WILKES-BARRE TOWNSHIP -- It's the final curtain call for the iconic elephants of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The show is retiring the giants after years of entertaining.
Cheers, laughter, and some clowning around filled the air at Mohegan Sun Arena near Wilkes-Barre. The greatest show on earth attracts crowds of people.
"It’s very neat. I came as a child and saw elephants, and it's great to bring my kids and see the elephants too. It's fun," Jenny O'Day of Honesdale said.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus has been entertaining crowds for 145 years. This year marks a historic moment in the show as the crowds say goodbye to one of the circus's main acts: the elephants.
One family came from Honesdale to see the elephants take their final bow Sunday afternoon.
"I think it's pretty exciting, pretty neat, and not a lot of people are going to be able to see this, so it's cool that I get to see it," said Maggie O'Day.
Six of the 11 remaining elephants performed at the arena. Once the last show wraps up, the herd will retire to Ringling's Center for Elephant Conservation in Florida. There the elephants will not only have space to roam, but they will also be used to search for treatments and cures for childhood cancer.
The elephants are a big part of the circus and an act many people come out to see, so of course, they will be sadly missed. Those we spoke to tell us they are just happy they will be going someplace safe.
"The elephants are such a major part of the show, and I understand the whole PETA side of it, but it's going to be a sad experience," said Michelle Tellefsen of Greeley.
Tellefsen has been going to the circus to see the elephants since she was a little girl. She's happy to be able to see them one last time with her daughters.
"We wanted to be one of the last ones to see the last show."
The elephant act also wraps up Sunday night with Ringling's second touring group in Rhode Island.
Despite the departure of the elephants, directors of the circus say the show itself will go on.
