Playing to the Back Row

Reprint: R0901B

It’s hard to imagine a leadership image more iconic than the ringmaster. Merely say the word, and a picture springs to mind of a tall, dashing captain presiding over, well, a circus—a world full of both chaos and opportunity for delight. It’s the ringmaster’s job to make sense of that environment, anticipate the unexpected, and direct the attention of an audience with as many as 20,000 people—a massive community of stakeholders—to make sure they get their money’s worth.

The circus has evolved over the decades to keep pace with market realities, and the right talents for its front man have changed as well. In P.T. Barnum’s day, he was master of three rings, a structure designed to keep visitors from seeing the whole show in one sitting so they’d come back another day. If he wasn’t outright owner of the circus, he was head trainer of its equestrian team, a graduate of the stable and, in earlier times, the cavalry.

But Chuck Wagner, of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s 138th Edition, is none of those things. He’s part of a new breed of ringmaster—a musical-theater star who brings Broadway-style entertainment to the show. Now, the circus has only one ring, and the goal is to make sure audience members leave thoroughly wowed. In a world saturated with entertainment options, they won’t come back the next day—but they will tell their friends to.

In this conversation with Special Issues Editor Julia Kirby, Wagner talks about the challenges of being the man in the middle of the twenty-first-century circus—his relationship with the cast and the crew, his responsibilities to the modern audience, and how he balances tradition with progress to help Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s circus remain “the greatest show on earth.”