WHEN “THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH”
GOES  HIGH-TECH
WE GO “OUT OF THIS WORLD”
BY IRIDE APARICIO

Photos Courtesy: RINGLING BROS. and BARNUM & BAILEY

SAN JOSE, CA – RINGLING BROS. and BARNUM & BAILEY new show “OUT OF THIS WORLD" starts with a Bast Off  in the unlit ring, with twinkling lights simulating stars, orange, green, red and blue balls, simulating planets in the galaxy, and mist raising  from the floor.

On the large  rocket’s instrument panel on the wall, the green iridescent numbers are changing fast:  3.05, 3.04, 3.03. As they change, the audience shouts the numbers aloud.  Near the roof, the planets, illuminated by strings of golden color lights, start descending, allowing the audience to see a woman, sitting inside each one. When each ball opens in two halves, the acrobats inside start displaying their acrobatics. 

“For the 146 edition of RINGLING BROS. and BARNUM & BAILEY we’re launching the circus in to its future!”  writes Producer ALANA FELD on the program. By the future, she means  "OUT OF THIS WORLD" that is being previewed in the West coast.  This show is different from the previous ones because all the acts are part of of a single story. An inter-galactic  fairy tale.

It begins on earth,  with  JONATHAN LEE IVERSON, Ringling’s  RING MASTER,  and Paulo, (PAULO DOS SANTOS) called “The Starseer” in the show, getting ready to embark in a dangerous intergalactic  mission to the Kingdom of evil Queen Tatiana, “The inter-galactic” Queen, with the purpose to rescue the most talented circus artists in the world that TATIANA and DAVIS, her clumsy assistant, had seized from the circuses of the earth. We, the audience,  will be watching their action through the “Magic”  of Paulo's telescope.

  Ring Master JONATHAN LEE IVERSON, and Paulo (DOS SANTOS)

We begin our trip watching the”Circus Astronauts” floating in the dark sky. We stop to see  “The Simet Spacewalkers,” who also dressed in Astronauts' clothes, are showcasing their balance and agility in zero gravity. At this moment, they are strolling  forward and backwards, inside and outside, two huge rotating metal frames, shaped like a number eight and united by metal bars, that the Spacewalkers can rotate with their feet. They are walking on them, jumping on them, even running inside their interior. One even manage to sit down on a chair.  Three of them are now riding a bicycle on the top part of the frame with one spacewalker driving the bicycle, the other standing over its front, and the third hanging from a rope below to sustain the balance of the three riders.  One needs to see it to believe it.  

Flying over a dessert of sand dunes we meet ALEXANDER LACEY. He is standing inside a metal cage with eight tigers, two lionesses and two lions that obey every one of his commands. He gives us an spectacular show of courage by making each one of his growling animals do tricks: run, lay down together,  jump over each other and many more. He ends his act, by sitting on a floor petting one of them.

Continuing our trip, we arrive in the ICE PLANET, where under a massive ice  mountain Queen Tatiana has hidden the TORRES FAMILY. We get a chance to see them riding their motorcycles  inside a big metal sphere, at meteoric speeds.  On that night, they were joined by three women also riding motorcycles, so instead of  four riders, speeding inside the ball, they were seven.

When they prepare, the green and red lights on the front of their motorcycles lit. The motorcycles’ motors are turned on. The lights dimmed in the arena, and in the darkness, we can hear the roaring of the motors as the motorcycles, jammed in a metal  ball, move together looking to us like red and green dots going round and round at high speed.  We hold our breath. This is so daring, unbelievable! one of the best acts of the night.  

During our journey, through space, we experience a shower of  “SHOOTING STARS” represented  by a daring  group of  trapeze artists swinging from spectacular heights. Our next stop is  THE WATER PLANET. Here we have a chance to see “MAKING WAVES” a very talented group of  Astro Pups, (dogs) and other animals: Llamas, pigs and even a Kangaroo, jumping lively on the ring execuuting fantastic tricks. On this Planet, we also get a chance to see  “THE KING CHARLES TROUP”, playing basketball riding unicycles, showing their amazing skills as the fastest basketball players in the planet. We are having fun.

Sadly, there is trouble for JONATHAN and PAULO  when Queen Taniana send a truck full of clowns and DAVIS to fight against them.  DAVIS, (a clown) who as a child learned to walk the high wire just to make people laugh, after several walks in a high wire, is chased by a shark (which is really PAULO in disguise). Trying to scape DAVIS climbs to the highest heights of the circus and continue their fight with PAULO , walking upside down, close to the arena's roof. We scream.

Queen Tatiana transforms the WATER PLANET into a FIRE PLANET and sets the ring on fire. Even on the ice, the ice, ice skaters skate and dance carrying torches on their hands. and tje aerialists, acrobats and hoop divers jump among the flames. It is a Visual wonder.

But then JONATHAN’s “ CONSTELALION COSACKS”  riding in their horses come to his rescue, performing marvelous riding skills, which include a woman standing between two horses running side by side, on the left and right shoulders of two riders with her legs wide open.

Queen TATIANA

Everybody, including the clowns participate in the battle, that is fun to watch because at the end, nobody gets hurt and have a happy ending.

As presented, the story that OUT OF THIS WORLD tells the audience in its acts is hard to understand without reading the program, To be enjoyed, it needs to be better explained. But on Opening night at the SAP CENTER in San Jose, the audience, specially the children admitted that they they were delighted with the show.  Its music was great, the costumes creative, every act was superb, and every actor, was a star. The show took us out of this world.

OUT OF THIS WORLD will continue playing at the SAP CENTER until September 5th. Tickets may be purchased at the SAP CENTER, or ordered online at SAPCenterbox-officetickets.com or by calling (855) 355-7309.