Get ready for three days of a three-ring circus at the ShoWare Center in Kent.
Circus performers are set to perform on rings set up side by side across an arena floor that is usually filled by hockey and football players.
High-wire acts, jugglers, clowns, tigers, elephants and dogs – they’re all part of the seven shows by the Nile Shrine Circus April 23-25. The show times are 4:30 and 8 p.m. April 23, 10 a.m., 2 and 6 p.m. April 24 and 2 and 6 p.m. April 25.
“It’s not as big as the Ringling Brothers but it’s the same quality,” said Chuck Cook, the Nile Shrine Circus chairman, in a phone interview April 8. “It’s family-oriented and we keep the prices as low as we possibly can so families can afford it.”
Tickets are $20 for gold seats, $15 for reserved and $12 for general admission. Tickets are $1 less for the early shows at 4:30 p.m. April 23 and 10 a.m. April 24.
“It’s about a 2 1/2-hour show so you get your money’s worth for the entertainment,” Cook said.
This won’t be the first time the ShoWare Center sees its share of elephants and clowns: The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performed last September at the ShoWare.
The high-wire act of the Nile Shrine Circus features 11-year-old Briana Phelps, part of the world-famous Wallenda family act.
“She does an outstanding job on the high wire,” Cook said.
Phelps has trained in Sarasota, Fla., with Rick Wallenda, the grandson of Karl and Helen Wallenda, who launched the family’s high-wire acts. Rick Wallenda also will participate in the high-wire act.
Ten tigers, three elephants, 20 dogs and six ponies travel by truck with the circus to perform stunts. Children can ride the ponies during the intermission.
Producer Cindy Migley brings the circus to town from its home base in Florida. The circus will present seven shows in Kent as well as shows in Oak Harbor, Bellingham, Sequim, Bremerton and at the Tulalip Indian Reservation during its swing through the state.
“Cindy lines up the performers and she has a great reputation from Shrine temples across the country,” Cook said.
This marks the first Shrine Circus in the Seattle area in about 10 years. The Shrine Circus used to perform annual shows at the KeyArena in Seattle but has not been back to the area for about a decade.
“It’s a new show and the first year for Cindy,” Cook said, of the reason for bringing the circus back to the Seattle area.
The Shrine Circus performed its first show in Washington more than 65 years ago. The Nile Shrine Circus is a fundraiser for the Nile Shrine Center in Mountlake Terrace as well as Shrine clubs. Cook said the circus is not a fundraiser for the Shriners Hospitals for Children, which is a separate organization.
The Shriners will bring their circus calliope to play out in front of the ShoWare before the performances. A unit of the Shriners clowns also will entertain before the shows. The doors to the arena open one hour before the show.
The Shriners worked with Kent schools to conduct a coloring contest for children ages 5-12. Children can still enter the contest by going to www.nilecircus.org. The prizes for the top three placers in four age-group divisions include a Shrine Circus hat, a circus bear, a circus fez and a clown nose.
Cook said local Shriners put in a lot of work to bring the circus to Kent and the other Puget Sound cities.
“But it’s all worth it when you see kids and their smiles at the circus,” he said.
If you go
What: Nile Shrine Circus
When: April 23-25, seven shows
Where: ShoWare Center, Kent
Cost: $20, $15 and $12
Tickets: www.showarecenter. com or call 253-856-6999
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