Circopedia - User contributions [en]

Main Page

2026-06-08T19:14:54Z

Djando:

__NOTOC__ __NOEDITSECTION__

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<br><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατ
ε!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!</div><br/>
<div style="top:+0.2em; font-size:98%;"> ''Circopedia is an independent educational website, initially created as a project of the original, non-profit [[Big Apple Circus]]''.</div><br/>

|}
|}

==In The Spotlight==

===THE ANDREU-RIVELS===
[[File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|right|300px]]
The career of the Andreu-Rivels (also known as The 3 Rivels) spanned half a century, from 1920 to 1970. With a trio that has seen three different compositions while remaining centered around René Rivel, the brothers Andreu (Charlie, Polo, René, Celito, and Rogelio) were one of Europe’s most successful and celebrated clown act—even though over the years, their fame has been unduly shadowed by the stature (and it can be said, the considerable ego) of one of the trio's original members, Charlie Rivel, who left his brothers in 1935 to replicate the family act with other, anonymous partners and eventually pursue a "solo" career (albeit never without uncredited partners).

Their father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (c.1865-1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, Pedro and Juan began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

In 1896, they were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie, 1896-1983) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. The following year, Marie-Louise gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915). At age two, little José appeared in his father's Risley act. Then the family went on to perform with the Cirque Caignac, where little José appeared in a parody of a strong-man act and in a hand-to-hand balancing act with his sister, for which he was originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

While they were touring in France, the family continued to grow: Polo (Paul, 1899-1977) was born in Avallon in 1899, and René (1903-1976) in Aubusson in 1903. Then, the Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trick riding and began to play musical instruments.... ([[The Andreu-Rivels|more...]])

==New Essays and Biographies==

* [[Émilien Bouglione/fr|Émilien Bouglione]], French version
* [[Kremo Family]], icarists
* [[The Ziratron]], Israel's first Circus
* [[Carlos Guity]], acrobat
* [[James Clowney]], acrobat

==New Videos==

* [[Pepin_Leon_Video_(1982)|Pepin León Trio]], clowns (1982)
* [[Kathy_Donnert_Video_(2021)|Kathy Donnert]], foot juggling (2021)
* [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana]], high wire (1938)
* [[Bobby_Roberts_Video_(1985)|Bobby Roberts]], elephant act (1985)
* [[Gunther_Gebel_Tiger_Video_(1985)|Gunther Gebel-Williams]], tiger act (1985)

==New Oral Histories==

* [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev interview]] on Russian Television (c.1990)
* [[Dominique_Jando_Video_(2025)|Dominique Jando interview]] by the Circus Historical Society (2025)
* [[Evelyn_and_Andre_Video_(2015)|Evelyn & André Interview]] on Blikk TV (2015)
* [[BAC_Blumberg_Video_(1977)|''For A Moment You Fly'']], The First Season of The Big Apple Circus (1977)
* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)

==Circopedia Books==

* [[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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''

:'''Dominique Jando'''
:Founder and Curator

Pepin Leon Video (1982)

2026-06-08T19:13:22Z

Djando:

Pepin León Trio, clown entrée, at the Grand Cirque de France (no relation with the [[Cirque Gruss-Jeannet]]) (2021) ''Document: [https://www.circusnews.it CircusNews TV]''

{{#ev:vimeo|1199246873|740}}

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Pepin León]]

[[Category:Video Archive|Pepin Leon]]

Pepin León

2026-06-08T19:09:47Z

Djando: Created page with "==Clown== * Video: Pepin León Trio, clown entrée, at the Grand Cirque de France (1982) Pepin LeonCategory:Clown..."

==Clown==

* Video: [[Pepin_Leon_Video_(1982)|Pepin León Trio, clown entrée]], at the Grand Cirque de France (1982)

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Pepin Leon]][[Category:Clowns|Pepin Leon]]

Pepin Leon Video (1982)

2026-06-08T19:06:47Z

Djando:

Pepin León Trio, clown entrée, at the Grand Cirque de France (no relation with the [[Cirque Gruss-Jeannet]]) (2021)

{{#ev:vimeo|1199246873|740}}

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Pepin León]]

[[Category:Video Archive|Pepin Leon]]

Pepin Leon Video (1982)

2026-06-08T19:06:25Z

Djando: Created page with "Pepin León Trio, clown entrée, at the Grand Cirque de France (no relation with the Cirque Gruss-Jeannet) (2021) {{#ev:vimeo|1199067287|740}} ==See Also== * Biography:..."

Pepin León Trio, clown entrée, at the Grand Cirque de France (no relation with the [[Cirque Gruss-Jeannet]]) (2021)

{{#ev:vimeo|1199067287|740}}

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Pepin León]]

[[Category:Video Archive|Pepin Leon]]

Kremo Family

2026-06-06T20:36:37Z

Djando: /* The Kremo Dynasty */

[[File:Kremo_troup.jpg|right|400px]]
==Icarists (Risley Act)==

''By Dominique Jando''

The Kremos, a Czech family of acrobats, produced two generations of remarkable icarists, followed by two generations of remarkable jugglers, [[Béla Kremo]], and his son, [[Kris Kremo|Kris]]. All of them have been important circus and variety stars in Europe in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and Kris Kremo, who also became a celebrated international star in America as well as in Europe, continued the tradition well into the twenty-first century.

===Josef Kremka===

[[File:The_Kremo_Family.jpeg|thumb|left|300px|Poster for the Kremo Family Troupe]]The original Kremo troupe was created around 1880 by Josef Kremo (1854-1917), whose real name name was Kremka. His family was of Czech origins—at a time when Czechoslovakia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. By age ten, Josef Kremka had been apprenticed to the [[The Scheffers|Scheffers]], an Austrian family of talented acrobats who performed the best and most celebrated Risley act of the late 19th century. (Their name's correct spelling was ''Schäffer'', but was generally spelled ''Scheffer'' in the circus and variety business)

Josef eventually left the Scheffers, and being a polyvalent circus performer, he went to work in any capacity that was required: on the trapeze, the high wire (he performed on stilts on the wire), as a contortionist, and as a tumbler. In 1880 he married the equestrienne [[Franziska Allinger]] (1858-1940). Together, they had twelve surviving children: Sylvester (1881-1962), Karl (1882-1958), Elvira (known as Ella, 1884-1973), Karolina (known as Lina, 1885-1945), Eugenie, Mark (1888-1945), Franziska, the twins Victor and Leon, Siegfried, and two others whose name are not known.

As was (and still is) the tradition in the circus, they all started training at an early age—although only ten of Josef's children eventually embraced a circus career. As they grew up, they began to join their father in the ring and performed with him a Risley act which was at first composed of Josef and his two elder sons, Sylvester and Karl. As it was, the ''Kremo Truppe Ikarischen'' ("Kremo Troupe's Icarists")—the very first Kremo Troupe—appeared around 1890.

In time, Sylvester and Karl were joined by other siblings—among whom Anton, Franziska, and Viktor could perform a triple somersault on the feet of their father, the most difficult trick of the specialty, then as now. The Kremo Troupe became famous and worked all over the world, including the United States and Australia. At some point at the beginning of the twentieth century, Josef fell ill and was eventually confined to a wheelchair. The original Kremo Troupe was dissolved in 1915, and Josef died on December 26, 1917, in Groß Köris, south of Berlin, in Germany, which had become the family seat.

===The Kremo Dynasty===

[[File:Kremo_karl_1933.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Karl Kremo Troupe (1933)]]Ella Kremo became a tight-wire acrobat and made her debut as such in Ganz, Austria, in 1901. She was one of the very few women (if not the only one known at the time) to perform a somersault on the wire. She married a photographer, Johann Hötzl. Lina Kremo also had her own career with an act titled ''Kremolina & Partner'', in which she danced with her brother Franz, and which became ''La Kremolina and Darras'' when she left the family act and married Otto Darras in 1926.

At least two of the Kremo children, Sylvester and Karl, eventually went on to create their own Risley acts, and continued the family tradition. The Sylvester Kremo Family troupe consisted of Sylvester and his daughters, Sylvia and Selna. The Karl Kremo Family was a larger troupe, consisting of Karl, his brother Mark (1888-1945), his wife Margrit (née Hanus in Hungary, 1891-1923) and their children, Bellona, Béla, Bianca, and Bert, along with occasional partners. Both troupes brilliantly continued the Kremo tradition, performing in Europe's leading circuses and variety theaters until the 1930s. The Karl Kremo Family was the most famous of the two.

One of Karl's sons, Belá, became a famous juggler: Belá Kremo (1911-1979), known as "The Gentleman Juggler", an act he debuted in 1931. His son, Kris Kremo (b.1951), became in turn a world-famous juggler, and a true living legend who has maintained the name alive and at the zenith of juggling history.

==See also==

* Biographies: [[Bela Kremo|Béla Kremo]], [[Kris Kremo]]
* Oral History: [[Kris_Kremo_Interview_2007|Kris Kremo: interview]] with Dominique Jando (2007)

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:The_Kremo_Family.jpeg|The Kremo Family (c.1905)
Image:Kremo_troup.jpg|The Kremo Family (c.1910)
File:Elvira_Kremo.jpg|Ella Kremo (1910)
File:Kremo_Familie_Poster.jpg|Kremo Family poster (c.1910)
Image:Les_Kremo.jpg|The Kremo Family (1913)
File:Karl_Kremo_Children.jpg|The Karl Kremo Troupe (c.1920)
File:Sylvester_Kremo_Family.jpg|The Sylvester Kremo Family (c.1920)
File:Karl_Kremo_Family.jpg|The Karl Kremo Troupe (c.1925)
Image:Kremo_karl_1933.jpg|The Karl Kremo Family (1933)
</Gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Kremo Family]][[Category:Risley Acts (Icarists)|Kremo Family]][[Category:Jugglers|Kremo Family]]

Main Page

2026-06-06T20:31:08Z

Djando:

__NOTOC__ __NOEDITSECTION__

{| id="mp-topbanner" style="width:100%; background:#fcfcfc; margin-top:1.2em; border:1px solid #ccc;"
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{| style="width:100%; border:solid 0px; background:none;"
|style="width:500px; text-align:center; white-space:nowrap; color:#000;"|
<br><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατ
ε!</div><div style="font-size:175%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!</div><br/>
<div style="top:+0.2em; font-size:98%;"> ''Circopedia is an independent educational website, initially created as a project of the original, non-profit [[Big Apple Circus]]''.</div><br/>

|}
|}

==In The Spotlight==

===THE ANDREU-RIVELS===
[[File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|right|300px]]
The career of the Andreu-Rivels (also known as The 3 Rivels) spanned half a century, from 1920 to 1970. With a trio that has seen three different compositions while remaining centered around René Rivel, the brothers Andreu (Charlie, Polo, René, Celito, and Rogelio) were one of Europe’s most successful and celebrated clown act—even though over the years, their fame has been unduly shadowed by the stature (and it can be said, the considerable ego) of one of the trio's original members, Charlie Rivel, who left his brothers in 1935 to replicate the family act with other, anonymous partners and eventually pursue a "solo" career (albeit never without uncredited partners).

Their father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (c.1865-1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, Pedro and Juan began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

In 1896, they were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie, 1896-1983) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. The following year, Marie-Louise gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915). At age two, little José appeared in his father's Risley act. Then the family went on to perform with the Cirque Caignac, where little José appeared in a parody of a strong-man act and in a hand-to-hand balancing act with his sister, for which he was originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

While they were touring in France, the family continued to grow: Polo (Paul, 1899-1977) was born in Avallon in 1899, and René (1903-1976) in Aubusson in 1903. Then, the Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trick riding and began to play musical instruments.... ([[The Andreu-Rivels|more...]])

==New Essays and Biographies==

* [[Émilien Bouglione/fr|Émilien Bouglione]], French version
* [[Kremo Family]], icarists
* [[The Ziratron]], Israel's first Circus
* [[Carlos Guity]], acrobat
* [[James Clowney]], acrobat

==New Videos==

* [[Kathy_Donnert_Video_(2021)|Kathy Donnert]], foot juggling (2021)
* [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana]], high wire (1938)
* [[Bobby_Roberts_Video_(1985)|Bobby Roberts]], elephant act (1985)
* [[Gunther_Gebel_Tiger_Video_(1985)|Gunther Gebel-Williams]], tiger act (1985)
* [[Flying_Girls_Video_(2009)|The New Flying Girls]], flying act (2009)

==New Oral Histories==

* [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev interview]] on Russian Television (c.1990)
* [[Dominique_Jando_Video_(2025)|Dominique Jando interview]] by the Circus Historical Society (2025)
* [[Evelyn_and_Andre_Video_(2015)|Evelyn & André Interview]] on Blikk TV (2015)
* [[BAC_Blumberg_Video_(1977)|''For A Moment You Fly'']], The First Season of The Big Apple Circus (1977)
* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)

==Circopedia Books==

* [[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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''

:'''Dominique Jando'''
:Founder and Curator

The Donnert Family

2026-06-06T20:29:57Z

Djando:

==Equestrians, Animal Trainers, Acrobats==

* Video: [[Donnert_Video_(1995)|The Donnert all-female troupe, jockeys]], at the Cirkus Prinsessan Festival (1995)
* Video: [[Karoly Donnert Video (2000)|Karoly Donnert, tiger act]], at the Festival International du Cirque de Massy (2000)
* Video: [[Kathy_Donnert_Video_(2021)|Kathy Donnert, foot juggling]], at Het Witte Paad (2021)

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Donnert Family]][[Category:Equestrians|Donnert Family]][[Category:Jockeys|Donnert Family]][[Category:Animal Trainers|The Donnert Family]]

Kathy Donnert

2026-06-06T20:28:53Z

Djando:

#REDIRECT: [[The Donnert Family]]

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Donnert, Kathy]][[Category:Foot Jugglers|Donnert, Kathy]]

Kathy Donnert

2026-06-06T20:28:37Z

Djando: Redirected page to The Donnert Family

#REDIRECT: [[The Donnert Family]]

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Donnert, Kathy]][[Category:Foot Juggling|Donnert, Kathy]]

The Donnert Family

2026-06-06T20:27:02Z

Djando:

==Equestrians, Animal Trainers, Acrobats==

* Video: [[Donnert_Video_(1995)|The Donnert all-female troupe, jockeys]], at the Cirkus Prinsessan Festival (1995)
* Video: [[Karoly Donnert Video (2000)|Karoly Donnert, tiger act]], at the Festival International du Cirque de Massy (2000)
* Video: [[

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Donnert Family]][[Category:Equestrians|Donnert Family]][[Category:Jockeys|Donnert Family]][[Category:Animal Trainers|The Donnert Family]]

Kathy Donnert Video (2021)

2026-06-06T20:25:53Z

Djando: Created page with "Kathy Donnert, foot juggling, at Het Witte Pad in Blankenberge, Belgium (2021) {{#ev:vimeo|1199067287|740}} ==See Also== * Biography: Kathy Donnert Category:Video Ar..."

Kathy Donnert, foot juggling, at Het Witte Pad in Blankenberge, Belgium (2021)

{{#ev:vimeo|1199067287|740}}

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Kathy Donnert]]

[[Category:Video Archive|Donnert Kathy]]

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T23:04:32Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Top_Hat.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.1980)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.1990)
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Mikhail_Baryshnikov.jpg|Valentin Gneushev with Mikhail Baryshnikov (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.2020)
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Top Hat.jpg

2026-06-04T23:03:53Z

Djando:

Valentin Gneushev in his early performing days (c.1980) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Valentin Gneushev]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Top Hat.jpg

2026-06-04T23:02:41Z

Djando: Valentin Gneushev in his early performing days (c.1980) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

Valentin Gneushev in his early performing days (c.1980) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T22:57:00Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.1990)
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Mikhail_Baryshnikov.jpg|Valentin Gneushev with Mikhail Baryshnikov (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.2020)
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Mikhail Baryshnikov.jpg

2026-06-04T22:55:24Z

Djando:

Valentin Gneushev with Mikhail Baryshnikov (1991) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

==See Also==

* Biography:[[Valentin Gneushev]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Mikhail Baryshnikov.jpg

2026-06-04T22:54:16Z

Djando: Valentin Gneushev with Mikhail Baryshnikov (1991) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

Valentin Gneushev with Mikhail Baryshnikov (1991) — ''Photo: Gneushev Archive''

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T22:48:59Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.1990)
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.2020)
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T22:48:02Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|Valentin Gneushev (c.2020)
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T22:47:16Z

Djando: /* Epilogue */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

Valentin Gneushev

2026-06-04T22:46:54Z

Djando: /* Epilogue */

[[Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|right|400px]]
==Director, Act Designer==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Born on December 20, 1951, in Nizhny Tagil, in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, (close to the boundary between Asia and Europe), Valentin Aleksandrovich Gneushev (1951-2026) was one of the most influential circus directors-choreographers of the second half of the twentieth century, and the creator of some of the most innovative and celebrated circus acts of the 1990s.

As the “new circus” movement was drastically changing the traditional imagery of the circus (roughly between 1975 and 1995), Gneushev became the ultimate trendsetter, completely renewing the language of the ring. A master at discovering untapped talents in the disintegrating Soviet circus world, then creating and designing original acts for them, he eventually influenced the style of many young circus artists and companies, including [[Cirque du Soleil]].

===From Clowning To Directing===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Valentin in his teens (c.1965)]]Valentin Gneushev fell in love with the circus as a teenager, although he was destined to be a cook. Obviously, this was not his calling: At age fourteen he began to perform in a local Amateur Circus (the Russian equivalent of our Youth Circuses, albeit at a much higher artistic and technical level than in the West). He eventually decided to leave the Sverdlovsk Province and the industrial fumes of Nizhny Tagil (birthplace of the first Russian steam locomotive) and headed for Moscow, where he was accepted in the [[State College for Circus and Variety Arts (Moscow)|State College for Circus and Variety Arts]] (the “legendary Moscow Circus School”). There, he specialized as a clown.

In Moscow, Gneushev studied under Roman Viktiuk, Firs Zemtsev, and especially Serguei Kashtelian, who had a lasting influence on his work. He graduated in 1978 and formed a short-lived clown trio with two partners, in which he revealed a special aptitude for pantomime, as well as a need to distance himself from the conventional circus clowning of the period.

An eager student of the arts (literature, history, painting, music), Valentin developed a remarkable artistic culture, and an aesthetic vision rooted in classic as well as contemporary art, and widely open to new influences—a far cry from the prevalent rhetoric of the Soviet artistic scene.

This eventually led him to study Movement Theater at the Moscow Theater Academy, and, upon graduation in 1980, to teach pantomime and movement at the Moscow Circus School and other performing art institutions. His also embarked into intense theatrical activity, consulting in stage movement for several major theater productions of the period. In 1983, he was named Artistic Director of the Stage Circus group of the "Pravda" plant’s cultural center in Moscow.

Valentin’s work and interests led him to study at the GITIS institute, the theater institute in Moscow that was then developing new guidelines inspired by the “biomechanics” theory of Vsevolod Meyerhold—a sophisticated principle of body aesthetics spreading across mime, gymnastics and dance. Gneushev graduated as a director in 1986.

Although other director-choreographers applied with remarkable success Meyerhold’s principles to the circus (among them, [[The Durov Dynasty|Tereza Durova]] and [[Piotr Maistrenko]]), it fell upon Gneushev to transform them into a new mode of expression for the circus arts. Connecting the circus to a fundamentally different imagery, he developed new, groundbreaking circus aesthetics.

=== The Gneushev Era ===

By the mid-1980s, Gneushev’s activity became completely devoted to the circus. One of the very first acts he had created was, in 1983, ''The Moscow Builders'', an extravagant, semi-ironic staging for Yury Odintsov’s perch pole act (an impressive but often boring Russian specialty), in which props and athletes evoked a tongue-in-cheek picture of proletarian street workers.

[[Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'']]This act was perceived as somehow iconoclastic by the bureaucrats of [[SoyuzGosTsirk]] (the Soviet State Circus organization)—and their perception was indeed correct. But Valentin’s work was truly revealed to the world in 1987, when he introduced at Paris’ [[Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain]] the juggler [[Vladimir Tsarkov]] as ''The Red Harlequin'', an act he had created in 1985.

Inspired by Picasso’s "Arlequin" paintings, the act shattered the traditional juggler image and reconstructed the artist’s movements into a true choreographic piece, with its own vision and imagery. It became immediately clear that Valentin’s talent as an act choreographer was his ability to fully develop the hidden potential of a performer’s personality and combine it with his or her technical achievements.

Tsarkov’s success in Paris (he won a Gold Medal) didn’t truly please the Russian circus authorities, which were still promoting a more conservative and politically correct image of the Soviet circus. That same year, Valentin helped with the choreography of one of the greatest circus acts of all times, Vilen Golovko’s [[The Cranes|''The Cranes'']], the superb aerial piece created by Piotr Maistrenko.

After his first success in Paris, Valentin returned regularly to the Festival, each time with new and always surprising acts, most of which became milestones of a new circus language. In 1986, he created to Nino Rota’s music the chair-balancing pantomime of [[Vassily Demenchuk]] (performed after 2006 by [[Maxim Popazov]]). In 1989, it was the aerial straps act of [[Vladimir Kekhaial]], the long-manned flying Hercules (whose style would inspire many subsequent strap acts), who became, with the clown [[David Shiner]], the main feature of Cirque du Soleil’s ''Nouvelle Experience'' (1990)—the show that ultimately defined Cirque du Soleil’s artistic path. (Demenchuk was also featured in ''Nouvelle Experience'').

That same year (1989), Valentin revamped the extraordinary tiger act of [[Nikolai Pavlenko]], bringing the concept of acting and character to the big cage, and working on the trainer’s movements as if he were a symphony orchestra conductor, replete with baton, white tie, and tails. The result was astounding—a true ballet featuring seventeen tigers and their ''conductor'' performing to a piece of classical music. (Pavlenko has been awarded a Gold Clown at the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo in 1990.) 1989 also saw the superb juggling act on a rolling globe of [[Yury Borzykin]].

Then came in 1990 the controversial ''Angel'', with [[Aleksandr Streltsov]]—a near-naked child performing a sensual aerial straps act to Nina Hagen’s rendition of Schubert’s ''Ave Maria''—and ''Rattango'', the unconventional hand-balancing act of [[Genady Chijov]], who partnered with a trained white rat. (Chijov eventually became the central character of Cirque du Soleil’s original production of ''Saltimbanco'' in 1993).

===Cirk Valentin and Other Experiments===
[[File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)]]
Finally, SoyuzGosTsirk began to include some of Gneushev’s acts in the foreign tours of the [[Moscow Circus]] companies, which attracted the curiosity of journalists and producers. One of these producers was Steve Lieber, who had organized very successful tours of the Moscow Circus in the United States in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1991, Lieber launched a revolutionary concept: ''Cirk Valentin'', a stage production displaying the best of Valentin’s acts, with Bobby Previte as music composer.

The show premiered in New York at the Gershwin Theatre, a major Broadway house, on November 6, 1991. It was choreographed by [[Pavel Brun]], who had been for years Gneushev’s assistant and choreographer. Brun was to work later with [[Franco Dragone]] for Cirque du Soleil, and became the associate director of Celine Dion's show, ''A New Day'', at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas (2002-2007).

Although it was not a commercial success and closed after a poorly attended two-month run, and its format was slightly controversial at the time—mostly because its production values were rather cheap for a Broadway show, which gave critics a misled reading of its concept—''Cirk Valentin'' actually pioneered the subsequent trend of stage circuses, established the notion of authorship (or ''cirque d’auteur'') in contemporary circus, and helped to definitely ascertain Valentin Gneushev as a name to contend with on the international circus scene.

The most spectacular feature of Cirk Valentin was a groundbreaking aerial bars act, ''[[Perezvony]]'' (''Chimes''), an impressively dark aerial piece performed to a symphonic piece by Valery Gavrilin, in which the performers evoked swinging bells. (''Perezvony'' obtained a Silver Clown at the [[International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo]] in 1993.) This act was later reproduced in Cirque du Soleil’s ''Alegria'' and ''Mystère'' productions, after Cirque du Soleil had hired Gneushev’s longtime associate, Pavel Brun.

''Cirk Valentin'' also featured the balancing act of [[Yelena Fedotova]] and Anatoly Stykan, The Russian Barre act of The [[Zemskov Troupe|Zemskovi]] in its original version, as well as their perch-pole act, and an act especially created for the occasion, ''Charlie'', a rola-bola act inspired by Chaplin's ''The Tramp'' and performed by Serguei Loskutov and his son, Serguei, Jr. Other Valentine's creations were Gennady Chijov's ''Rattango'',; Aleksandr Streltsov's ''Angel''; the juggler on rolling globe [[Yury Borzykin]]. [[File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Yelena Larkina]]

For a few years, Gneushev continued to create acts for SoyuzGosTsirk, working in the organization’s illustrious [[Circus Studio]] in Moscow—where Piotr Maestrenko had built ''The Cranes'' and many other amazing aerial acts. But Paris’s Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain proved to be the platform on which Gneushev built his reputation and success. And after the fall of the Soviet Union, when individual Russian acts became available to the western market, many variety theaters and circuses, familiar with them though the Festival, began asking for “Valentin’s acts.”

In 1992, Gneushev worked with a new clown duo, [[Jigalov]] and Alekseenko. He reached the peak of his career in 1993-1995, probably his most prolific years, intensifying at this time his collaboration with music composer Lev Zemlinski. Valentin completely revamped the hula-hoop act of one of his protégées, [[Yelena Larkina]], to the tune of ''Fata Morgana'', with an Arabian theme; he created the wonderfully decadent “expressionist” juggling act, ''Votre Pierrot'', for [[Evgeny Pimonenko]]; the very original slack wire act of [[Andrey Ivakhnenko]]; and ''The Little Devil'' for Anton and Leonid Beliakov.

Valentin also changed the staging of The Zemskovi's Russian Barre act with a Zemlinski’s score inspired by the imagery of Adam’s classic ballet, ''Le Corsaire''—which would inspire a quantity of new Russian Barre acts. Likewise, the risley act he conceived for the [[Kurbanov Troupe]] in 1994, in which the performers, dressed as American bikers, used their motorcycles as ''trinkas'', became one of the most copied acts of the contemporary circus. That same year, he choreographed the juggling duo [[Duo Bondarenko|Bondarenko]] as a true piece of sensual, contemporary dance. Finally, in 1995, Valentin and a selection of his acts went to Japan, as the centerpiece of Bunichiro Matsumoto’s short-lived ''Musical Circus'', directed by [[Tandy Beal]].

===Final Bow: The Gneushev Studio===

During the early 1990s, while Valentin’s acts were beginning to invade the best circuses and variety theaters of the planet, his base remained the Circus Studio in Moscow. But in spite of his numerous international awards and his obvious success, his artistic vision still contrasted with the politics of SoyuzGosTsirk (which, after the fall of the Soviet regime would be renamed RosGosTsirk). Still reveling on memories of its past glory, the old central circus organization seemed unable to truly appreciate the changes that their own Valentin Gneushev was bringing to the international circus scene.

[[File:Borodina.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Elena Borodina]]Not surprisingly, in 1993, Gneushev decided to become an independent producer and began to attract young performers away from the State circus company, and to create acts for them that could be offered individually to the western market. [[Maxim Nikulin]], son of the legendary clown and actor [[Yury Nikulin]] (1921-1997), who had succeeded his father at the helm of the "Old Circus" on Tsvetnoy Boulevard in Moscow (today [[Circus Nikulin]]) and had become one of the first Russian independent circus directors, offered Valentin a space in his circus to house the new Gneushev Studio.

Not only did the Gneushev Studio become the main crucible of the post-Soviet circus experimentation, but Maxim Nikulin also expanded his association with Valentin, and asked him to stage two of his Circus’s productions, ''Sweet!... Love'' (1996) and ''The Fair of Miracles'' (1997)—highly innovative and creative shows, as could be expected, which gave to the "Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard" a definitely new look.

The Gneushev Studio continued to produce original acts, each completely different from the other, always investigating new artistic paths. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain again revealed the wonderful unicycle adagio of [[Diana & Yury|Diana Aleschenko and Yury Shavro]] (1996); the angular, neo-cubist hand-balancer, [[Aleksandr Veligosha]] (1997); and Valentin’s last creation, the superb hand-balancing act of [[Elena Borodina]], inspired by Isadora Duncan. This last act was presented in Paris in 2001; by then the Gneushev Studio had already ceased to exist.

Valentin Gneushev had never been an easy collaborator. Fiercely individualistic, perfectionist, weary of all forms of authority, he didn’t fit within the old Russian circus community. He had little patience for the lack of culture of many of those who criticized him. His armor was the public persona he created for himself, a haughty cigar-smoking cultural snob, dismissing anyone who didn’t agree with him. Although his friends knew better, his attitude didn’t endear him to many around him, and he made indeed more enemies than he needed.

===Epilogue===

[[File:Valentin_Gneushev_-_Old_Age.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Valentin in his last years (c.2020)]]As the twentieth century ended, Valentin slowly took his interests away from the circus, turning to theater, movies, and television. Just as the new Russian government had finally recognized his exceptional contribution to the circus arts, making him "Art Worker Emeritus of the Russian Federation", he was burning bridges with the circus world. Sadly, his departing was of course the circus world’s loss.

Yet, ten years into the twenty-first century, many of Valentin’s best acts could still be seen in the best circuses and variety theaters of the world. They still impressed by their amazing originality, their artistic perfection, and their unmatched creativity. Valentin’s influence spawned a plethora of new circus choreographers, who tried—a few successfully, many more, much less so—to shake up conventions and participate in the creation of a new circus language.

