John Richards, Chairman of the 72nd Irem Shrine Circus, is reminded by Boo Boo the Clown that it’s ‘circus time’ — notice the clock inside Boo Boo’s coat.
Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader
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The 72nd Irem Shrine Circus will be at the Kingston Armory from Monday, April 10, to Sunday, April 16.
Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader
Maeve Reilley, 1-year-old daughter of Arthur Reilly of Wilkes-Barre, sits on her dad’s shoulders, waiting to head inside the Kingston Armory with her dad and her grandmother, Jackie Wallen.
Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader
Silvie Pomicter, President of Voice of the Animals, and about 10 others were holding signs in protest of the use of animals in the circus.
Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader
WILKES-BARRE — On a sunny day with temperatures in the mid-60s, the 72nd Irem Shrine Circus opened for an elephant-less week of performances.
Waiting to see her first circus was Maeve Reilley, the 1-year-old daughter of Arthur Reilly of Wilkes-Barre. Maeve was sitting on her dad’s shoulders, waiting to head inside the 109th Field Artillery Armory with her dad and her grandmother, Jackie Wallen.
“My mom brought me here when I was a kid,” Reilley said. “And now I’m bringing my daughter. She loves bright lights and loud noises, so this should be fun.”
Wallen said her dad brought her to the circus when she was a kid as well.
“I’ve always loved this circus,” she said. “I cant wait to see my granddaughter’s reactions.”
John Richards, circus chairman for the Irem Shrine, was busy Monday Morning overseeing final preparations and making sure all the volunteers and snacks were ready to go.
“Our advance ticket sales have been tremendous,” Richards said, standing next to Boo Boo the Clown. “Do you know we pop all of our popcorn, we bag all the peanuts and we shine all the candy apples. We are ready to go.”
Richards said the circus requires 100-plus volunteers per performance to assure every child and adult enjoys their time watching the “amazing” acts.
Speaking of amazing acts, one featured performer will be “The Amazing Franko,” a 26-year-old Scranton native who said he always wanted to be a comedic clown in the circus.
‘My dad always took me to the circus when I was a kid,” Franko said. “I think I was 10 years old when I knew I wanted to be a circus clown. I knew I wanted to make people laugh for a living.”
Franko, whose real name is Francis Bui, said he likes to interact with the audience and he enjoys every minute he is performing.
“I do a lot of plate-spinning and hat tossing,” Franko said. “I get the kids and adults to join me. It’s all about having fun.”
Sitting nearby was Billy Martin, the owner/producer/ringmaster of Billy Martin present the Irem Shrine Circus.
“If you haven’t been to the Irem Shrine Circus in a while, I suggest you come and see this one — it’s got a lot of great acts,” Martin said. “The show has so many thrills — one after another. Like we always say, our circus is for children of all ages.”
Martin talked about “Upside Down Man” — who he said walks upside down the entire time he’s performing tasks. We also have jugglers, flying trapeze artists, high-wire motorcyclists and an aerial extravaganza with many high-wire thrills.”
And, Martin said, the Irem Shrine Circus will feature Tina Miser, the first woman to be shot out of the giant cannon.
“I’ve been doing this for 46 years now,” Martin said. “I can say I’ve never really worked a day in my life. This has always been fun for me. The best is seeing and hearing the crowd reactions — that’s what it’s about.”
Protesters lined up
At the vehicle entrance off of Market Street, Silvie Pomicter, President of Voice of the Animals, and about 10 others were holding signs in protest of the use of animals in the circus.
“It’s disgraceful,” Pomicter said. “It’s disgraceful to beat, whip and shock these animals to get them to do tricks for human entertainment. These animals should be in wildlife sanctuaries.”
Pomicter said the animals live under the constant threat of the bull-hook — a sharp steel-tipped weapon resembling a fireplace poker — or a whip.
This year’s Irem Shrine Circus features camels, ponies, dogs and a pig. Martin said the animals are well taken care of and never abused.
Pomicter said public attitudes about using animals for entertainment has been changing in recent years, which is one of the reasons the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus has discontinued using animals.
The 72nd Irem Shrine Circus will be at the Kingston Armory from Monday, April 10, to Sunday, April 16.
Show times are as follows:
Monday, April 10, 1:30 p.m. & 7 p.m.
Tuesday, April 11, 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, April 12, 10 a.m. & 7 p.m.
Thursday, April 13, 10 a.m. & 7 p.m.
Friday, April 14, 10 a.m. 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 15, 1:30 p.m. & 7 p.m.
Sunday, April 16, 2 p.m.
Tickets are: $8, $10, $12, $13, $18 & $22
Call: 570-714-0783 (office hours Mon-Fri 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m.) — or visit — iremshrinecircus.com.
Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.