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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
  
===NATALYA JIGALOVA===
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===ELENA PANOVA===
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[[File:Elena_Panova_(1991).jpg|right|300px]]
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Elena Panova is credited with having originated a new swinging trapeze style and technique, which she developed quite by accident at Moscow's State College for Circus and Variety Arts, along with her teachers, Tereza Durova and Victor Fomine. When it was presented for the first time in the West in 1987 (it was at a time when communist Eastern Europe was still secluded), her act was a sensation that triggered the creation of a string of new swinging trapeze acts in a similar style, notably in Canada.
  
[[File:Jigalova.jpg|right|400px]]Natalya Jigalova (also spelled Zhigalova, 1970-2022) was part of what has been called "The Prima Donnas of the Swinging Trapeze"—one of the first aerialists, along with Elena Panova and Marina Golovinskaya, who developed under Victor Fomine the new style of swinging trapeze originated by Tereza Durova, Fomine and Panova in 1987.
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Elena Panova was born Elena Nikolaevna Borisova on July 18, 1964 in Murom, four hundred kilometers from Moscow, the third daughter of Nikolai Borisov and his wife, Klavdia, née Kazanskaya. Her parents had nothing to do with the circus: they came from peasant stock and both worked in a local factory.  
  
She was born Natalya Borisovna Vul (Наталья Борисовна Вуль – pronounced "Vool") on July 21, 1970, in Chișinău, the capital of the Republic of Moldova, a country landlocked between Ukraine and Romania, which was then part of the Soviet Union. She was raised and went to school in Chișinău, where she also attended the local "Amateur Circus" (Youth Circus). In 1985, she applied for and was accepted in Moscow’s State College for Circus and Variety Arts. Under the guidance of Victor Fomine, she created her swinging trapeze act, with which she graduated in 1989.
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Murom is one of Russia's oldest cities, dating back to the 9th century, and "home" to the Kievan Rus folk hero of yore, Ilya Muromets. It is also a Holy City that managed to keep some of its monasteries and convents open during the communist era. Yet, it is a small town, and although the Soviet government gave it a theater building, it didn't have a circus, neither was it important enough to receive the summer visit of a ''shapito'' (or ''chapiteau'' in French—a traveling circus). In fact, Elena never saw a live circus performance while growing up.  
  
Yet, her professional debut was postponed. She had met at the circus college her husband, the clown Andrey Jigalov, who graduated one year later, in 1990, with his partner Edward Alekseenko, (1966-1996). Natalya and Andrey got married, and she was expecting a son, who would be named Andrey, like his father. She also became Natalya Jigalova in the process. Then, she chose to give priority to raising her newborn son.
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She did see circus shows on television, however, as well as ballet performances, and in her early teens, she enrolled herself in her school's amateur dance company. Meanwhile, a friend of hers had joined the local "Circus Club" and suggested that Elena, who was then fourteen, came with her. "Circus Clubs" were the Soviet equivalent of European or American youth circuses, though generally at a much higher level in terms of the training they provided. They flourished in the Soviet Union, where circus arts were held in high esteem.
  
When she finally decided to resume her circus career, she performed an act in which her trapeze could be lowered to the ring, so that she could begin from the ground and go up with her apparatus (instead of being hauled up to her trapeze)—a system also used, albeit in a different manner, by another swinging trapeze artist, Elena Popova. This soaring image, along with her long black hair and her natural grace, gave a great elegance to her act. In 1996, she participated in the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain at Paris’s Cirque d’Hiver, where she won a Silver Medal. ... ([[Natalya Jigalova|more...]])
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During these years, Elena trained in basic acrobatics, but her tastes drew her to aerial apparatuses; while still at the Circus Club, she and a fellow student developed a "bambou" (aerial perch) act. Her performance debut came in April 1978, when she presented a static trapeze act in the Easter show the Circus Club staged in Murom’s Grand Theatre.... ([[Elena Panova|more...]])
  
