IT'S OFFICAL--RINGLING GOLD RETURNING TO CONEY ISLAND (FROM MIKE NAUGHTON)

New York City, April 7, 2010

New York City Economic Development Corporation Announces Return of Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey® To Coney Island for Summer 2010 Season
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents The Coney Island Illuscination! opens June 17 and runs through September 6, 2010
New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) today announced that Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® will return to Coney Island for the summer 2010 season with a special edition of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents The Coney Island Illuscination! NYCEDC, Ringling Bros.®, and Luna Park, in collaboration with community-based organizations and local officials, have also begun workforce outreach for full and part-time seasonal positions in Coney Island this summer.

Working with Feld Entertainment, producers of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey®, and Taconic Investment Partners, we helped to secure the same location at Surf Avenue and West 21st Street where Ringling Bros.® raised its tent last year. The Circus will run Wednesdays through Sundays from June 17 to September 6. Tickets starting at $10 will go on sale Thursday, April 29th. In addition, thousands of free tickets will be distributed to community members and local youth who may otherwise not have the opportunity to attend.
“Ringling Bros.® employed more than 300 New Yorkers for their inaugural show in Coney Island last summer, nearly 90 percent of whom come from Coney Island – a great boost for this neighborhood faced with high unemployment rates,” said NYCEDC President Seth W. Pinsky. “This summer, in addition to their pledge to continue local hiring, the return of Ringling Bros.® will contribute to the economic revitalization underway in the neighborhood alongside Luna Park at Coney Island.”
“Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® is honored by the City of New York’s heartfelt, continued embrace to include America’s Living National Treasure® as a member of the Coney Island summer community,” said Stephen C. Yaros, Vice President Northeast Region of Feld Entertainment. “Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s® 2009 inaugural summer welcomed more than 160,000 people that chose to attend The Greatest Show On Earth as a Coney Island family entertainment destination. This year with a whole new edition, the amazing and fearless performers of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents The Coney Island Illuscination! are looking forward to bringing more smiles and laughter to New York City families all summer long.”
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents The Coney Island Illuscination! is an all-new production showcasing daredevils, animal acts, and, of course, Ringling Bros.’® famous clowns. Acts include Illuscinator David DaVinci who performs illusions, transformations, and magic; Viktoriya and Widny, the Hairdaring Duo, who suspend themselves 35 feet up in the air using their hair; Francleib Rodrigues, the Sky-High Sensation, who walks upside down across the ring without a safety harness; the KungFu Kings, who combine mixed martial arts with strength feats; tightrope jumpers known as the Barons of Balance; and The Salsations, who combine aerial gymnastics with traditional dance moves. Animal acts include the Patriarch of the Pride, Brian McMillan, who will present golden lionesses and one rare white lion, and mother-daughter duo Heidi and Cassidy, known as the Devine Equine, who will introduce horses and miniature ponies that transform into The Living Carousel. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents The Coney Island Illuscination! will open 90-minutes prior to Showtime for the Animal Open House followed by the All Access Pre-show, both of which are free to all ticket holders. Additional information is available at www.ringling.com/coneyisland.