Maybe it’s different these days. Kids still fantasize, of course — but now, it’s about fronting a mega-selling boy band, becoming an Internet mogul or grabbing fame for … well, does it really matter?

But for generations, children dreamed of running away to a life without “no” and “because I said so” under the Big Top.

Johnathan Lee Iverson knows all about dreams like that coming true. He’s the ringmaster of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which comes to the Springs with “Dragon,” its high flying celebration of the year of the dragon. It floods the World Arena through Sunday.

He was a star, seemingly from the beginning: At 11, he was the lead tenor of the renowned Boys Choir of Harlem and performed during Luciano Pavarotti’s Concert in Central Park; shortly after graduating with a degree in voice performance in 1998, he was invited to join the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus; a year later, journalist Barbara Walters named Iverson one of the 10 most fascinating people in 1999.

He is also the youngest ringmaster and the first African American in the history of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

Here Iverson talks about being yourself in the center ring, the power of that enormous audience and the curious paucity of endorsement deals for circus performers.

The Gazette: Tell me about the first time you went to the circus.Johnathan Lee Iverson: I really can’t recall. Being from New York, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey seemed to just be apart of my existence. With its storied connection with Madison Square Garden, it was just a very important part of my experience growing up. I don’t recall ever being without it.

Gazette: As the ringmaster, you’ve got to be somewhat of an extrovert. How does that play out in your everyday life?Iverson: The thing which most distinguishes circus from all other artistic genres is the fact that you don’t “play” an acrobat, a clown, a daredevil, an animal trainer, or a ringmaster. In circus, you are living art. Everything from your diet to your quirks are why you are what you are. So, yes that tall, dark, handsome, and charming man who presides over The Greatest Show On Earth is just who I am. You can thank Feld Entertainment for the stunning attire.

Gazette: What’s the best part of your job?Iverson: The audience. We have the most diverse and appreciative fans in show business and it continues to grow even after 142 years. To hear and see what this American treasure means to them and their families is priceless. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey is a reminder of our innocence. It’s the last purely unadulterated thing in entertainment.

Gazette: What’s your most delicious secret about the circus?Iverson: Be it Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey — or any circus for that matter — everyone in our business knows that secrets are impossible to come by. In other words, there aren’t any.

Gazette: If you could change one thing about your job, what would it be?Iverson: National sponsorship for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey franchise, with personal endorsement deals for my fellow performers and I. You’d think after 142 years as the world’s longest running hit show, with a growing audience in the tens of millions annually, (and) constant national, international and local media coverage, we’d be lathered in deals. The fact that we are so profitable even in these economic conditions sans the aforementioned is perhaps our greatest feat yet.