Still Swinging in Wonderland

A captivating, true tale of a young St. Louis debutante who ran away with the circus, none other than Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus, during its heyday in the 1940’s for a life filled with adventure, tragedy, personal loss, perseverance and taking risks that led her to unfamiliar worlds full of both wonder and sorrow.
Elizabeth “Bunny” Herring was born in St. Louis to a socially prominent family whose ancestry reaches back to the Chouteaus who helped found the City of St. Louis. She was educated in the finest of private girl’s schools, boarding schools out East, and one of the finest ballet schools in New York City – until she ran away with the circus.
A beautiful young woman with a hunger for immersing herself in rich life experiences, she joined Ringling Bros. at the tender age of 18 as a dancer, elephant and horse rider, left the circus to marry a cowboy, became a nurse, actress, performer and instructor facing many challenges, hardships, great loss and the kind of awe and wonder dreams are made of all along the way.
In this personal tale of breaking personal boundaries to savor unfamiliar worlds, Elizabeth shares examples of the tremendous joys and deep costs of seeking to live life, “To Be Rather Than to Seem” tattooed in Latin on her ankle.