But Valentin Gneushev had a rule that some of his later would-be successors often forgot: He used only highly skilled performers, who mastered their specialty. They were all superb technicians. Valentin never tried to compensate technical weakness with unconventional, eye-catching staging; on the contrary, he used the superior skills of his students to create a work of art that was unquestionably a true circus act—and therefore, unequivocally, not a piece of dance or movement theater. He took remarkable circus performers and turned them into extraordinary circus artists. This was his true genius and will be his true legacy.

In his twilight years, Valentin's health began to decline, both physically and, to some extent, mentally: It is hard for someone who was at a time considered a genius (and a genius indeed he was) to become socially isolated. In his last years, his appearance became that of an old eccentric character, which made him impossible to ignore, but also sometimes difficult to recognize. Then, in the week of March 9, 2026, his daughter, who took care of him, was worried by his sudden silence. On March 11, she went to his apartment in Moscow , and found him unresponsive: He had died of heart failure, alone.

Valentin Gneushev's passing was largely reported and commented by Russian news media: He was remembered as a major figure in the Russian performing arts; he was also an epoch-making figure in Circus history. He was laid to rest at the Troyekurovskoye cemetery, near Moscow. Valentin once told a friend: "I will speak someone else's words, but I like them. 'To be joyful is a necessity and a duty.' This was written by [Gabriel Marcía] Márquez. The meaning of life is in joy. And this is what I am telling you now, when I am tormented by people, the structure of the world, love. I will never give up joy. We should rejoice at everything. Rejoice at a funeral—when a person has finally died."

== See Also ==

* Video: [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev Interview]] (c.1990)
* Video: [[Pavlenko_Video_(1990)|Nikolai Pavlenko, Tiger Act]]
* Video: [[Vladimir_Tsarkov_BAC_1992_Video|Vladimir Tsarkov: ''The Red Harlequin'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Simonov's_Hommage_a_Leotard_Video_(1993)|''Hommage à Léotard'', Flying Act]]
* Video: [[Evgeny_Pimonenko_Video_(1997)|Evgeny Pimonenko: ''Your Pierrot'', Juggler]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_Russian_Barre_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Russian Barre]]
* Video: [[Streltsov_Video_(1990)|''Angel'' with Aleksandr Streltsov]]
* Video: [[Zemskov_-_Perch_Act_Video_(1995)|The Zemskov Troupe, Perch-Pole Balancing]]
* Video: [[Ivakhnenko_Video_(2004)|Andrey Ivakhnenko, Slack Wire]]
* Video: [[Gasser and Kreer Video 1995|Johnny Gasser & Yury Kreer, Hand-to-Hand Balancing]]
* Video: [[Larkina_Video_(1993)|Yelena Larkina, Hula-Hoops]]
* Video: [[Kurbanov_Video_(1994)|The Kurbanov Troupe, Risley act]]
* Video: [[Diana_and_Yury_Video|Yury Shavro and Diana Aleshchenko, Unicycle]]
* Video: [[Bondarenko_Video_(1993)|Duo Bondarenko]]
* Video: [[Elena_Borodina_Video_2001|Elena Borodina, Hand Balancer]]
* Video: [[Perezvony_Video_(c_2005)|''Perezvony'' Flying Act]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Valentin_Gneushev_Teens.jpg|Valentin Gneushev in his teens (c.1965)
Image:Valentin_Gneushev.jpg|Valentin Gneushev
Image:Vladimir_Tsarkov_as_Red_Harlequin.jpg|Vladimir Tsarkov
File:Andrei_Ivakhnenko_B-W.jpg|Andrey Ivakhnenko
File:CIRK_VALENTIN_(1991).jpg|Cirk Valentin Poster (1991)
Image:Cirk_Valentin.jpg|Cirk Valentin Playbill Cover (1991)
File:Yelena_Larkina.jpg|Yelena Larkina
File:Borodina.jpg|Elena Borodina
</Gallery>

[[Category:History|Gneushev, Valentin]][[Category:Circus Owners and Directors|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Old Age.jpg

2026-06-04T22:45:06Z

Djando:

Valentin Gneushev in old age (c.2020) — ''Photo © Kirill Zykov''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Valentin Gneushev]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Gneushev, Valentin]]

File:Valentin Gneushev - Old Age.jpg

2026-06-04T22:43:56Z

Djando: Valentin Gneushev in old age (c.2020) — ''Photo © Kirill Zykov''

Valentin Gneushev in old age (c.2020) — ''Photo © Kirill Zykov''

The Andreu-Rivels

2026-06-04T20:19:08Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Andreu-Rivels 1958.jpg|150px|right]]
==Clowns==

''By Raffaele De Ritis and Dominique Jando''

The career of the Andreu-Rivels (also known as The 3 Rivels) spanned half a century, from 1920 to 1970. With a trio that has seen three different compositions while remaining centered around René Rivel, the brothers Andreu (Charlie, Polo, René, Celito, and Rogelio) were one of Europe’s most successful and celebrated clown act—even though over the years, their fame has been unduly shadowed by the stature (and it can be said, the considerable ego) of one of the trio's original members, [[Charlie Rivel]], who left his brothers in 1935 to replicate the family act with other, anonymous partners and eventually pursue a "solo" career (albeit never without uncredited partners).

===The Andreu Family===

Their father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (?-1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, Pedro and Juan began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

[[File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|thumb|left|310px|Circo Andreu's Company (c.1916)]]In 1896, they were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie, 1896-1983) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. The following year, Marie-Louise gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915). At age two, little José appeared in his father's risley act. Then the family went on to perform with the Cirque Caignac, where little José appeared in a parody of a strong-man act and in a hand-to-hand balancing act with his sister, for which he was originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

While they were touring in France, the family continued to grow: Polo (Paul, 1899-1977) was born in Avallon in 1899, and René (1903-1976) in Aubusson in 1903. Then, the Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trick riding and began to play musical instruments.

The Andreu family went on to perform in other small French circuses, where José, Neña and Polo appeared in a balancing trio called ''Los Pepitos''. It was probably in 1905, at the circuses [[Cirque Zanfretta|Zanfretta]] and [[Cirque Lambert|Lambert]], that the three siblings began work on their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, with Neña as the catcher. The following year, in 1906, José got a first taste of clowning, when the director, Monsieur Lambert, called on him to replace the house clown, Carleto. Celito (Marcel, 1906-1969) was born that year in Elbeuf, and Rogelio (Roger, 1909-2001) three years later, in 1909, in Roubaix. They would soon become part of the family acts.

After finally being accepted by a talent agency, the Andreus began to work regularly in French circuses. In 1910-12, they appeared in several minor variety theaters in Paris and on the stage of various Italian theaters. In 1913, during an engagement with the French [[The Rancy Dynasty|Cirque Alphonse Rancy]], Pedro Andreu performed for the first time with his family in his native Catalonia, at Barcelona's Tivoli, before opening his own ''Circo Reina Victoria'' in 1915. José (under the name Boby) and Polo performed their first clown entrée in the new family circus.

The Andreus' new circus venture lasted about ten years, alternating with foreign contracts. The family's main act remained their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, in which José started developing a comic character. Their second act was a large risley presentation (a widely popular specialty at the time), which included their father and another catcher. In time, Celito and Rogelio would also develop an acrobatic and juggling act.

===Charlie and The Rivels===

In the late 1910s, circus and variety shows were invaded by parodies of Charlie Chaplin, whose extremely popular movie character, the Tramp, had become a customary comic addition to specialty acts in need of a comedy boost. José, who already used comedy in the trapeze act he now did with his brothers René and Polo, introduced his "Charlie" character in 1916 in Madrid. To distinguish their trapeze act from the Andreus' risley act on the bills, the family titled it ''Charlie and the Rivels'' (''Charlot et les Rivels''). From then on, José Andreu would be known as Charlie Rivel.

The legend later perpetrated by Charlie Rivel is that the brothers simply made up the name Rivel by picking letters at random. As a matter of fact, ''Rivel'' had been for a long time the stage name of Pedro Andreu, which he used for all the acrobatic troupes he created with his partners and children. Where the name actually came from remains a matter of speculation.

[[File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|thumb|right|300px|Charlie, René & Polo Andreu-Rivels]]
Meanwhile, René and Polo, with René as the traditional whiteface clown and Polo as his auguste, had developed an excellent clown duet. René was an elegant clown, et Polo a remarkable auguste—in the opinion of many, much more talented than his brother Charlie. For during a tour in Morocco, Charlie became "Boby" again, and joined the act. Since Charlie had a gift for comedy, they decided to form a clown trio, in the fashion of the successful Fratellini brothers, the shining stars of Paris's [[Cirque Medrano (Paris)|Cirque Medrano]]. Their father helped them develop an entrée that made good use of their exceptional acrobatic skills. It became the brothers' second act.

The success of the Rivels' comedy-trapeze act, coupled with the Andreu clown trio, propelled them into big-time circuses and variety theaters: the London Coliseum in 1923 and, the following year, [[Cirque d'Hiver]] in Paris, where they were a sensation with the savvy Parisian circus audiences. [[Bertram Mills Circus]] at London's Olympia quickly followed.

The Rivels were allegedly sued by United Artists for using the Chaplin movie persona without permission (perhaps simply for doing it too well and too successfully, for there were hundreds of Chaplin impersonators in the business). Charlie consequently performed in the trapeze act as a generic drunk character. In any event, the Rivels continued to work in the most prestigious houses, including Cirque Medrano in Paris (1925), the Scala in Berlin (1927), and [[Cirkus Schumann]] (1928).
Soon their Andreu clown trio began to gain preeminence over their Rivels trapeze act. Although they were clearly inspired by the Fratellinis' trio structure, the Andreus had the advantage of their exceptional acrobatic talents, and they were soon recognized as one of the best clown trios of their time. René was the whiteface clown; Polo was the first auguste, or ''contre-pitre'', the center figure of the trio; Charlie was the second auguste. They had two main entrées in their repertoire: an egg routine, and their famous acrobatic sketch, ''The Little Bridge'', in which they tried to build (eventually succeeding) what is known in circus acrobatics as a bridge—a sort of moving human bridge.

