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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
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[[File:Barbette_by_Gesmar.jpg|300px|right]]
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===BARBETTE===
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Between 1920 and 1935, the American trapeze and tightwire artist Barbette (1898-1973) was one of the greatest and brightest stars of the international variety circuit, notably in Europe. If he was indeed a talented acrobat, he was also a remarkable female impersonator and his act, which played with great artistry and flair on gender confusion, was and would remain unique.
  
===MOSCOW'S BOLSHOI CIRCUS===
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In Paris, where he first became a true sensation, Barbette was feted by the legendary poet, playwright, cineaste, artist and trendsetter Jean Cocteau, who made him the darling of Paris's intelligentsia—notably its gay component—and started his legend. Numerous articles, books, thesis and even a play have been published on Barbette, his act, and his androgyny. The most important publication, ''Le numéro Barbette'', with texts by Cocteau and photographs by Man Ray, dates from 1980—seven years after Barbette's death.
  
[[File:Bolshoi_Circus_Aerial.png|right|400px]]The "Great Moscow Circus on Vernadsky Avenue" (''Большой Московский цирк на проспекте Вернадского'' in Russian), better known as Moscow's ''Bolshoi Circus'' ("Grand Circus") was built under the tenure of Leonid Brezhnev as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the USSR, and opened its doors on April 30, 1971. It is located on Vorobiovy Hills (formerly Lenin Hills), in the Gagarin District, between Vernadsky Prospect (avenue), which separates it from the Moscow University campus, and Nikolai Kopernik (Copernic) Street; Lomonosov Avenue joins them on the southern side. Although it is far from Moscow's center, it is well deserved by the ''Universitet'' metro station.
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Barbette's childhood information is particularly confuse, but a close look at official documents helps clarifying it enough to avoid pointless speculations. He was born Vander Clyde Broadway on December 19, 1899, in Trickham, a small community in Texas's Coleman County, about sixty miles south of Abilene. His mother was Hattie Broadway, née Martin (1879-1949), a milliner, who was twenty when she gave birth to Vander; she lost her husband, Henry Broadway, the following year: Vander, who was barely one year old at the time, practically never knew his father.
  
The building was conceived by Yakov Borisovich Belopolsky (1916-1993)—one of the busiest official architects of the Brezhnev era—in cooperation with E. Bulikh, S. Feoktistov and V. Khavin, the engineers who developed the unique technology of this revolutionary circus. With its 3,350-seat house, 56 meters in diameter (approximately 185 feet) and a height of 28 meters (92 feet) under the cupola, and its numerous specialized features and facilities, it is the world's largest and technically most advanced circus building.
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The family moved south to the farm of Hattie's grandparents in Llano, fifty miles from Austin, where the 1900 census gives Vander a young half-brother, Malcom Wilson. Since Hattie was mentioned as Hattie Wilson on Barbette's death certificate, one may surmise that, in 1900, she was in a relationship with a Mr. Wilson, whom she perhaps married soon after. If so, it would have been a short-lived union, since she eventually married in 1906 Samuel E. Loving, who worked in a broom factory, had been a Roughrider with Theodore Roosevelt, was a volunteer fireman, and became a Williamson County Sheriff.... ([[Barbette|more...]])
 
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Its unique fittings make it an exceptional tool for the presentation of all sorts of large-scale circus productions. The ensemble includes a rehearsal ring, located backstage behind the ring entrance in a space vast and high enough to accommodate aerial acts; a stage above the ring entrance, which can connect to the ring with a telescopic staircase that unfolds automatically; the possibility for aerialists and technicians to access the house or their apparatus from the ceiling; a multitude of dressing rooms, offices, and workshops (for costumes and equipment), a canteen and a cafeteria for the personnel, and several spacious rooms with controlled temperatures to accommodate the upkeep of all sorts animals.
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But the true jewel of the crown is without a doubt its interchangeable ring: It is placed on a hydraulic circular platform that can be lowered into a gigantic basement, where four other full-size specialized rings are stored around this central elevator, and can roll on and off its platform.... ([[Bolshoi Circus|more...]])
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==New Essays and Biographies==
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
  
