Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey Circus

Wonderful performance! We had a great time and last time we will see elephants. My son loved it. Food and souvenirs were crazy expensive but the kids live it. Will do again!!!

I was Saturday, August 1 2015 on their show on Honda Center. GREAT SHOW ! I recommend for kids, adults, grandparents.

It was pretty MLG (per my son). I LOVE the circus and when I heard that the elephants will slowly be removed from the, I definitely had to go again. I really enjoyed it however this year the theme was more technoish. That was not a problem buy I enjoyed last year’s more because of the acts. Bot that this years was bad but. I liked last years acts better. I really enjoyed the fact that they changed up their acts. Nonetheless, meanwhile they exist, I will continue to attend because I’m a kid at heart. ..

Went to the show on 7÷31÷15 and the place was about 40% full. After the show started we knew why. Although the performers were great, the show theme was some confusing competition between two clowns. The people sitting around us were all confused, as were we. The worst part was the extremely loud techno music that rang throughout the entire show. Every show I’ve seen by Ringling was better than this one.

Ahhh! After a long 2 mins debate in my head, I’ve decided to rate it 4 stars instead of 3.5 stars.
For the readers who doesn’t wish to read more, here’s my break down of my simple rating:
–Is this place good for dates? Maybe, unless if you mind bunch of kids.
–Is this place good for kids? HELLS Yes!
–Is this place good for PETA people? Oh NooO!
I have never been to an actual circus before and I was pretty excited when my husband told me that he got the tickets for us. Of course I started Unilocaling about this place and oh my… awful AwFUL reviews of this place. Majority of the bad reviews were directed towards animal cruelty and all the good reviews were rated towards the performance.
I love animals but I am not PETA people. I’m not gonna lie, after reading all those comments about animal cruelty I was skeptical and already had this bad image of the Ringling Brothers Circus. After the show and after seeing those protesters yelling at kids, it changed my mind.
~~CAUTION
Parents with kids: Please protect your kids from protesters harassing and yelling with their pamphlets. I’m not a kid and I was scared by couple ladies yelling. There was a family of 4, mom, dad and 2 kids. The dad yelled back at one of the protesters «You’re scaring the kids» and he didn’t say it in a mean or rude way, just enough so she could hear him). The protester yelled back «They shouldn’t be coming here and I don’t care!» and she continued to yell 10x louder, stronger and more forceful «Ringling Brothers hit their animals» about 7 – 8 times.
I was a bit nervous for the dad that that lady was going to come over and beat him up or vice versa but luckily they didn’t. Man, I can still remember her yelling replaying in my head…
~~SHOW
The show really surprised me. I thought the circus was going to be super cheesy and a bit childish but they have great acrobats and did some amazing and dangerous tricks! Although couple of their performers messed up on a thing or two but the rest were just really good. I felt this place was more catered to children, so the kids are most likely not going to notice the mess ups. There’s an intermission, good time to take a bathroom or snack break.
There were elephants, camels, tigers and poodles. The elephants and poodles were so cute! Dogs alway gets me…:-)
The surround sound and lighting I thought was great.
~~PARKING
We got there 30 mins before the show started and the parking wasn’t bad at all. Regular parking is $ 7, VIP parking $ 13.

I have 3 kids ages 6 10 and 12 and they loved this circus! The Tigers and elephant’s were amazing. Nicely put together and very professional.

Unilocal challenge 2015 ¹⁴⁸⁄₃₆₅
Na na na
Na na na
Hey hey hey
Good bye
Elephants
30 5 year olds at the circus = a bus full of smiles and laughter that can brighten anyones day.
I was invited to take my 5 year old class here to the Honda Center for a special engagement meet and greet of the elephants who are going into retirement. For my 5 year olds this was a great experience. They all had so much fun and made new memories to last for a while.
I also came here a few years ago with the hubsters. We had free tickets and VIP parking. If you are not as lucky as us, then your wallet is going to be mad at you. But, that is not the circus’s fault, its The Honda Centers fault.
As for the circus, we enjoyed it. Probally because it was free for us and it had been decades since I saw a circus. The ring master was funny and narrated a good performance introducing elephants, tigers, camels, clowns, dancers, stunt artists, ect. Flash forward to 2015, I believe they are trying a new spin on the show and are getting ready to retire a lot of the animals and focus on perforers, clowns, dancing, stunts, ect.
But I think the circus is just something adults can enjoy once every 5 years. It makes for a great date with your significant other. If you have kids they will have fun. Just look for discount tickets.
Review #643

This review took 2 years in the making because I completely forgot to review this place and it was the fact that I went through old pics that I realized I hadn’t reviewed it yet. So here we go.
My experience at the circus was quite enjoyable. I came here with some friends and we had a blast (how we fit 7 people into my car still puzzles me). The circus hosted at the Honda Center so you end up paying some odd bucks for parking I can’t remember the actually number. Once there, they hand you a pamphlet and it was only then that I realize that those pamphlets are from animal activist who exposes the fact that the circus abuses animals into doing all these amazing tricks and feats. Well, that killed the experience a bit for us.
Still we were already there so we figured we might as well go anyways. As we made our way to the ticket booth we ended up paying a good amount and were then escorted to our seats. The circus itself was entertaining as fuuhhh. It was orchestrated by one fantastic ring master. I was able to witness some amazing people fly across the stage, walk thin ropes, balance each other and swing from side to side, and tigers lots and lots of tigers (elephants too). Every moment was about as entertaining if not even more so than the prior moment. The whole experience was a 5 stars. The whole animal abuse thing 2 star so overall 4 stars.
Realistically I probably will be back. It was just too fun.

