Buy Your Inner Child a Candy Apple

One of life’s cruelest tricks is that we become hardened with age. For children, everything is fascinating, but as our timeline’s tail stretches, we see only the science behind the magician. Thankfully, there is still one place that lures out our inner ankle-biters with cotton candy and thrills galore, and...

By Jamie Laughlin

December 18, 2008

[
        {
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "15769925",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Rectangle 2x - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782206",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782207",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

One of life’s cruelest tricks is that we become hardened with age. For children, everything is fascinating, but as our timeline’s tail stretches, we see only the science behind the magician. Thankfully, there is still one place that lures out our inner ankle-biters with cotton candy and thrills galore, and that’s at the Greatest Show on Earth.

If you haven’t attended a Ringling Bros. show as a grown-up, you’re missing out. You won’t find the scary clowns that haunted your childhood; instead you’ll see thespians who studied clowning at prestigious circus schools in Brussels and Spain. They’re both entertaining and relatable: These clowns have student loans, too. Add in dozens of bendy acrobats, nimble jugglers, dare devils, and a glamorous white tiger trainer, and you’ve got an afternoon loaded with sheer glee. The best part? Now as a grown-up, you’ll actually want to take a nap afterwards, and you’ll feel great about it.

See Boom-A-Ring, the newest production by Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus, from December 25 through 30 at the South Florida Expo Center at 9067 Southern Blvd. in West Palm Beach. Tickets range $15 to $50. Get them at ringling.com, or by calling 561-966-3309.
Dec. 25-30, 2008

Keep

Free

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of South Florida, and we'd like to keep it that way. With local media under siege, it's more important than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our "I Support" program, allowing us to keep offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food and culture with no paywalls. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1.