Florida Matters: Saying Goodbye To 'The Greatest Show On Earth'

By Stephanie Colombini,

Carson Cooper, Quincy Walters

Published February 8, 2017 at 9:14 AM EST

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Click on the photo to view the full slideshow.

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Former Ringling sideshow manager Ward Hall reflects at the International Independent Showmen's Museum in Dec. 2015

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Just before their final shows in Tampa, cast members with Ringling's Circus Xtreme visited students at the Straz Center's Patel Conservatory.

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“Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, welcome to the Greatest Show On Earth!” Kristen Michelle Wilson says uttering those iconic words has been the biggest thrill of her life. She’s Ringling's first female ringmaster, and also it's last. ";s:3:

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Ivan Skinfill has dreamed of being a Ringling clown since he was 18 living in Mexico. He thinks he'll try working in another country after Ringling closes - anywhere he can make somebody smile.

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Ivan Skinfill clowned around with the audience, inviting one boy up to twirl a bowler hat on his fingertip.

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Matthew Lish is just a few months into his career with Ringling. He says he feels it's a special honor to be one of the last clowns to ever perform with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

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The clown Matthew Lish played catch with an audience member while bouncing on a pogo stick.

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Juggler Victoria Zsilak is a third generation circus performer. Her mom and dad met at Ringling in the '60's. Zsilak followed in her parents footsteps, found her husband at Ringling and raised her son Richard Labadi to juggle alongside her.

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The mother-son juggling duo, Victoria Zsilak and Richard Labadi, amazed the audience with their skills.

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Juggler Victoria Zsilak says the final tour is a bittersweet time, but says performers are giving 110% for the crowds. As for the future, she's pragmatic. She and her son plan to find work with another circus or entertainment company.

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Thousands flocked to Tampa's Amalie Arena for each of Ringling's last eight shows in Florida.

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Programs for the final performance of Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus in Florida were selling quickly.

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Ally Laliotis went to Ringling's last performance in Tampa sporting a multi-colored top hat she got as a souvenir when she went to the circus as a young girl.

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Ringling may have retired its elephants last year, but it still features wild animals in its shows. Protesters with Florida Voices for Animals demonstrated outside Ringling's last shows in Tampa, demanding these animals go to acredited santuaries.

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Protestors with Florida Voices for Animals say some circus goers heading to Amalie Arena were angry with them for closing the circus. They say their goal was to get animals out of the circus, not to put humans out of work.

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Florida Matters host Carson Cooper sat down with Rodney Kite-Powell with the Tampa Bay History Center and Janelle Irwin with the Tampa Bay Business Journal to talk about the end of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

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After 146 years as the "Greatest Show on Earth," the owners of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus have decided to take the tent down.

This week on Florida Matters we’re exploring the history of the circus, its local ties and the economics of the decision to close.

Florida Matters’ Stephanie Colombini talks with performers, fans and animal rights activists who were in Tampa for Ringling’s last shows in the Sunshine State.

The circus has a colorful past full of performers who worked under the big top. Many of them call Gibsonton home in Hillsborough County. Florida Matters’ Quincy Walters visits their community along U.S. 41.

The show also features a discussion with our guests: