Zing, zang, zoom! Elephants vanish into thin air and tigers disappear right before your eyes in this year's "illusionary" edition of The Greatest Show on Earth.

• Author: Barrett, Wayne M.
• Position: Entertainment - Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey

AS A KID, I only went to see the circus once--at Madison Square Garden in New York--and I left all upset because I felt sorry for the clown with the sagging upside down smile who ended up tripping and falling into the big tray of food he was holding. Obviously, I didn't get it. Luckily, this "misunderstanding" gene has not been passed down to the next generation, for, while I sometimes still feel a twinge for the sad-laced clowns who end up on the wrong end of some well-choreographed mishap, my mischievous-loving offspring roar with approval at every pratfall--and oooh and ahhh at all the right times at the other acts--which is probably why we've made the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Baily Circus an annual rite of spring the last lout years.

This year's 139th edition, Zing Zang Zoom, has just the right mix of the expected and unexpected. The tigers, of course, are among the expected. We always make sure to arrive early for the delightful preshow--where patrons can go right on the arena floor to see the three rings of performers up close and in full vigor--and, prior to that, for a visit to the animals as they prepare to put on their game face. Not surprisingly, the tigers garner the most attention. The mere sight of these incredible beasts (whether pacing, prowling; snarling, jousting, or simply laying about) provides a remarkable rush--and to think that, in just a little while, some guy with nothing more than a little whip is going to get into their cage and order them around. Yikes!

The biggest of the big cats--she answers to Julie--is the centerpiece of the day's most inspiring illusion, which is saying something considering that earlier, Alex, the youthful-looking zingmaster who is assisted by the lovely Levitytia, was pierced with flaming swords (and emerged unscathed) while an elephant was made to disappear from its cage simply by lowering, then lifting, a curtain to reveal an empty enclosure. Julie's cage, however, was suspended in mid-air high above the performers. The curtain came down, and went up...