Under the Big Top

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey bring a deconstructed three-ring circus to Trenton.

By: Anthony Stoeckert
(Jennifer Fuentes is a ringmaster, storyteller and dream weaver in Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Trenton through May 21.)
   Jennifer Fuentes’ journey in show business started with dreams of being an American Idol and has landed her a starring role in The Greatest Show on Earth. Her duties in Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus are described as "part-ringmaster, part storytelling songstress and part dream weaver." However it’s labeled, she’s playing a vital role in a re-invention of the famous traveling show.
   In place of the three-ring format that has defined the circus since 1880, the show is now ringless and is driven by a story in which a lucky family is pulled from the audience and taken on a "magical circus journey." OK, a family isn’t exactly "pulled" from the audience — performers play the family members, but don’t tell the kids. The new version of the circus continues at Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton through May 21.
   "They created this prominent role for me in the show as the narrator and storyteller," says Ms. Fuentes, a native of Homestead, Fla., who competed in the second season of American Idol. "And I sing as well, and I get to bring a family from the audience to be part of the show and I change them into what they want to be in a circus of dreams." She also gets to say those historic words: "Welcome to the greatest show on earth!"
   Ms. Fuentes joined the circus during the 2004-2005 tour as a featured vocalist. During that tour, she was told by the producers that some big changes were in store for the show and that they wanted her to be a part of them.
   "I didn’t quite know they were going to be building the show around my talent," she says. "I kind of signed the contracts without seeing the creation or what it was going to turn into." During rehearsals last winter, she saw how the new show was being built. "That’s really when I saw it come to life and knew what my role was going to be like."
   While the show still features many of the classic elements of Ringling Bros. — the acrobats, clowns, animals and daredevils — there’s a lot of pressure on Ms. Fuentes since she’s in essence the face of the new format.
   "It’s a big responsibility for me. I want to be believable, and I want to have charisma and really build this character up," she says. Character development is something else that’s new when talking about the circus.
   And while many children dream of running away and joining the circus, that’s not quite true of Ms. Fuentes since she had never actually seen the show until she joined it.
   "Believe it or not, I never got to see the circus when I was little," she says. "I think I once saw a show of acrobats at a flea market once, or something. But I never got the chance to experience Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey."
   Ms. Fuentes is signed up with Ringing Bros. for two years. She continues to write songs (life in the circus and on the road has given her plenty of adventures to write about) and hopes to be sharing her voice with people for years to come.
   After her American Idol experience (she was a top-30 finalist the year Ruben Studdard won), Ms. Fuentes took a year off from pursuing a singing career, in large part because of limitations in her Idol contract. She returned to Florida, played with a band and wrote some songs, sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at some events, and went back to the restaurant where she made her living.
   "It was hard to go back to serving tables," she says. "I had a regular clientele of people who would come in and see me. And it turned into not just working at the restaurant, but it turned into entertainment and I felt I had to share my news with everybody."
   Sharing her Idol story yet another time, Ms. Fuentes says the experience was intense, going from round to round, making friends with fellow contestants and seeing them leave, and all the while not knowing if she was going to be next. She hasn’t spoken to anyone from the show in some time, though says she kept in touch with Mr. Studdard for a while.
   Like so many Americans, Ms. Fuentes says she still follows the show, though she doesn’t enjoy the earliest rounds, which focus more on exposing awful singers than finding legitimate contenders. "I want to know what CD I’m going to buy, I don’t want to listen to the duds," she says.
   As for Simon Cowell, Ms. Fuentes says what you see is what you get.
   "He’s direct, and now the way the show is, I’m sure they’re handing him one-liners, he’s probably run out (of them)," she says. "But he is who he is and he’s really what makes that show."
   And like any Idol contestant, Ms. Fuentes remembers the last words Mr. Cowell said to her. Only she’s hoping he gets another chance to see her perform.
   "He (said) he didn’t have (enough) time to hear me sing," she says. "And I know if he got to see this show, he’d have some other things to say. So, hopefully, in California I can make some phone calls and arrange a few things."
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will perform at Sovereign Bank
Arena, 81 Hamilton Avenue, Trenton, through May 21. Performances: Thurs.-Fri.
10:30 a.m., 7 p.m.; Sat.-Sun. 11 a.m., 3, 7 p.m. Tickets cost $10.50-$75.50. For
information, call (888) 722-8499. On the Web: www.sovereignbankarena.com.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey on the Web: www.ringling.com