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* [[Barbette]], Trapeze and Tightwire Artist
 
* [[Pablo Noel]], Animal Trainer
 
* [[Pablo Noel]], Animal Trainer
 
* [[Big Apple Circus]], History
 
* [[Big Apple Circus]], History
 
* [[Gerry Cottle]], Circus Owner
 
* [[Gerry Cottle]], Circus Owner
 
* [[Sarah Chapman]], Aerialist
 
* [[Sarah Chapman]], Aerialist
* [[The 3 Bragazzi]], Comedy Acrobats
 
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Duo_Fusion_Video_(2015)|Duo Fusion]], Hand-to-Hand Balancing (2015)
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* [[Shandong_Risley_Video_(2010)|The Shandong Acrobatic Troupe]], Risley Act (2010)
* [[Caveagna_Tiger_Video_(2015)|Giordano Caveagna]], Tiger Act (2015)
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* [[Yong_Brothers_Video_1978|The Yong Brothers]], Hand-to-Hand Balancing (1978)
* [[Casselly_Pony_Video_(2015)|René Casselly, Jr.]], Poney Act (2015)
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* [[Yinchuan_Bicycle_Video_(2021)|Yinchuan Acrobatic Troupe]], Bicycle Act (2021)
* [[Duo_Destiny_Video_(2018)|Duo Destiny]], Hand-to-Hand Balancing (2018)
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* [[Guangdong_Banquine_Video_(2004)|Guangdong Acrobatic Troupe]], Porté-Lancé (2004)
* [[Stina_and_Lotta_Video_(2010)|Stina & Lotta]], Comedy Rola-Bola (2010)
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* [[Till_The_Clouds_Video_(1946)|Circus Sequence]] from ''Till The Clouds Roll By'' (1946)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==
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* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
 
* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
  
==A Message from Dominique Jando==
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==A Message from the Founder==
  
 
''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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  
 
''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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  

Revision as of 20:34, 11 October 2021

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 Ltd. and inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

Barbette by Gesmar.jpg

BARBETTE

Between 1920 and 1935, the American trapeze and tightwireSee Tight Wire. artist Barbette (1898-1973) was one of the greatest and brightest stars of the international variety circuit, notably in Europe. If he was indeed a talented acrobat, he was also a remarkable female impersonator and his act, which played with great artistry and flair on gender confusion, was and would remain unique.

In Paris, where he first became a true sensation, Barbette was feted by the legendary poet, playwright, cineaste, artist and trendsetter Jean Cocteau, who made him the darling of Paris's intelligentsia—notably its gay component—and started his legend. Numerous articles, books, thesis and even a play have been published on Barbette, his act, and his androgyny. The most important publication, Le numéro Barbette, with texts by Cocteau and photographs by Man Ray, dates from 1980—seven years after Barbette's death.

Barbette's childhood information is particularly confuse, but a close look at official documents helps clarifying it enough to avoid pointless speculations. He was born Vander Clyde Broadway on December 19, 1899, in Trickham, a small community in Texas's Coleman County, about sixty miles south of Abilene. His mother was Hattie Broadway, née Martin (1879-1949), a milliner, who was twenty when she gave birth to Vander; she lost her husband, Henry Broadway, the following year: Vander, who was barely one year old at the time, practically never knew his father.

The family moved south to the farm of Hattie's grandparents in Llano, fifty miles from Austin, where the 1900 census gives Vander a young half-brother, Malcom Wilson. Since Hattie was mentioned as Hattie Wilson on Barbette's death certificate, one may surmise that, in 1900, she was in a relationship with a Mr. Wilson, whom she perhaps married soon after. If so, it would have been a short-lived union, since she eventually married in 1906 Samuel E. Loving, who worked in a broom factory, had been a Roughrider with Theodore Roosevelt, was a volunteer fireman, and became a Williamson County Sheriff.... (more...)

New Essays and Biographies

New Videos

New Oral Histories

Circopedia Books

A Message from the Founder

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