How To Join the Circus

Check the websites of the biggest circuses, like Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey, Cirque du Soleil, and the Big Apple Circus for job listings. You’ll find ads for everything from rope skippers to tent riggers.

Have a skill that the circus needs. If you want to be a performer, you’ll have to be exceptionally good at a circus act, like walking the tightrope or swinging from a trapeze.

If you’re short on skills, enroll in a circus school such as the San Francisco Circus Center or The Circus Space in London, which offers classes in tumbling, contortion, balancing, juggling, aerial work, and clowning.

If performing isn’t your thing, but you still crave the excitement of being part of a traveling circus, consider applying for a nontheatrical position, like an animal-care attendant or wardrobe assistant.

Apply for a position, following the rules set by the circus on their web site. Performers must send a resume, headshots, and an audition tape.

Be patient. You may have to wait for a spot to open, no matter how good you are.