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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
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[[Image:Philip_Astley.jpg|right|250px|Philip Astley]]
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===A SHORT HISTORY OF THE CIRCUS===
  
===BARRY LUBIN===
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If the history of theater, ballet, opera, vaudeville, movies, and television is generally well documented, serious studies of circus history are sparse, and known only to a few circus enthusiasts and scholars. What little the public at large knows, on the other hand, is circus history as told over the years by imaginative circus press agents, and repeated—and often misunderstood and distorted—by writers of popular fiction, Hollywood screenwriters, and journalists too busy to investigate further. One of the most popular misapprehensions about circus history is the oft-repeated idea that circus dates back to the Roman antiquity. But the Roman circus was in actuality the precursor of the modern racetrack; the only common denominator between Roman and modern circuses is the word itself, ''circus'', which means in Latin as in English, "circle".
[[File:Grandma_in_House_(2010).jpg|right|400px]]For a quarter of a century, Barry Lubin, better known as ''Grandma'', his clown persona, has been the iconic face of the Big Apple Circus. Although his career began and continued with other circuses in the U.S. and in Europe, to many New Yorkers and Bostonians in particular, Grandma ''is'' the Big Apple Circus. Many felt a strong sense of loss when he bid farewell to the Big Apple Circus's audiences in 2012: They had laughed at Grandma's antics when they were children, and in turn, their own children were growing up laughing with Lubin's beloved character. Thankfully, he returned to the Big Apple Circus for its Lincoln Center revival season in 2017.
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Barry Lubin was born July 3, 1952 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the son of Edythe Weinberg Lubin, a homemaker, and George Simon Lubin, an audiovisual engineer. Barry nurtured hopes of becoming a television director, but the social turmoil of the late sixties and early seventies led to a period of self-questioning—as indeed it did for many disappointed youths at the time.
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The modern circus was actually created in England by [https://www.amazon.com/dp/1984041312/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1517698824&sr=8-2&keywords=Philip+Astley+and+the+Horsemen Philip Astley] (1742-1814), a former cavalry Sergeant-Major turned showman. The son of a cabinet-maker and veneer-cutter, Astley had served in the Seven Years' War (1756-63) as part of Colonel Elliott's 15th Light Dragons regiment, where he displayed a remarkable talent as a horse-breaker and trainer. Upon his discharge, Astley chose to imitate the trick-riders who performed, with increasing success, all over Europe. Jacob Bates, an English equestrian based in the German States, who performed as far away as Russia (1764-65) and America (1772-73), was the first of these showmen to make a mark. Bates's emulators—Price, Johnson, Balp, Coningham, Faulkes, and "Old" Sampson—had become fixtures of London's pleasure gardens and provided Philip Astley with his inspiration. ([[SHORT HISTORY OF THE CIRCUS|more...]])
 
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When a friend of Barry's applied for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, a new, offbeat learning institution, Barry decided to go along and audition with him. To his surprise, he was among the 48 applicants that were accepted that year (along with Bill Irwin, and Barry's occasional partner, Dick Monday). After eight weeks of training, Barry graduated and was hired by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey: the college, in effect a training program for the show's Clown Alley, principally taught its students how to become a "Ringling clown," able to work efficiently in the specific context of The Greatest Show On Earth. ... ([[Barry Lubin|more...]])
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==New Biographies==
 
==New Biographies==
  
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* [[Joel Baker]], Clown
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* [[Irina Naumenko]], Hand Balancer
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* [[The Owl and The Pussycat]], Trapeze Act
 
