconds and inches. Performers go in every possible direction in sequence with each other.

Record-Breaking Heights: Wesley Williams, the One Wheel Wonder and a Guinness World Record-setting performer, will take on a daring new challenge as he attempts to set a new world record. He will ride 10 different unicycles around the show floor – with the tallest at a shocking height of over 34 feet.

Aerial & Acrobatic Spectacle: Solo and group aerialists showcase skills from straps and hoops all at the same time and in unison. Jumping, diving, and tumbling across the floor, acrobats perform hoop diving, Chinese poles, and hand-to-hand skills.

Ringling Rocket: Will launch Skyler Miser across the entire arena at 65 miles per hour.

Musical Performances: Musical numbers will incorporate original music, pop cover tunes, and live rock-inspired drumming, with a performance by Argendance, an energetic dance troupe from Argentina.

Movie Review

The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsical family lark that fails to take root

Photo courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

Andrew Garfield, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Claire Foy, Phoenix Laroche, and Billie Gadson in The Magic Faraway Tree.

With kids and families always on the hunt for entertainment, it’s typically a safe bet for a movie studio to offer up something new, even if it is a film based on an old property. The Magic Faraway Tree, based on a series of books that started in the 1930s, is a very old property, one that its filmmakers have tried to liven up with a few stars, a lot of whimsy, and a boatload of CGI.

The Thompson family, led by stay-at-home dad Tim (Andrew Garfield) and breadwinner mom Polly (Claire Foy), are forced to move to a rundown country home when Polly gets laid off. The kids - Joe (Phoenix Laroche), Fran (Billie Gadson), and Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) - are used to the perks of city life like wifi and electricity, and each of them rebels in their own way to their new lot in life.

Fran, enticed by a fairy named Silky (Nicola Coughlan), is the first to venture out of the house, making her way to a magic tree that transports her to a world full of strange characters like Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning), and more. Her adventures there not only broaden the world she thought she knew, but may be the key to helping her ailing family.

Directed by Ben Gregor and written by Simon Farnaby (Paddington 2, Wonka), the film is a pleasant enough lark, but it fails to fully capture the imagination. The five-member family has a lot going on, from an initially-mute Fran to a domestic situation that raises more questions than it answers. The film tries to incorporate an anti-technology message through Tim’s hatred of a smart refrigerator (voiced by Judi Dench!) and the kids' addictions to devices, but it’s quickly shed in favor of other options.

Once Fran makes it to the Magic Faraway Tree, there’s a nice shift in the storytelling, but it’s unclear what the ultimate goal is. It’s a good idea to have Fran, the youngest of the children, convince her older, more cynical siblings about the virtues of the magic world, but the conflict in the real world doesn’t seem to rise to the level needed for the escape the tree provides.

There also seems to be a missing link in the storytelling for viewers to understand the importance of the fantastical characters. The visuals of seeing Moonface and his crescent moon-shaped hair, a man with a suit full of banging pots, and more are fun for a while, but not enough to carry the whole film. A last-minute revelation feels like it was something that should have been disclosed much earlier to help strengthen the emotions of the story.

A two-time Oscar nominee, Garfield is making his first foray into family movies (if you don’t count playing Spider-Man), and while he does a good job, he doesn’t make the best fit for the semi-goofy role. The same goes for the Emmy-winning Foy, who isn’t given much of anything to do. The movie puts the story on the shoulders of the three child actors, and while each of them acquit themselves well, none of them are so outstanding as to be noteworthy.

With nearly 90-year-old source material, The Magic Faraway Tree needed to be something truly special to stand out in the 21st century movie world. Unfortunately, it features a mostly forgettable story that features some fun visuals, a couple of cute kids, and not much else.

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The Magic Faraway Tree is now playing in theaters.

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Movie Review

The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsical family lark that fails to take root