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LILLY YOKOI

In the 1960s and 1970s, Lilly Yokoi (1929-2026) was considered the world's greatest acrobat on bicycle. Her act was indeed technically outstanding, and the ease with which she performed it, her grace, and her unmatched elegance have survived the test of time. Even today, her act can be regarded as the greatest solo bicycle act that ever was—and it is universally acknowledged as such by all those who were lucky enough to see her perform.

Although of Japanese descent, she was born in New York City in 1929, into a family of circus performers. Her parents, Eizo and Rui Yokoi, were acrobats on unicycle and bicycle who went to work in the United States in the 1920s. They had trained their four daughters, Mary, Lilly, Olga (Akimo), and Kimiko (Kimi, 1939-1990), and their son, George, in their craft.

The four girls reached a remarkable technical level in bicycle acrobatics, doing tricks rarely or never seen in their time with an uncanny facility. The children worked together with their parents in a bicycle and unicycle act billed as The Yokoi Family. Then, the act was featuring only three of the the four Yokoi Sisters, Mary, Olga, and Lilly. The Trio Yokoi, as they were billed, appeared on CBS's Toast of The Town (the forerunner of The Talk of the Town, which became The Ed Sullivan Show) in 1954.

Mary was the original star of the family, but Lilly quickly caught up with her: Pretty and naturally elegant, she had a remarkable stage presence and charisma. During an engagement, she met the Swedish hand-balancer Rolando, who became her husband. She then left the family act (she was replaced by Kimi) and began working solo in 1956. (In time, Kimi would embark into a successful solo career of her own, and George would complete the trio.) That very year (1956), Lilly made her first television appearance as a soloist on The Ed Sullivan Show, which certainly helped boost her budding career.

In the United States, Lilly worked exclusively in variety—from the enormous Radio City Music-Hall to Lou Walters’ intimate Latin Quarter on Times Square in New York, to tours with the Harlem Globe Trotters—but word of her exceptional talent spread out, and she was soon in high demand in Europe. There, she appeared in major circuses, such as Bertram Mills Circus at Olympia in London, Cirkus Berny in Norway, Cirkus Schumann in Denmark and Sweden, Circus Knie in Switzerland (in 1959 and 1975), among others. In variety, she was featured in some of the most prestigious venues, which included the Hansa Theater in Hamburg, the London Palladium, and the Lido in Paris—with which show she had previously appeared at the Stardust Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas..... (more...)

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New Videos

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New Oral Histories

• The Bouglione Family France 3 TV documentary (2013)
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Circopedia Books

• Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus, by Dominique Jando (2018)

A Message from the Founder

CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus, maintained by reliable circus historians and specialists. 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