Jump The Ring Of Fire And Host A Circus Theme Party!

That’s not my circus! …Oh, wait. Yep, that one is! Here's a guide complete with the food, decorations, and circus theme party activities for your acrobats!

The ideal age group for a circus party is 8- to 12-year-olds, but you can take it on a more Dumbo theme for toddlers, too.

A recent circus show sparked our desire to throw a circus theme party. Some of the food for sale at the circus included cotton candy, popcorn and peanuts.

For fun include some of the following activities: face painting, "pony rides", a giant slide, and a bounce house.

Provide some entertainment for your guest by having a brief show. The circus show was about an hour and a half long.

The acts included two animal acts, several clown acts, trapeze acts including the tight rope, the squirrel cages, and balancing acts. This guide will give you ideas on how to host a circus theme party of your own!

For your circus, sell tickets at the door. The tickets can cost a token or a quarter. Provide a quarter or token for guests if necessary. Sell four tickets that are color coded.

Circus Theme Party Food, Feeling, And Fun

Circus Theme Party Feeling

• Primary colors:
• Red, yellow, blue and white
• Streamers to look like big top
• Circus animals
• Clowns
• Ticket rolls
• Top hat

Face Painting

One ticket gets a face painting. You may want to hire a person to do face painting or you can press an older brother or sister into service.

Having about four templates to choose from makes face painting a breeze. Some easy templates we used included:

• Tiger
• Clown
• Rainbow
• Hearts

Face painting can be an easy way to make the party fun. Start with face painting as the guests arrive and visit a little before the show begins.

Circus Theme Party Fun

• Circus Performances
• Weight-lifter photo stand
• Watch The Greatest Showman (or Dumbo, depending on age group)
• The Greatest Showman Karaoke
• Ring toss
• Circus animal charades
• Bounce house
• Giant slide
• Backyard fire

A Circus Party Is As Fun As The Performances. Wow Your Guests With A Show!

Circus Performances

The key to a great performance is having an emcee. This person needs to have a fun costume and a microphone. They will introduce the acts and keep the performances flowing smoothly.

Have some music and loosely scripted skits prepared. Allow guests to either watch or get in on the performances. Audience involvement is key to a good time!

The Greatest Showman Karaoke

Karaoke can be incorporated to keep the show moving. Have a Greatest Showman lineup interlaced through the skits.

Lion Tamer

Skits can include a lion tamer. Prepare one or two little ones tiger and lion masks and get some stools out. A whip adds much to the lion tamer feel. The lion tamers job is to get the lion's onto the stools. Have the little lion and tiger pretend and play along.

Balancing Act

Balancing is another fun performance. For a balance beam, saw horses with a 2x4 does the trick. The performer can simply walk across it a few times or do more daring acts depending on talent level. Holding a balancing stick also adds to the overall fun of this performance as does a little fake stumbling.

Clowns

Prepare a few corny jokes and one or two clown skits. Jokes could include a few skits mocking the other performances, or acting stupid before doing something that requires some talent (juggling, maybe).

A skit that works well is the "Save My Baby" skit from Dumbo. We did this one and it was super fun! Be creative with your jokes and practice them a few times before the performance.

Wrapping Up The Circus Theme Party

Let the guests relax and visit while you prepare a simple meal. Hot dogs with all the fixings fits well with the party theme. Serve any typical side for a barbecue.

If you are having your party during winter months, having chili dogs is a fun alternative. Fair foods like French fries fit in well too! Allow guests to enjoy the other entertainment you have prepared. It could be a game of animal charades, a bounce house or even a simple campfire.

Send your guests home with carnival toys or bagged cotton candy and it will be a circus theme party they will not soon forget!