Their clown act could easily last up to thirty-five minutes: Clowns, in the European circus, are often the stars of the show. Charlie, like Albert Fratellini, quickly became the central figure of the trio, and like Albert Fratellini, he developed an eccentric character with exaggerated makeup and costume. Charlie's signature red hair, large square red nose, long red T-shirt, oversized black shoes, and childish behavior became familiar all over Northern Europe. Yet, Polo, with his high-pitched, plaintive voice, was also highly recognizable.

In 1930, the trio embarked on a one-year South American tour before returning to the vast German circus and variety circuit. But the working atmosphere between the siblings had deteriorated. Charlie, the most identifiable of the brothers, was the star, and he knew it. He resented the fact that his father still ran the trio's business, and wanted a larger share of the act's substantial income. In 1935, at the [[Circus Schumann (Frankfurt)|Circus-Varieté Schumann]] of Frankfurt, Charlie decided to part ways with his father and brothers and to build a career of his own with his sons and his wife.

===René, Rogelio & Celito===

[[File:Knie_Poster_1954.JPG|thumb|300px|left|Celito Rivel]]Charlie's departure was marred by a series of lawsuits regarding such professional technicalities as the rights to use the stage name Rivel, or the ownership of Charlie's famous expression, "Akrobat — schööön!" ("Acrobat — beauuutiful!"). These issues were eventually settled; it was ruled that the name Rivel belonged to all the siblings, having to be used with their first name in front, and Charlie could keep his trademark expression. Celito, who took Charlie's place, eventually used a variant: "Acrobat — oh, süüüß!" ("Acrobat — oh, sweeet!').

René, Polo and Celito continued to perform the same acts in German variety theaters, with no less success than they had enjoyed before. Celito had replaced Charlie in the flying-trapeze act as well as the clown entrée, and the younger Rogelio also joined the act in 1937. Then, in 1941, it was Polo's turn to leave the family acts. He worked for a time with the well-known French clown [[Alex Bugny]], then with [[Andreff]] and [[Louis Comotti]] at [[Circus Knie]] in 1943, before teaming up again with Alex Bugny and finally embarking on a "solo" career, with the help of his sons. Rogelio took his place in the trio.

After World War II, René, Celito, and Rogelio still performed the now classic Andreu-Rivels acts with the same success in major European circuses, including [[The Hagenbeck Dynasty|Hagenbeck]], [[Circus Williams|Williams]], [[Circus Scott|Scott]], [[The Strassburger Family|Strassburger]], [[Cirque Pinder|Pinder]], [[Cirque Amar|Amar]], and several engagements with Circus Knie in Switzerland. It was there, in 1952, that Celito performed his Tramp parody on the trapeze in front of an appreciative Charlie Chaplin—the act that had given his brother José his stage name: Charlie. The Andreu-Rivels also appeared in several television shows in Europe, and twice on the ''Ed Sullivan Show'' (1962 and 1965) in the United States.

René, Celito and Rogelio performed their trapeze act for the last time in 1963: Celito was 57 at the time, René was 60. Celito died six years later, in 1969; he was replaced by the Portuguese clown Fernando ("Fofo") Marquez—the first time that a member of the Andreu-Rivels trio was not himself an Andreu. Then in 1971, Johnny Rivels, René's son, replaced his father. At that point, it can be said that the Andreu-Rivels trio of legend had ceased to exist: René had been the immutable central figure of the act, in whatever formation, since its inception in 1920, and the celebrated trio had evolved around him. René passed away in 1976, at age 73.

In 1978, Rogelio Rivel entered in an agreement with a former concession manager for [[Circus Willy Hagenbeck]] to launch a ''Circus Rivels''. This was not to the taste of Charlie Rivel, who didn't want his own name, still very well known in Germany, to be confused with that of his brothers: The circus title was changed to ''Renee Rivels''. Charlie also lobbied his friends among German circus owners to make sure that the new circus had a difficult start... The stars of the show were the 3 Rivels: Rogelio and Johnny, with Fofo Marquez, who were supported by a solid program. As expected, the tour had a shaky start, but it went on—until tragedy struck: Fofo Marquez was electrocuted and died in a freak accident. Rogelio Andreu-Rivel decided to close the show, which had lasted only a few months.

Rogelio, the last of the legendary Andreu-Rivel trio, returned to Spain, while Johnny Rivel remained in Germany, where he established himself as a music composer. Rogelio continued to be active until his death in 2001, and had ensured the continuation of the Andreu-Rivels' legacy with the opening in 1999 of the Escola de Circ Rogelio Rivel, the first circus school in Barcelona.

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Charlie Rivel]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Nena_Jose_Andreu.jpeg|Neña and José Rivel (c.1905)
File:Nena_and_Polo_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña, Polo and José Andreu (c.1910)
File:Polo_Rene_and_Jose_Bobby.jpg|Polo, René and José Andreu-Rivels (c.1915)
File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|Circo Andreu's Company (c.1916)
File:Rivels_Trio_1927.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1920)
File:Charlie_and_the_Rivels.JPG|Charlie and The Rivels (c.1920)
File:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|Charlie and the Rivels (c.1920)
File:Les_Andreu.jpg|The Andreu Troupe (c.1924)
File:Andreu_(1924).jpg|The Andreu Troupe (1924)
File:René_Andreu-Rivel.jpg|René Andreu-Rivel (c.1925)
File:René_Rivel.jpg|René Andreu-Rivel (c.1925)
File:Rene_Polo_and_Charlie_Andreu_Rivels_and_Children.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels and their children (1925)
File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1925)
File:Adreu_Rivels_(1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at Paris's ''Empire'' (1925)
File:Cirkus_Schumann_-_The_Rivels_(c.1928).jpg|The Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (c.1928)
File:Juanito_and_Paulina-Rivel_and_Polo_Charlie-Rogelio_Rene.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels with Celito and Charlie's children (c.1930)
File:Rivels_(1933).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels with their children (1933)
File:Rivels.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1934)
File:The_3_Rivels.jpg|The 3 Rivels (c.1934)
File:Polo-Celito-Rene-Rivels_Ad_(1936).JPG|The 3 Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (1936)
File:Cicus_Knie_-_Celito_Rivel_(1954).jpg|Celito Rivel at Circus Knie (1954)
File:Knie_Poster_1954.JPG|Celito Rivel at Circus Knie (1954)
File:3_Rivels_(1955).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at Circus Barlay (1955)
File:Andreu-Rivels_1958.jpg|Celito, René and Rogelio Rivels (1958)
File:René_%26_Rogelio_Rivels.jpg|René and Rogelio Andreu-Rivels (c.1960)
File:Img018.jpg|Celito Rivel (1961)
File:Andreu_Rivels_1961.jpg|Rogelio, Celito & René Rivels (1961)
File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|Marcus Campbell's Poster for Circus Knie (1961)
File:Knie_1961_illustré.jpg|The 3 Rivels at Circus Knie (1961)
File:Pinder_1963.jpg|The Rivels at Cirque Pinder (1963)
File:Circus_Renée_Rivel_(1978).jpg|Circus Renee Rivels (1978)
</Gallery>

==External Links==

* [http://www.escolacircrr.com/ www.escolacircrr.com]

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Andreu-Rivels]][[Category:Clowns|Andreu-Rivels]]

Charlie Rivel

2026-06-04T20:17:50Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Charlie_Rivel_Color.jpg|300px|right]]

==Clown==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Charlie Rivel (born Josep Andreu Lasserre, 1896-1983) is one of the few clowns ever to have achieved true international stardom. Like [[Grock]] and the [[Les Fratellini|Fratellinis]] before him, Rivel was beloved all over Europe, feted by royalty and popular audiences alike. He inspired paintings and novels, movies and plays; his image was used for dolls and other souvenir items; and he received every honor and accolade open to a performer.

Spanning eighty-two years, Rivel's career took him from rags to riches. Deftly blending superb artistic skills, a talent for pantomime, and a flair for public relations, he developed a totally original clown character that stands as one of the twentieth century's greatest circus icons.

===The Andreu Family===

Rivel's father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (d. 1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, the brothers began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

[[Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|thumb|left|300px|José and Neña Andreu (c.1907)]]They were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. This was the first circus ring little José stepped into. At age two, he appeared in his father's Risley act. The following year, the family was with Cirque Caignac, where José performed both a solo parody of a strong-man act and a hand-to-hand balancing act with his young sister, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915), in which he originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

The Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—José doing acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, José learned trick riding and began to play the guitar, violin, and mandolin.

The Andreu family went on to other small circuses, where José appeared in a balancing trio called ''Los Pepitos'' with his sister Neña and his brother Polo (Paul, 1899-1977). It was probably in 1905, at the circuses [[Cirque Zanfretta|Zanfretta]] and [[Cirque Lambert|Lambert]], that the three siblings began work on their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, with Neña as the catcher. The following year, in 1906, José got a first taste of clowning, when the director, Monsieur Lambert, called on Jose to replace the house clown, Carleto. Meanwhile, three other Andreu brothers were born: René (1903-1976), Celito (Marcel, 1906-1970), and Rogelio (Roger, 1909-2001), who would soon become part of the family acts.

After finally being accepted by a talent agency, the Andreus began to work regularly in French circuses. In 1910-12, they appeared in several minor variety theaters in Paris and on the stage of various Italian theaters. In 1913, during an engagement with the French Cirque [[Alphonse Rancy]], they performed for the first time in their native Catalonia, at Barcelona's Tivoli, before opening their own Circo Reina Victoria in 1915. José performed his first clown entrée in the new family circus, under the name Boby, with his brother Polo.

The Andreus' new circus venture lasted about ten years, alternating with foreign contracts. The family's main act remained their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, in which José started developing a comic character. Their second act was a large risley presentation (a widely popular specialty at the time), which included their father and another catcher.