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
  
* [[Circus Ring of Fame]], History
+
* [[Jo-Ann Jennier]], Aerialist, Animal Trainer
* [[Natalya Jigalova]], Aerialist
+
* [[Ethel Jennier]], Aerialist, Animal Trainer
* [[Guangzhou Acrobatic Troupe]], History
+
* [[Walter Jennier]], Sea Lion Trainer
* [[Irina Bugrimova]], Lion Trainer
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* [[Rex Williams]], Elephant Trainer
* [[Mikhail Shuydin]], Clown
+
* [[Little Billy Merchant]], Clown
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Lichner_Video_(2022)|Alexandre Lichner]], trapeze act (2022)
+
* [[Crocksons_Video_(1969)|The Crocksons]], comedy tumbling (1969)
* [[Mosiienko_Video_(2022)|Olha Mosiienko]], tissu (2022)
+
* [[Crystalle_Video_(2016)|Crystalle]], tight wire (2016)
* [[Holler_Zavatta_Video_(2022)|Kimberly & Holler Zavatta]], roller-skating act (2022)
+
* [[Ferkos_Video_(1969)|The Ferkos]], Russian swing (1969)
* [[Kurales_Video_(2015)|Kurales Troupe]], tumbling act (2015)
+
* [[Kroplin_Video_(1969)|Klaus Kröplin]], small animal act (1969)
* [[Twirling_Girls_Video_(2022)|The Twirling Girls]], roller-skating act (2022)
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* [[Alexis_Sisters_Video_(1987)|The Alexis Sisters]], hand-to-hand balancing (1987)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==

Revision as of 02:51, 7 June 2023

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Circopedia was originally inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

ELENA PANOVA

Elena Panova (1991).jpg

Elena Panova is credited with having originated a new swinging trapeze style and technique, which she developed quite by accident at Moscow's State College for Circus and Variety Arts, along with her teachers, Tereza Durova and Victor Fomine. When it was presented for the first time in the West in 1987 (it was at a time when communist Eastern Europe was still secluded), her act was a sensation that triggered the creation of a string of new swinging trapeze acts in a similar style, notably in Canada.

Elena Panova was born Elena Nikolaevna Borisova on July 18, 1964 in Murom, four hundred kilometers from Moscow, the third daughter of Nikolai Borisov and his wife, Klavdia, née Kazanskaya. Her parents had nothing to do with the circus: they came from peasant stock and both worked in a local factory.

Murom is one of Russia's oldest cities, dating back to the 9th century, and "home" to the Kievan Rus folk hero of yore, Ilya Muromets. It is also a Holy City that managed to keep some of its monasteries and convents open during the communist era. Yet, it is a small town, and although the Soviet government gave it a theater building, it didn't have a circus, neither was it important enough to receive the summer visit of a shapito (or chapiteau(French, Russian) A circus tent, or Big Top. in French—a traveling circus). In fact, Elena never saw a live circus performance while growing up.

She did see circus shows on television, however, as well as ballet performances, and in her early teens, she enrolled herself in her school's amateur dance company. Meanwhile, a friend of hers had joined the local "Circus Club" and suggested that Elena, who was then fourteen, came with her. "Circus Clubs" were the Soviet equivalent of European or American youth circuses, though generally at a much higher level in terms of the training they provided. They flourished in the Soviet Union, where circus arts were held in high esteem.

During these years, Elena trained in basic acrobatics, but her tastes drew her to aerial apparatuses; while still at the Circus Club, she and a fellow student developed a "bambou(French - Russian: Bambuk) Aerial apparatus, generally a hanging perch, from where the performers hang with the help of hand or ankle loops. See also: Aerial perch." (aerial perchA hanging perch, from where the performers hang with the help of hand or ankle loops. (French: Bambou - Russian: Bambuk)) act. Her performance debut came in April 1978, when she presented a static trapeze act in the Easter show the Circus Club staged in Murom’s Grand Theatre.... (more...)

New Essays and Biographies

New Videos

  • The Crocksons, comedy tumbling (1969)
  • Crystalle, tight wireA tight, light metallic cable, placed between two platforms not very far from the ground, on which a wire dancer perform dance steps, and acrobatic exercises such as somersaults. (Also: Low Wire) (2016)
  • The Ferkos, Russian swingGiant swing used to propel flyers into acrobatic figures onto the shoulders of a catcher, on a crash mat, or into a net. (1969)
  • Klaus Kröplin, small animal act (1969)
  • The Alexis Sisters, hand-to-handAn acrobatic act in which one or more acrobats do hand-balancing in the hands of an under-stander. balancing (1987)

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