An Event Planner’s Recap of the Ringling Museum of Art
While visiting Sarasota, Florida during the holiday season, I saw a sign at Baggage Claim that mentioned the Ringling Museum of Art. With a full day of freedom ahead of me, I decided to spend it exploring its vast grounds. Call me crazy, but I did not immediately link “Ringling” with the circus, although it’s arguably one of the most famous names associated with that industry.
When I arrived, I noticed that there were several buildings housing a variety of exhibits and event spaces throughout the property. The exhibits focused on art, history, architecture, design, and yes—the Circus—were spread across the acres. After about five hours walking through each of the experiences, I sat down outside and admired the Banyan trees that surrounded the property. It’s an absolute must if you’re in the Bradenton or Sarasota area, as there’s really nothing else that I can think of like it!
What surprised me the most, was how much I wound up learning about the history of event logistics and planning at this hidden gem!
Photograph taken at the Tibbals Learning Center at the Ringling Museum of Art shows the world’s largest miniature circus replica, called the Howard Bros Circus.
Below, you’ll find some of my biggest event planning & logistics takeaways from my day at the John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art:
The first Traveling Circus in the United States took place in 1793 in Philadelphia, PA and featured riding acts, clown performances, and tightrope walking.
The Tibbals Learning Center’s museum curator and designer of the miniature replica spent an average of 20 hours a week over 70 years building this exhibit, to as accurate a detail as possible.
The Circus literally left no trace, loading in, setting up and loading out of a city in one day! In fact, the first car pulled into the station and unloaded for setup at 3am.
This gigantic and highly anticipated event would usually take place in an empty lot next to a train station, to encourage easy mass travel to and from.
Promotions and marketing for this event would begin about 1 week before, with posters and promotional slogans covering every available city and town surface.
The Big Top Tent could fit 15,000 people and took the crew a mere four hours to build. The poles and tent materials were the first items to pull in to the station.
The way they found efficient and effective ways to replicate their act across the country—over 120 shows a year—blew me away. It goes to show the power of shared experiences to bring people together and motivate the masses, not only today but throughout history.