===Charlie and The Rivels===

[[Image:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Charlie and the Rivels (c.1925)]]In the late 1910s, circus and variety shows were invaded by parodies of Charlie Chaplin, whose extremely popular movie character, the Tramp, had become a customary comic addition to specialty acts in need of a comedy boost. José, who already used comedy in his trapeze act, introduced his Charlie character in 1916. To distinguish their trapeze act from the Andreus' risley act on the bills, the family titled it ''Charlie and the Rivels'' (''Charlot et les Rivels''). From then on, José Andreu would be known as Charlie Rivel.

The legend later perpetrated by Charlie Rivel is that the brothers simply made up the name Rivel by picking letters at random. As a matter of fact, Rivel had been for a long time the stage name of Pedro Andreu, which he used for all the acrobatic troupes he created with his partners and children. Where the name actually came from remains a matter of speculation.

On January 15, 1920, in Valencia, Spain, Charlie married Carmen Busto, a performer in his family's circus. She was the daughter of an equestrian clown, Gregorio Busto. During a tour in Morocco, Charlie became Boby again, playing the auguste to his brother René, the white-faced clown, in the clown act René usually performed with their brother Polo. Since Charlie had a gift for comedy, they decided to form a clown trio, in the fashion of the successful Fratellini brothers, the shining stars of Paris's [[Cirque Medrano]]. Their father helped them develop an entrée that made good use of their exceptional acrobatic skills. It became the brothers' second act.

The success of the Rivels' comedy-trapeze act, coupled with the Andreu clown trio, propelled them into big-time circuses and variety theaters: the London Coliseum in 1923 and, the following year, [[Cirque d'Hiver]] in Paris, where they were a sensation with the savvy Parisian circus audiences. [[Bertram Mills Circus]] at London's Olympia quickly followed.

During his stay in London, Charlie is said to have won a competition of Chaplin impersonators at the Royal Albert Hall (which is plausible, since his Tramp character was eerily similar to the original). The event, true or false, started the oft-heard tale that he had outdone Chaplin himself during the competition—an unlikely occurrence, since Chaplin didn't visit Europe in those years.

The Rivels were allegedly sued by United Artists for using the Chaplin movie persona without permission (perhaps simply for doing it too well and too successfully, for there were hundreds of Chaplin impersonators in the business). Charlie consequently performed his trapeze act as a generic drunk character. In any event, the Rivels continued to work in the most prestigious houses, including: Cirque Medrano in Paris (1925), the Scala in Berlin (1927), and [[Cirkus Schumann]] (1928).

===The Andreu-Rivels===

[[File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Charlie, René & Polo Rivels]]Soon their Andreu clown trio began to gain preeminence over their Rivels trapeze act. Although they were clearly inspired by the Fratellinis' trio structure, the Andreus had the advantage of their exceptional acrobatic talents, and they were soon recognized as one of the best clown trios of their time. René was the whiteface clown; Polo was the first auguste, or ''contre-pitre''; and Charlie was the second auguste. They had two main entrées in their repertoire: an egg routine, and their famous acrobatic sketch, ''The Little Bridge'', in which they tried to build (eventually succeeding) what is known in circus acrobatics as a bridge—a sort of moving human bridge.

Their clown act could easily last up to thirty-five minutes; clowns, in the European circus, are often the stars of the show. Charlie, like Albert Fratellini, quickly became the central figure of the trio, and like Albert Fratellini, he developed an eccentric character with exaggerated makeup and costume. Charlie's signature red hair, large square red nose, long red T-shirt, oversized black shoes, and childish behavior became familiar all over Northern Europe.

In 1930, the trio embarked on a one-year South American tour before returning to the vast German circus and variety circuit. But the working atmosphere between the siblings had deteriorated. Charlie, the most identifiable of the brothers, was the star, and he knew it. In 1935, at the [[Circus Schumann (Frankfurt)|Circus-Varieté Schumann]] of Frankfurt, Charlie decided to part ways with his father and brothers and to build a career with his sons and his wife.

After Charlie Rivel's departure, his brothers continued to perform the same acts in German variety theaters, with no less success than they had enjoyed before. Celito replaced Charlie in the flying-trapeze act and the clown entrée, and the younger Rogelio joined the act too in 1937. Then, in 1941, it was Polo's turn to leave the family acts. He worked for a time with the well-known French clown [[Alex Bugny]], then with [[Andreff]] and [[Louis Comotti]] at [[Circus Knie]] in 1943, before teaming up again with Alex Bugny and finally embarking on a solo-clown career with the help of his sons.

After World War II, René, Celito, and Rogelio continued to perform the traditional Andreu-Rivels acts in major European circuses, including: [[The Hagenbeck Dynasty|Hagenbeck]], [[Circus Williams|Williams]], [[Circus Scott|Scott]], [[The Strassburger Family|Strassburger]], [[Cirque Pinder|Pinder]], [[Cirque Amar|Amar]], and several engagements with Circus Knie in Switzerland. It was there, in 1952, that Celito, in front of an appreciative Charlie Chaplin, performed a Tramp parody on the trapeze, the act with which his brother Charlie had made a name for himself.

===Charlie Rivel and World War II===

[[File:Charlie-Rivel_-_Akrobat_Schööön_(1943).jpg|thumb|right|400px|''Akrobat Schö-ö-ö-n!'' (1943)]]In the 1930s, two nearly identical Andreu-Rivels troupes were in business, each performing a clown entrée and a comedy-trapeze act: one was the original Andreu family troupe; the other was Charlie's. Like Grock, who was always billed as "Grock ''and Partner''", Charlie's partners were always billed anonymously, ensuring that he, Charlie, was the star of the act.

As this suggests, Charlie Rivel was not easy to work with. He changed partners often during these years. Among them were Paul and Alfredino, the Duo Reos, and the clowns Pauli and Johnny. Charlie and his wife, Carmen, had four children: [[Paulina Schumann|Paulina]], born in Barcelona in 1921; Juanito (Jorge-Juan, 1923-2004), born on a ship sailing between Valencia and Palma; Charlie, Jr. (1925-2011), born in London; and Valentino (1927-2006), born in Brussels. Charlie's children performed in a third family act, ''The Charlie Rivel's Babies''.

Now a wealthy star, Charlie bought a large house in Chenevières-sur-Marne, near Paris. Yet he worked mostly on the German variety circuit, which proved lucrative. He also appeared in Scandinavia, with Bertram Mills' Circus at London's Olympia, and in South America during a 1936 tour.

After the Nazis seized power in Germany, and even during World War II itself, Charlie remained one of the biggest draws in the top German variety theaters: Wintergarten, Apollo, Scala, and Plaza. In Berlin, he starred in a movie directed by Wolfgang Staudte, ''Akrobat Schö-ö-ön'' (which was Charlie's catch phrase in the ''Little Bridge'' entrée). The film was released in 1943, and it revealed Charlie as a genuine screen talent. In later years, a telegram that Charlie had sent to Hitler for his birthday in 1942 would became the subject of wild speculations. Like many traveling performers little acquainted with international politics, Charlie had been dangerously naïve.

Following the Allied victory, Charlie had to sneak out of Germany. He found refuge in Scandinavia before returning to his house near Paris. Shunned by agents and directors in the postwar years, he fell into a prolonged period of depression. "Who can laugh now," he wrote, "after so much tragedy?" He would not return to the ring until 1952.

===The Comeback and the Making of a Living Legend===

[[Image:Cirkus_Schumann_(1953).JPG|left|thumb|400px|Charlie Rivel at Cirkus Schumann (1953)]]In the 1950s, the idea of a celebrity clown was beginning to look like a thing of the past. Grock himself decided to retire—though not before launching a long series of farewell tours. In time, Charlie became the one true international clown star of the postwar era.

Back in the ring in 1952, Charlie performed principally in Germany and Scandinavia, where he enjoyed a renewed success. His old acrobatic clown entrée was revived with two new partners: Armand Miehe, as his ''contre-pitre'', and Bernhard Brasso as his whiteface clown. The new version started with a musical routine involving a chair and a guitar, followed by the ''Little Bridge'' acrobatic routine, and ending with a parody of an opera diva. (The routine would be eventually known as ''Maria Callas''.) They also revived the flying-trapeze act, with Charlie as a drunk in tuxedo and top hat.

Meanwhile, in 1947, Charlie's sons had sailed to the United States, where they performed a remarkable acrobatic act as [[The Charlivels]], which quickly became one of the greatest nightclub acts of the era. Daughter Paulina married [[Albert Schumann]], of the illustrious [[The Schumann Dynasty|Cirkus Schumann]], and embarked on an outstanding equestrian career.

Charlie had worked mostly in Northern Europe when Spanish impresario Juan Carcellé decided to bring him to his native country, where he was virtually unknown. In 1954, having used the press to drum up a fan following for the northern clown, Carcellé made Charlie the star of one of his [[Circo Price (Madrid)|Circo Price]] Spanish tours. This led the Spanish national television to produce a program about Charlie in 1962. The following year, his birthplace of Cubelles named a street after him. Thus began a long period of honors and awards in Spain, Germany, and Scandinavia, where Charlie was becoming a living legend. Film director Manuel Esteba had him star in a Spanish movie about himself, ''El aprendiz de clown'' (''The Clown Apprentice'', 1968).

===The Solo Years===

[[Image:Charlie_Rivel_Chair.jpg|right|thumb|400px|Charlie Rivel (c.1975)]]Charlie gradually shifted from the clown-trio format to solo work. Abandoning forever his flying-trapeze act, he began developing two pieces that would become clowning classics: his musical entrée with chair and guitar, and his parody of an opera diva. He was assisted in the ring by his son Juanito and later, after Cirkus Schumann had ceased to exist, by his daughter, Paulina. The two sketches remain masterpieces of clowning, among the few that are impossible to replicate. In 1960, they were the center pieces of Cirque Medrano's Christmas program, in a very successful production titled ''Rêve de Clown'' ("A Clown's Dream"), which marked Charlie's triumphal return in front of a Parisian audience.

