Horse — A horse which performs in the center ring, trained to maintain timing despite distractions.

Ring Stock — A nimals which perform in the show, like horses, llamas and camels.

Ringmaster — The show's Master of Ceremonies and main announcer. Originally, he stood in the center of the ring and paced the horses for the riding acts, keeping the horses running smoothly while performers did their tricks on the horses' backs.

Risley Act — Acrobatic act in which one or more performers support another performer on their feet. Called "Icarian Games" by European circuses. When the manipulators support props instead of people, the act is called "foot juggling."

Rola Bola — A board placed flat on top of a cylindrical roller. A performer stands on the board and balances while performingthere is to see in the world," and shortly thereafter it took on the added meaning "to lose your innocence and learn a humbling or embarrassing lesson." Among the military it has come to mean "to experience combat for the first time." Even Tolkien's Lord of the Rings makes a sly reference to it, as Sam Gamgee, out in the wide world among amazing things, remarks on finally having "seen an oliphaunt."

Seventeen Wagon — The wagon where paychecks are distributed.

Shanty or Chandelier — The man who works the lights.

Showman's Rest — Several sites share this name. A section of Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Hugo, Oklahoma, is the final resting place of many circus and carnival veterans. There is a similar section of the Woodlawn Cemetery in Chicago, overseen