* [[Walter Nones]], Circus Director, Animal Trainer
 
* [[Walter Nones]], Circus Director, Animal Trainer
 
* [[Norman Crider]], Juggler
 
* [[Norman Crider]], Juggler
* [[Zhejiang Acrobatic Troupe]], Chinese Acrobatics
 
* [[Gene Mendez]], High Wire Artist
 
* [[Franz Czeisler (Tihany)]], Magician, Circus Owner
 
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Trio_Beautiful_Video_(2007)|Trio Beautiful]], Hand-to-Hand Balancing (2007)
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* [[New_Dollies_Video_(1979)|The New Dollies]], Bicycle Act (1979)
* [[Housch-Ma-Housch_Flea_Paper_Video_(2005)|Housch-Ma-Housch]], Clown (2005)
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* [[Felice_Aguilar_Video_(2017)|Felice Aguilar]], Contortionist (2017)
* [[Shirley_Dean_Video_(2001)|Shirley Dean]], Juggler (2001)
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* [[Naraieva_Video_(2017)|Vladyslava Naraieva]], Hand Balancer (2017)
* [[Victor_et_Kati_Video_(2005)|Victor et Kati]], Hand-to-Hand Balancing (2005)
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* [[Lidya_Doveiko_Video_(1972)|Lidya & Irina Doveiko and Mikhail Algin]], German Wheel (1972)
* [[Alexis_Gruss_-_Liberty_Video_(2001)|Alexis Gruss]], Horses at Liberty (2001)
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* [[Kelli_Ramazini_Video_(2018)|Kelli Ramazini]], Trapeze (2018)
  
 
==Featured Oral Histories==
 
==Featured Oral Histories==
  
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* [[Circo_Price_Video_(2017)|A Short History of Madrid's Old Circo Price]], Circus History (1970)
 
* [[Anastasia_Dementieva_Video_(2017)|Anastasia Dementieva-Kornilova]] – Vadim Vernik Interview (2017)
 
* [[Anastasia_Dementieva_Video_(2017)|Anastasia Dementieva-Kornilova]] – Vadim Vernik Interview (2017)
 
* [[Freres_Knie_Video_(1962)|''Les Frères Knie'']], Documentary (1962)
 
* [[Freres_Knie_Video_(1962)|''Les Frères Knie'']], Documentary (1962)
 
* [[Jean_Richard_Video_(1979)|Jean Richard and Jean-Pierre Richard]] at the Cirque Jean Richard – Christian Boner Interview (1979)
 
* [[Jean_Richard_Video_(1979)|Jean Richard and Jean-Pierre Richard]] at the Cirque Jean Richard – Christian Boner Interview (1979)
 
* [[Buster_Keaton_Video_(1947)|Jérôme Medrano about Buster Keaton]] at the Cirque Medrano (1947)
 
* [[Buster_Keaton_Video_(1947)|Jérôme Medrano about Buster Keaton]] at the Cirque Medrano (1947)
* [[Moira_Orfei_Video_(2012)|Moira Orfei]], Circus Owner – Davide Maggio Interview (2012)
 
  
 
==A Message from the Editor==
 
==A Message from the Editor==

Revision as of 02:16, 14 February 2018

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 has been inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

Philip Astley

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE CIRCUS

If the history of theater, ballet, opera, vaudeville, movies, and television is generally well documented, serious studies of circus history are sparse, and known only to a few circus enthusiasts and scholars. What little the public at large knows, on the other hand, is circus history as told over the years by imaginative circus press agents, and repeated—and often misunderstood and distorted—by writers of popular fiction, Hollywood screenwriters, and journalists too busy to investigate further. One of the most popular misapprehensions about circus history is the oft-repeated idea that circus dates back to the Roman antiquity. But the Roman circus was in actuality the precursor of the modern racetrack; the only common denominator between Roman and modern circuses is the word itself, circus, which means in Latin as in English, "circle".

The modern circus was actually created in England by Philip Astley (1742-1814), a former cavalry Sergeant-Major turned showman. The son of a cabinet-maker and veneer-cutter, Astley had served in the Seven Years' War (1756-63) as part of Colonel Elliott's 15th Light Dragons regiment, where he displayed a remarkable talent as a horse-breaker and trainer. Upon his discharge, Astley chose to imitate the trickAny specific exercise in a circus act.-riders who performed, with increasing success, all over Europe. Jacob Bates, an English equestrian based in the German States, who performed as far away as Russia (1764-65) and America (1772-73), was the first of these showmen to make a mark. Bates's emulators—Price, Johnson, Balp, Coningham, Faulkes, and "Old" Sampson—had become fixtures of London's pleasure gardens and provided Philip Astley with his inspiration. (more...)

New Biographies

New Videos

Featured Oral Histories

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