Charlie Rivel published his autobiography in Denmark in 1971, titled ''Stakkels Klovn'' (''Poor Clown''). The manuscript was immediately translated into several languages. In 1972, he appeared as himself in a sequence for Federico Fellini's film ''I Clowns''. In December 1974, he was the very first recipient of the Gold Clown award at the 1st [[International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo]]. He was seventy-eight years old.

By then, he was approaching the end of his career. He continued to work in carefully selected events or for limited engagements in prestigious circus buildings, such as Munich's Kronebau, Madrid's Circo Price, or Copenhagen's old [[Cirkusbygningen (Copenhagen)|Cirkus Schumann]], which had become [[Cirkus Benneweis]]. He also appeared on television in Sweden and Spain, either as guest, host, or as the subject of movie shorts and documentaries.

In 1979, Charlie's son Juanito started his own clown career at Circus Knie, where he revived the Andreu-Rivels' legendary ''Little Bridge'' entrée with [[Gaston Hani]] and [[The Knie Dynasty|Rolf Knie, Jr.]] Charlie's wife, Carmen, passed away in 1972. Ten years later, he married Margarita Camas in Barcelona; he was eighty-six. That same year, in 1982, he agreed to travel to Madrid to perform with the famous [[Circo de Los Muchachos]], a remarkable children's circus, whose performers were young orphans. It would be his last performance.

In 1981, Charlie Rivel received the cross of the Nordstjärneorden (Order of The Polar Star), the highest civic distinction in Sweden, which was presented to him by the Swedish Minister of Labor. But Charlie's later years were plagued with respiratory ailments, and on July 26, 1983, he passed away at the hospital of Sant Pere de Ribes in Catalonia, Spain. The following morning, photographs of the great clown were prominently displayed, surrounded by flowers, in the shop windows of Stockholm.

Statues of Charlie Rivel stand in Munich (near Circus [[Kronebau]]), Barcelona, and Cubelles.

==Suggested Reading==

* Tristan Rémy, ''Les Clowns'' (Paris, Bernard Grasset, 1945 — Reissued in 2002 by Grasset & Fasquelle, Paris) — ISBN 2-246-64022-9

* Sebastià Gasch, ''Charlie Rivel, pallasso català'' (Barcelona, Ed.Alcides, 1962)

* Charlie Rivel, ''Stakkels Klovn'' (Copenhagen and Stockholm, Nordisk Forlag a.s., 1971)

* Charlie Rivel, ''Poor Clown'' (London, Michael Joseph, Ltd., 1973) — ISBN 0-7181-1180-X

* Josep Vinyes Sabatés, ''Charlie Rivel'' (Barcelona, Thor, 1983)

* Jordi Jané, ''Charlie Rivel'' (Barcelona, Generalitat de Catalunya, 1996)

==See Also==

* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Trapeze_Video_(1942)|Charlie Rivel, trapeze act]], from the movie ''Akrobat Schö-ö-ön'' (1942)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(1965)|Charlie Rivel, with Juanito Rivel]], at Cirkus Schumann in Copenhagen (1965)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(1969)|Charlie Rivel, with Juanito Rivel]], at Circo Price in Madrid (1969)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(c.1980)|Charlie Rivel, musical entrée]], at the Royal Circus in Stockholm (1977)
* Biographies: [[The Andreu-Rivels]], [[Paulina Schumann]], [[The Charlivels]]

==External Links==

* Charlie Rivel Tribute Album: [http://clownplanet.com/clowns/charlie-rivel/ clownplanet.com/clowns/charlie-rivel]
* Danmark på Film – documentary tribute: [https://www.danmarkpaafilm.dk/film/charlie-rivel-en-film-om-en-klovn Charlie Rivel – ''En film om en clown'']

==Image Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:Pedro_and_Juan_Andreu_With_Jose_and_Nena.jpg|Pedro Andreu and brother Juan, with José and Neña (c.1905)
File:Nena_Jose_Andreu.jpeg|Neña and José Andreu (c.1905)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu_Perch_Act.jpg|Neña & José (top) Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu_Girl_HandToHand.jpg|Neña & José (top, as a girl) Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña & José Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Polo_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña, Polo, and José Andreu (c.1910)
Image:Polo_Rene_and_Jose_Bobby.jpg|The Andreus: Polo, René, and Boby (Charlie) (c.1915)
File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|Charlie & The Rivels Poster (c.1916)
File:Rivels_Trio_1927.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1920)
Image:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|The Rivels: Polo, Charlie, and René (c.1920)
File:Charlie_and_the_Rivels.JPG|Charlie and The Rivels (c.1920)
Image:Jose_Rivel_as_Charlie.jpg|José Rivel as "Charlie" (c.1920)
File:Andreu_(1924).jpg|The Rivel Troupe (1924)
Image:Les_Andreu.jpg|Les Andreu, Acrobatic Troupe: José is third from the right (c.1924)
Image:Rene_Polo_and_Charlie_Andreu_Rivels_and_Children.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels and their children (c.1925)
Image:Adreu_Rivels_(1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at the Empire, Paris (1925)
File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels: Charlie, René, and Polo (c.1925)
File:Cirkus_Schumann_-_The_Rivels_(c.1928).jpg|The Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (c.1928)
Image:Juanito_and_Paulina-Rivel_and_Polo_Charlie-Rogelio_Rene.jpg|The Andreu Rivels with Charlie's children, Juanito and Paulina (c.1930)
File:Rivels_(1933).jpg|The Rivels with their children (1933)
File:Rivels.jpg|Polo, Charlie and René Rivels (c.1934)
File:The_3_Rivels.jpg|Polo, Charlie & René Rivels (c.1934)
File:Charlie-Rivel_-_Akrobat_Schööön_(1943).jpg|''Akrobat Scö-ö-ö-n!'' (1943)
File:Charlie_Rivels_-_Laurel_and_Hardy.jpeg|Charlie Rivel with Laurel & Hardy (1947)
Image:Juanito_Valentino_Charlie_Jr_and_Paulina_Rivel.jpg|Charlie's children: Juanito, Valentino, Charlie, Jr., and Paulina (c.1950)
Image:Cirkus_Schumann_(1953).JPG|Charlie Rivel at Cirkus Schumann in Copenhagen (1953)
File:Charlie_Rivel_-_Der_Spiegel_1953.jpg|Charlie Rivel in ''Der Spiegel'' (1953)
File:Rivel_Circus_Collien.jpg|Charlie Rivel at Circus Collien (1955)
Image:Charlie_Rivel.jpg|Charlie Rivel uttering his catchphrase, "Akrobat, Schööön!" (c.1960)
File:Rivel_-_Antoni_(1967).jpg|Poster by Ib Antoni (1967)
Image:The_Charlivels.jpg|The Charlivels (c.1970)
File:Charlie_Rivel_Color.jpg|Charlie Rivel (c.1970)
Image:Charlie Rivel Chair.jpg|Charlie Rivel in his chair and guitar entrée (c.1975)
File:Charlie_Rivel_-_Chair.jpeg|Charlie Rivel in his chair and guitar entrée (c.1975)
Image:Charlie Rivel Guitar.jpg|Charlie Rivel Playing the Guitar (c.1975)
File:Krone_Rivel.jpg|Charlie Rivel at Munich's Kronebau (1981)
File:Christel_Krone_-_Charlie_Rivel.jpeg|Charlie Rivel and Christel Sembach Krone (1981)
File:Charlie_Rivel_Statue_-_Barcelona.JPG|Statue of Charlie Rivel in Barcelona
Image:Rivel_by_immanuel_Giel_01.JPG|Charlie Rivel by Immanuel Giel
</gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Rivel, Charlie]]
[[Category:Clowns|Rivel, Charlie]]

File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

2026-06-04T20:16:50Z

Djando:

Promotional postcard featuring Neña Andreu and her brother José (the future Charlie Rivel) in their acrobatic act (c.1905) — ''Circopedia Archive''

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[Charlie Rivel]], [[The Andreu Rivels]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Rivel Charlie]]

Charlie Rivel

2026-06-04T20:15:06Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Charlie_Rivel_Color.jpg|300px|right]]

==Clown==

''By Raffaele De Ritis''

Charlie Rivel (born Josep Andreu Lasserre, 1896-1983) is one of the few clowns ever to have achieved true international stardom. Like [[Grock]] and the [[Les Fratellini|Fratellinis]] before him, Rivel was beloved all over Europe, feted by royalty and popular audiences alike. He inspired paintings and novels, movies and plays; his image was used for dolls and other souvenir items; and he received every honor and accolade open to a performer.

Spanning eighty-two years, Rivel's career took him from rags to riches. Deftly blending superb artistic skills, a talent for pantomime, and a flair for public relations, he developed a totally original clown character that stands as one of the twentieth century's greatest circus icons.

===The Andreu Family===

Rivel's father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (d. 1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, the brothers began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

[[Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|thumb|left|300px|José and Neña Andreu (c.1907)]]They were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. This was the first circus ring little José stepped into. At age two, he appeared in his father's Risley act. The following year, the family was with Cirque Caignac, where José performed both a solo parody of a strong-man act and a hand-to-hand balancing act with his young sister, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915), in which he originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

The Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—José doing acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, José learned trick riding and began to play the guitar, violin, and mandolin.

The Andreu family went on to other small circuses, where José appeared in a balancing trio called ''Los Pepitos'' with his sister Neña and his brother Polo (Paul, 1899-1977). It was probably in 1905, at the circuses [[Cirque Zanfretta|Zanfretta]] and [[Cirque Lambert|Lambert]], that the three siblings began work on their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, with Neña as the catcher. The following year, in 1906, José got a first taste of clowning, when the director, Monsieur Lambert, called on Jose to replace the house clown, Carleto. Meanwhile, three other Andreu brothers were born: René (1903-1976), Celito (Marcel, 1906-1970), and Rogelio (Roger, 1909-2001), who would soon become part of the family acts.

