Difference between revisions of "Main Page"

From Circopedia

Line 14: Line 14:
 
|}
 
|}
 
==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
[[Image:Paulina_c1955.jpg|right|300px]]
+
[[File:Nouveau_Cirque_Cheret.jpg|right|300px]]
===PAULINA SCHUMANN===
+
===LE NOUVEAU CIRQUE===
  
The daughter of Charlie Rivel (José Andreu), the famous Catalan clown, and Carmen Busto, herself the daughter of a clown, Paulina Luisa Andreu i Busto, better known as Paulina Schumann (1921-2020), was born in Barcelona, Spain on February 17, 1921, where her parents performed with the Andreu family's circus, ''Circo Reina Victoria''; Paulina was, therefore, thrown into the circus world from the very moment she first opened her eyes.
+
Located from 1886 to 1926 on the rue Saint Honoré in Paris, a chic shopping thoroughfare at a stone’s throw of the Place Vendôme, the Nouveau Cirque was the most elegant and innovative circus of the French capital—and, for that matter, of Europe. For many years, it was the High Society’s circus of choice. Its relatively small size gave it warmth and intimacy (it was sometimes referred to as a "bonbonniere"), but in time, the Nouveau Cirque’s limited capacity made it difficult to manage. It began to lose its prominence before the first World War and proved unable to adapt to the post-war era.
  
During a family engagement at Paris's Empire Music-Hall Cirque in November 1926, five-year-old Paulina performed a parody of Josephine Baker, accompanied by her younger brother, Juanito, on percussion. Around the same time, her father had begun presenting a famous parody, on the flying trapeze, of Charlie Chaplin. In London the following year, while her father was participating in, and winning, a competition of Chaplin impersonators, Paulina appeared dressed like Jackie Coogan in the movie ''The Kid''.
+
The Nouveau Cirque was built for its times—what is remembered today as the Parisian "Belle Époque" ("Beautiful Era") of which it was one of the jewels. After WWI, Paris entered the Jazz Age. When, in the early 1920s, the venerable Cirque d’Hiver, completely refurbished, returned to the presentation of circus shows after a rather futile hiatus as a movie-house and theater, when the Cirque Medrano was enjoying one of its more lucrative periods, and when the brand-new Empire Music-Hall Cirque opened its doors Avenue de Wagram, the small "bonbonniere" that was the Nouveau Cirque seemed a remnant of another era. It faced a competition it was ill-equipped to fight. Once a revolutionary and trendsetting house whose rich and often glorious life had lasted forty years, the Nouveau Cirque finally called it quits.
  
The family grew larger with the birth of two other brothers, Charlie Junior and Valentino. In 1930, the Rivels embarked on a long tour of Argentina, where Paulina learned to dance the tango and developed a dance act duet with Juanito. In 1932, in Vienna, she and Juanito impressed Austrian audiences with their stage rendition of the ''Blue Danube waltz''.  
+
The Nouveau Cirque was created by Joseph Oller (1839-1922), an imaginative entrepreneur and prolific provider of Parisian amusements. He was born Josep Oller i Roca in Terrassa, in Spanish Catalonia, on February 10, 1839; his parents were Francesc Oller, a fabric merchant, and his wife, Teresa, née Roca. The family emigrated to France when Josep was two years old, and the Ollers settled in Paris where Josep, now Joseph, was raised. He eventually returned to Spain to study at the University of Bilbao in the Basque Country, and while there, he discovered cockfighting, which was still very popular in the nineteenth century. His passion for this gory game led him to become a bookmaker—his first entrepreneurial endeavor.... ([[Nouveau Cirque (Paris)|more...]])
 
+
In the 1930s, the Rivels toured Europe, appearing in virtually every circus and variety house on the Continent. Then Charlie Rivel, who had performed his trapeze act with his brothers and had created with them a successful clown trio, The Andreu-Rivels, decided to go his own way. He launched a separate career, with the help of his wife and sons, and several partners. For these family engagements, Paulina developed a remarkable tight wire act, which she would perform for many years.... ([[Paulina Schumann|more...]])
+
  
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
 
==New Essays and Biographies==

Revision as of 21:48, 30 November 2020

Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!
Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατε!
Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!
Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!

Circopedia was originally created with the support of the Big Apple Circus and inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

Nouveau Cirque Cheret.jpg

LE NOUVEAU CIRQUE

Located from 1886 to 1926 on the rue Saint Honoré in Paris, a chic shopping thoroughfare at a stone’s throw of the Place Vendôme, the Nouveau Cirque was the most elegant and innovative circus of the French capital—and, for that matter, of Europe. For many years, it was the High Society’s circus of choice. Its relatively small size gave it warmth and intimacy (it was sometimes referred to as a "bonbonniere"), but in time, the Nouveau Cirque’s limited capacity made it difficult to manage. It began to lose its prominence before the first World War and proved unable to adapt to the post-war era.

The Nouveau Cirque was built for its times—what is remembered today as the Parisian "Belle Époque" ("Beautiful Era") of which it was one of the jewels. After WWI, Paris entered the Jazz Age. When, in the early 1920s, the venerable Cirque d’Hiver, completely refurbished, returned to the presentation of circus shows after a rather futile hiatus as a movie-house and theater, when the Cirque Medrano was enjoying one of its more lucrative periods, and when the brand-new Empire Music-Hall Cirque opened its doors Avenue de Wagram, the small "bonbonniere" that was the Nouveau Cirque seemed a remnant of another era. It faced a competition it was ill-equipped to fight. Once a revolutionary and trendsetting house whose rich and often glorious life had lasted forty years, the Nouveau Cirque finally called it quits.

The Nouveau Cirque was created by Joseph Oller (1839-1922), an imaginative entrepreneur and prolific provider of Parisian amusements. He was born Josep Oller i Roca in Terrassa, in Spanish Catalonia, on February 10, 1839; his parents were Francesc Oller, a fabric(See: Tissu) merchant, and his wife, Teresa, née Roca. The family emigrated to France when Josep was two years old, and the Ollers settled in Paris where Josep, now Joseph, was raised. He eventually returned to Spain to study at the University of Bilbao in the Basque Country, and while there, he discovered cockfighting, which was still very popular in the nineteenth century. His passion for this gory game led him to become a bookmaker—his first entrepreneurial endeavor.... (more...)

New Essays and Biographies

New Videos

New Oral Histories

Circopedia Books

A Message from the Editor

CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly—and sometimes daily—basis. Keep visiting us: even if today you don't find what you're looking for, it may well be here tomorrow! And if you are a serious circus scholar and spot a factual or historical inaccuracy, do not hesitate to contact us: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.

Dominique Jando
Founder and Curator