Circus Costumes: 4 Big Top Roles and 6 Real Picks

Circus costumes are outfits built on the performer roles of the big top: the ringmaster in a red tailcoat and top hat, the clown in oversized color, the mime in stripes and white gloves, the fortune teller in layered skirts and coins. In our US website sales from June 23 to September 20, 2026, our Mens Circus Ringmaster Costume brought in more revenue than any of our clown costumes that sold in the same window. Below: four roles, six real MorphCostumes picks, and what ships in each pack.

Table of Contents

• What Are Circus Costumes?
• Key Types of Circus Costumes and Their Iconic Roles
• Best Circus Costumes for Women
• What Do Circus Performers Actually Wear?
• What to Wear to the Circus as a Guest
• Circus Costume Ideas for Groups and Families
• Sizing, Care and What Ships in the Pack
• Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Circus Costumes?

Circus costumes are theatrical outfits that copy the working dress of circus performers, so each one signals a role at a glance. A tailcoat and top hat mean ringmaster, a wig and red nose mean clown, and a fitted one piece means acrobat. The V&A traces the modern circus to 1768, when a former cavalryman and his wife opened a riding school in London where he would, in the museum's words, "teach in the morning and perform equestrian tricks in the afternoon" (V&A, The story of circus). The show began as a horse display, and Britannica still gives the ringmaster's other title as "equestrian director" (Britannica, circus). A ringmaster costume's tailcoat, tall hat and boots echo that riding dress, which is our read rather than a sourced fact.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey closed after a 146-year run and relaunched with a 50-city North American tour from September 2023, this time with no animal acts (AP via PBS NewsHour). Every role left on that bill is a human one. Our full range sits on the circus costumes page.

Key Types of Circus Costumes and Their Iconic Roles

The main types of circus costume are the ringmaster, the clown, the mime and the fortune teller, with the acrobat, strongman and lion tamer as roles you can build at home. The table below lists our six picks with their pack contents and the sizes each product page's selector offered on September 21, 2026.

The Ringmaster: Command the Big Top

The ringmaster costume is a red tailcoat with gold detail, a vest, a bow tie and a black top hat, and it is the role that runs the show. Britannica is blunt: "The ringmaster or equestrian director is in charge of performances" (Britannica). The role suits whoever in your group is happy to be looked at, since the tailcoat and hat carry it without makeup or a mask.

The best ringmaster costume for men in our range is the Mens Circus Ringmaster Costume. The pack holds a red tailcoat jacket with a full set of tails and gold pattern detail, a shirt insert with an attached gold vest, a bow tie fixed to that insert so it cannot go missing, and a black top hat. It is 100% polyester and the size selector runs M (38-40in), L (42-44in) and XL (46-48in). Two honest notes: pants are not in the pack, so add your own black pants and shoes, and the whip in the product photo is a prop. The product page suggests sizing up between two sizes, since the insert and vest sit inside the jacket.

For women, our Womens Circus Sexy Ringmaster Costume is the fuller pack: a red jacket with gold buttons and tassels, a black and white one piece with an attached gold belt, black boot covers, a scarf, and a hat with an attached feather. It is 100% polyester, and the selector runs five sizes from S (US 4-6) to XXL (US 20-22). Wash each piece separately by hand; the product page flags the gold buttons, tassels and feather trim as the parts to protect. Tights and the whip in the photo are not in the pack. For kids and dress versions of this one role, see our circus ringmaster costume ideas guide.

Clown Costumes: Whiteface and Auguste

Clown costumes come in two classic circus types, the whiteface and the auguste. Britannica describes "the elegantly costumed whiteface clown" as "rather severe and domineering", and the auguste as the one whose makeup and costume are "exaggerated and grotesque" (Britannica, Clowns). The auguste arrived in the 1860s with "a big nose, baggy clothes, large shoes, and untidy manners" (Britannica, clown). That baggy, bright auguste is what store-bought packs copy.

Our Mens Clown Costume is a straight auguste: a polka dot long sleeve shirt with an attached bow tie, light blue pants with a hooped waist and suspenders, a multicolored curly wig, a red nose and shoe covers. Face paint is the only thing missing. The hooped waist holds the pants out from your body, which gives the big-pants shape without padding. It is 100% polyester. The selector showed L (42-44in) and XL (46-48in) when we checked, so go by the size selector on the product page rather than the description text.

Our Skulls & Stripes Clown Dress Women takes the clown toward the darker carnival look: a dress with a clown face pattern across the fabric and a matching hat headband, two pieces in total. It is 100% polyester with a built-in elastic waist, and it has the widest size run of our six picks, S (US 4-6) to XXXL (US 24-26). In that same June to September window it was the clown costume closest behind the men's ringmaster by website revenue. For the clown played for scares rather than laughs, our scary clown costumes guide covers that side.

Animal Tamer and Lion Tamer: A Role for Two

A lion tamer costume is a red or black jacket, tall boots and a partner dressed as the lion, and we do not sell it as a single pack. Build the tamer from your own jacket and boots, then give the lion to a friend or child from our animal costumes range. The relaunched Ringling show runs with no animal acts, so the pairing now lives on as a costume duo.

Strongman: Stripes and Suspenders

A strongman costume is a striped tank top, suspenders, a drawn-on handlebar mustache and a foam barbell. We do not stock a strongman pack, so treat it as the build-it-yourself role in a group: every piece is ordinary clothing plus one prop.