I wish I could give no stars. This place is awful. In the Ringling Bros. circus, elephants are beaten, hit, poked, prodded, and jabbed with sharp hooks, sometimes until bloody. Tigers are viciously struck with sticks so that they’ll perform difficult and confusing tricks. Be the voice for these animals by sharing this information with everyone you know. I can’t wait for the day these animals are free.

We did our research to make sure that no animals were used during this show and found several references online that said they weren’t. It’s the only reason we decided to take our children. Imagine our surprise when we saw just the opposite! Its just not our thing and we will not be returning.

This act is amazing it is sun cool and fun. The thing I did not like was the protesters. There was a guy wearing a guy fox mask. It scared my four year brother to death. Elephants can not hear that well that is why they have to yell. And when they tell they are yelling the commands they are trained to do.
Also when the camels went out they guy was hitting the ground near the animals so they would run. Best show ever I really hope I can join the wrinkling brothers circus some day it looks really fun and interesting. Also the protesters are so not know what they are talking about. If the only thing you have to do is yell at people and children saying the circus is bad then you need a life. Also you are worried that animals are sad you just scared a child and maid him/​her cry. I loved the show but the protester need to get a life.:/

This is a truly magnificent show! I took my kids to see the circus in August 2014. The pre show was a blast. We got up close to the performers and a large elephant drew a painting which was later given away.
The whole show was fast paced with beautifully choreographed music and lights, one amazing feat after another. All the classic clowns, tight ropes, midget (no offense) and animals! I must say the animals are very talented, smart, and appeared happy and healthy.
They also had incredible acrobatics, motorcycles, horses, and bicycles. You have to see it with your own eyes to really appreciate it.
This is a classic American show performed by international crew with a wonderful mix of traditional and modern acts. I hope this show is still around for my grandkids and future generations to enjoy.

I had a great time watching the HUMAN performers; however, was deeply sadened to see the elephants, big cats, and other animals out there. They looked truly sad and overworked. I had no idea the conditions they work and live under… The show doesn’t need animals performing in order to make it «The Greatest Show on Earth».

There are so many talented people in the circus, the acrobats, the dancers, the energy is great. Until the animals come out. I was eager to dismiss PETA out front thinking eh I’m sure it will be okay. But the unnerving feeling I got grew more heavy with every whip and bull hook. The tigers and lions looked so uneasy, hissing at the trainer every time they saw that whip swing by. They hated him. It was clear. After that sad and disturbing performance they then go into cages that look smaller then their body frame. It was horrendous. Elephants are smart caring creatures, if they wanted to do something out of will, they wouldn’t need a man on the inside of them with bull hooks to scare them. This show was a nightmare. My 3 year old was freaked out by the «guys with the sticks» we left during intermission. We will never return.

I can see how some of these acts can be mildly entertaining for kids, but things have really gotten cheesy at this circus. Also, the animal cruelty behind this show is pretty obvious from watching the trainers closely. If they eliminate all the animal acts completely and go for more displays of athleticism and audience participation, it would be worthwhile.

I am giving it a 2 star only because my kid liked it. Otherwise, lots of mistakes by the performers and at times, it was pretty slow and somewhat boring. Also thinking about animal cruelty and how they trained these lovely creatures using lashes and possibly teasers, my wife and I did not enjoy the animal parts at all. Well, this is the first and last time we are watching this.

Screaming and hitting their animals? That’s just wrong ! Those vegan protestors are right ! Wish I didn’t go to that awful circus

Great show! got 1^st section tickets for $ 25 at the Evergreen Cultural Book store in Monterey Park.

I’m not a PETA Fanatic or a Vegan. I’m just a normal person with compassion and heart. It may be (and even then it’s iffy) good for real young kids who are awed and love colors, music and animals.
It’s a waste for adults and seeing the tigers and elephants made me sad. The show can get stale for the most part, a lot of HS Muscial singing and cheering that is unnecessary. It’s not worth it. I only went bc of free tickets. Hard to imagine in this day and age we need a circus still.

So yeah seems like the Ringling Brothers were going down hill the last 3 years. Seems like they pull out something good every 3 years? Performance was better, think the kids enjoyed it alot more than other years. Great for kids under 10 years old?
Wow, animal activists are so annoying! Stop filming and bagering little kids entering the circus. These kids are too young to see animal brutality photos!
Protest with no solution seems meaningless. If you’re trying to shut down the circus, at least have jobs ready for these ppl after #openoptions
haha Love it — Ana D.‘s review
«I understand and respect their right of freedom of speech but I DO NOT appreciate the protesters not respecting my right to go where I please or them scaring children. So who is protecting the rights of children?»
If the cops are reading this, how are they not being arrested for yelling at kids!!!