Acrobat and Tightrope Walker: Fitted and Simple

An acrobat or tightrope walker costume is a leotard or fitted one piece, tights and flat shoes, with a parasol for the tightrope walker. We do not sell an acrobat pack either. The reason real acrobats dress this way is covered under what circus performers actually wear below.

The Mime: Stripes, Gloves and a White Face

A mime costume is a black and white striped top, white gloves, a beret and a white-painted face, and it is the quietest role in the circus cast. The white face is older than the stripes: Britannica says whiteface makeup "is said to have been introduced with the character of Pierrot", the flour-faced stage clown (Britannica, clown). Our Womens Mime Artist Clown Costume packs five pieces: a ruffled tutu skirt with attached braces, a striped t-shirt, white gloves, knee-high socks and a black beret. It is 100% polyester in four sizes, S (US 4-6) to XL (US 16-18). The product page's own tip is to tuck the t-shirt into the skirt waistband for the cleanest line. White face paint is not included.

The Fortune Teller: The Sideshow Role

A fortune teller costume is a long tiered skirt, a coin wrap at the hips and a headscarf, and it covers the sideshow end of a circus theme. Our Mystic Fortune Teller Women costume includes a long dress with a tiered skirt, a coin skirt wrap, a floral printed headpiece and five tarot cards. It is 100% polyester with stretch fabrics and an elastic waist, in five sizes from S (US 4-6) to XXL (US 20-22). The hem runs to the floor, worth knowing if your event is outdoors on a cold October night. Wash the dress, coin wrap and headpiece separately by hand to protect the coin detailing.

Best Circus Costumes for Women

The best circus costume for women depends on the role you want to play, and we stock a complete pack for four of them. Pick the Womens Circus Sexy Ringmaster Costume to lead the group: five pieces, S (US 4-6) to XXL (US 20-22). Pick the Skulls & Stripes Clown Dress for a darker carnival clown and the widest size run, S (US 4-6) to XXXL (US 24-26). Pick the Womens Mime Artist Clown Costume for a five-piece look in black and white that needs only face paint added. Pick the Mystic Fortune Teller for a floor-length dress that comes with its own tarot cards. All four are 100% polyester and hand wash only. Every costume we make goes through over 30 measurement checks, and each product page carries its own size chart.

What Do Circus Performers Actually Wear?

Circus performers wear costumes cut for their act: acrobats and aerialists wear tight, close-fitting one pieces, ringmasters wear a tailcoat and top hat, and clowns wear exaggerated, oversized clothes. The acrobat's one piece even takes its name from the circus: the leotard is named for the French trapeze artist who first performed the flying trapeze "at the Cirque Napoleon in Paris on November 12, 1859", according to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. The same source says circus costumes of the twentieth century "became increasingly form-fitting due to safety restrictions" and a style trend that same trapeze artist set. Britannica notes the garment "is worn by dancers, acrobats, and aerialists" today (Britannica).

Our picks copy that logic: the ringmaster jacket is structured around an insert and vest, and the clown pants hold their shape from a hoop rather than padding.

What to Wear to the Circus as a Guest

Wear comfortable everyday clothes to the circus as a guest, and leave the full costume at home if you are 14 or older and the show is Ringling. The Ringling FAQ answers the clothing question in one line: "We suggest you dress comfortably", adding that "Proper attire, including shoes and shirts, must be worn at all times" (Ringling FAQ). The same page is blunt on costumes: "Costumes are not permitted for guests 14 years and older." Younger guests may dress up, but their "Costumes must be family-friendly and may not be obstructive, offensive, objectionable or violent" and "may not drag or trail on the ground". Other circuses and venues set their own rules, so check the FAQ for your show before you arrive as the ringmaster. Save the full costume for the circus-themed party.

A practical middle ground:

• Flat, closed shoes for arena stairs and tent floors.
• A layer you can take off, since arena and tent temperatures vary.
• One themed piece of ordinary clothing rather than a costume, such as a striped top or a bow tie.
• A top hat like the one in our ringmaster pack stays in your lap, not on your head. Tall hats and full masks block the view behind you.

Circus Costume Ideas for Groups and Families

A circus theme works for a group because every role is different and all of them belong to the same show, so nobody has to match. Give the ringmaster to whoever likes to organize, the clown to whoever likes attention, the mime to whoever would rather not talk, and the fortune teller to whoever wants the five tarot cards. Add a lion and tamer, a strongman or an acrobat from the build-it-yourself roles above for extra people. Dressing up is mainstream in the US: the top Halloween activities in 2025 included "dressing up in costume (51%)", and adult costume spending was expected to reach $2 billion, according to the National Retail Federation's 2025 survey.

For children's sizes, start at our kids costumes page, and for ready-made sets see group and family costumes. All of our kids' products are safety tested by accredited labs.

Sizing, Care and What Ships in the Pack

All six picks are 100% polyester, hand wash only, and sized on their own charts rather than your usual clothing size. We run more than 500,000 quality checks a year across the range. Three habits prevent the common disappointments:

• Read the selector, not the photo. The men's picks are sized by chest in inches and the women's by US dress size. Size up if you fall between two on the ringmaster jacket.
• Check the pack list. Whips, balloons, tights, pants and face paint in product photos are styling. The table above lists what ships.
• Wash by hand and air dry flat. Use cool water, keep hats, wigs and trimmed pieces separate, and stay away from direct heat. Do not machine wash any of them.

Frequently Asked Questions