After finally being accepted by a talent agency, the Andreus began to work regularly in French circuses. In 1910-12, they appeared in several minor variety theaters in Paris and on the stage of various Italian theaters. In 1913, during an engagement with the French Cirque [[Alphonse Rancy]], they performed for the first time in their native Catalonia, at Barcelona's Tivoli, before opening their own Circo Reina Victoria in 1915. José performed his first clown entrée in the new family circus, under the name Boby, with his brother Polo.

The Andreus' new circus venture lasted about ten years, alternating with foreign contracts. The family's main act remained their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, in which José started developing a comic character. Their second act was a large risley presentation (a widely popular specialty at the time), which included their father and another catcher.

===Charlie and The Rivels===

[[Image:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Charlie and the Rivels (c.1925)]]In the late 1910s, circus and variety shows were invaded by parodies of Charlie Chaplin, whose extremely popular movie character, the Tramp, had become a customary comic addition to specialty acts in need of a comedy boost. José, who already used comedy in his trapeze act, introduced his Charlie character in 1916. To distinguish their trapeze act from the Andreus' risley act on the bills, the family titled it ''Charlie and the Rivels'' (''Charlot et les Rivels''). From then on, José Andreu would be known as Charlie Rivel.

The legend later perpetrated by Charlie Rivel is that the brothers simply made up the name Rivel by picking letters at random. As a matter of fact, Rivel had been for a long time the stage name of Pedro Andreu, which he used for all the acrobatic troupes he created with his partners and children. Where the name actually came from remains a matter of speculation.

On January 15, 1920, in Valencia, Spain, Charlie married Carmen Busto, a performer in his family's circus. She was the daughter of an equestrian clown, Gregorio Busto. During a tour in Morocco, Charlie became Boby again, playing the auguste to his brother René, the white-faced clown, in the clown act René usually performed with their brother Polo. Since Charlie had a gift for comedy, they decided to form a clown trio, in the fashion of the successful Fratellini brothers, the shining stars of Paris's [[Cirque Medrano]]. Their father helped them develop an entrée that made good use of their exceptional acrobatic skills. It became the brothers' second act.

The success of the Rivels' comedy-trapeze act, coupled with the Andreu clown trio, propelled them into big-time circuses and variety theaters: the London Coliseum in 1923 and, the following year, [[Cirque d'Hiver]] in Paris, where they were a sensation with the savvy Parisian circus audiences. [[Bertram Mills Circus]] at London's Olympia quickly followed.

During his stay in London, Charlie is said to have won a competition of Chaplin impersonators at the Royal Albert Hall (which is plausible, since his Tramp character was eerily similar to the original). The event, true or false, started the oft-heard tale that he had outdone Chaplin himself during the competition—an unlikely occurrence, since Chaplin didn't visit Europe in those years.

The Rivels were allegedly sued by United Artists for using the Chaplin movie persona without permission (perhaps simply for doing it too well and too successfully, for there were hundreds of Chaplin impersonators in the business). Charlie consequently performed his trapeze act as a generic drunk character. In any event, the Rivels continued to work in the most prestigious houses, including: Cirque Medrano in Paris (1925), the Scala in Berlin (1927), and [[Cirkus Schumann]] (1928).

===The Andreu-Rivels===

[[File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Charlie, René & Polo Rivels]]Soon their Andreu clown trio began to gain preeminence over their Rivels trapeze act. Although they were clearly inspired by the Fratellinis' trio structure, the Andreus had the advantage of their exceptional acrobatic talents, and they were soon recognized as one of the best clown trios of their time. René was the whiteface clown; Polo was the first auguste, or ''contre-pitre''; and Charlie was the second auguste. They had two main entrées in their repertoire: an egg routine, and their famous acrobatic sketch, ''The Little Bridge'', in which they tried to build (eventually succeeding) what is known in circus acrobatics as a bridge—a sort of moving human bridge.

Their clown act could easily last up to thirty-five minutes; clowns, in the European circus, are often the stars of the show. Charlie, like Albert Fratellini, quickly became the central figure of the trio, and like Albert Fratellini, he developed an eccentric character with exaggerated makeup and costume. Charlie's signature red hair, large square red nose, long red T-shirt, oversized black shoes, and childish behavior became familiar all over Northern Europe.

In 1930, the trio embarked on a one-year South American tour before returning to the vast German circus and variety circuit. But the working atmosphere between the siblings had deteriorated. Charlie, the most identifiable of the brothers, was the star, and he knew it. In 1935, at the [[Circus Schumann (Frankfurt)|Circus-Varieté Schumann]] of Frankfurt, Charlie decided to part ways with his father and brothers and to build a career with his sons and his wife.

After Charlie Rivel's departure, his brothers continued to perform the same acts in German variety theaters, with no less success than they had enjoyed before. Celito replaced Charlie in the flying-trapeze act and the clown entrée, and the younger Rogelio joined the act too in 1937. Then, in 1941, it was Polo's turn to leave the family acts. He worked for a time with the well-known French clown [[Alex Bugny]], then with [[Andreff]] and [[Louis Comotti]] at [[Circus Knie]] in 1943, before teaming up again with Alex Bugny and finally embarking on a solo-clown career with the help of his sons.

After World War II, René, Celito, and Rogelio continued to perform the traditional Andreu-Rivels acts in major European circuses, including: [[The Hagenbeck Dynasty|Hagenbeck]], [[Circus Williams|Williams]], [[Circus Scott|Scott]], [[The Strassburger Family|Strassburger]], [[Cirque Pinder|Pinder]], [[Cirque Amar|Amar]], and several engagements with Circus Knie in Switzerland. It was there, in 1952, that Celito, in front of an appreciative Charlie Chaplin, performed a Tramp parody on the trapeze, the act with which his brother Charlie had made a name for himself.

===Charlie Rivel and World War II===

[[File:Charlie-Rivel_-_Akrobat_Schööön_(1943).jpg|thumb|right|400px|''Akrobat Schö-ö-ö-n!'' (1943)]]In the 1930s, two nearly identical Andreu-Rivels troupes were in business, each performing a clown entrée and a comedy-trapeze act: one was the original Andreu family troupe; the other was Charlie's. Like Grock, who was always billed as "Grock ''and Partner''", Charlie's partners were always billed anonymously, ensuring that he, Charlie, was the star of the act.

As this suggests, Charlie Rivel was not easy to work with. He changed partners often during these years. Among them were Paul and Alfredino, the Duo Reos, and the clowns Pauli and Johnny. Charlie and his wife, Carmen, had four children: [[Paulina Schumann|Paulina]], born in Barcelona in 1921; Juanito (Jorge-Juan, 1923-2004), born on a ship sailing between Valencia and Palma; Charlie, Jr. (1925-2011), born in London; and Valentino (1927-2006), born in Brussels. Charlie's children performed in a third family act, ''The Charlie Rivel's Babies''.

Now a wealthy star, Charlie bought a large house in Chenevières-sur-Marne, near Paris. Yet he worked mostly on the German variety circuit, which proved lucrative. He also appeared in Scandinavia, with Bertram Mills' Circus at London's Olympia, and in South America during a 1936 tour.

After the Nazis seized power in Germany, and even during World War II itself, Charlie remained one of the biggest draws in the top German variety theaters: Wintergarten, Apollo, Scala, and Plaza. In Berlin, he starred in a movie directed by Wolfgang Staudte, ''Akrobat Schö-ö-ön'' (which was Charlie's catch phrase in the ''Little Bridge'' entrée). The film was released in 1943, and it revealed Charlie as a genuine screen talent. In later years, a telegram that Charlie had sent to Hitler for his birthday in 1942 would became the subject of wild speculations. Like many traveling performers little acquainted with international politics, Charlie had been dangerously naïve.

Following the Allied victory, Charlie had to sneak out of Germany. He found refuge in Scandinavia before returning to his house near Paris. Shunned by agents and directors in the postwar years, he fell into a prolonged period of depression. "Who can laugh now," he wrote, "after so much tragedy?" He would not return to the ring until 1952.

===The Comeback and the Making of a Living Legend===

[[Image:Cirkus_Schumann_(1953).JPG|left|thumb|400px|Charlie Rivel at Cirkus Schumann (1953)]]In the 1950s, the idea of a celebrity clown was beginning to look like a thing of the past. Grock himself decided to retire—though not before launching a long series of farewell tours. In time, Charlie became the one true international clown star of the postwar era.

Back in the ring in 1952, Charlie performed principally in Germany and Scandinavia, where he enjoyed a renewed success. His old acrobatic clown entrée was revived with two new partners: Armand Miehe, as his ''contre-pitre'', and Bernhard Brasso as his whiteface clown. The new version started with a musical routine involving a chair and a guitar, followed by the ''Little Bridge'' acrobatic routine, and ending with a parody of an opera diva. (The routine would be eventually known as ''Maria Callas''.) They also revived the flying-trapeze act, with Charlie as a drunk in tuxedo and top hat.

Meanwhile, in 1947, Charlie's sons had sailed to the United States, where they performed a remarkable acrobatic act as [[The Charlivels]], which quickly became one of the greatest nightclub acts of the era. Daughter Paulina married [[Albert Schumann]], of the illustrious [[The Schumann Dynasty|Cirkus Schumann]], and embarked on an outstanding equestrian career.

Charlie had worked mostly in Northern Europe when Spanish impresario Juan Carcellé decided to bring him to his native country, where he was virtually unknown. In 1954, having used the press to drum up a fan following for the northern clown, Carcellé made Charlie the star of one of his [[Circo Price (Madrid)|Circo Price]] Spanish tours. This led the Spanish national television to produce a program about Charlie in 1962. The following year, his birthplace of Cubelles named a street after him. Thus began a long period of honors and awards in Spain, Germany, and Scandinavia, where Charlie was becoming a living legend. Film director Manuel Esteba had him star in a Spanish movie about himself, ''El aprendiz de clown'' (''The Clown Apprentice'', 1968).

===The Solo Years===

[[Image:Charlie_Rivel_Chair.jpg|right|thumb|400px|Charlie Rivel (c.1975)]]Charlie gradually shifted from the clown-trio format to solo work. Abandoning forever his flying-trapeze act, he began developing two pieces that would become clowning classics: his musical entrée with chair and guitar, and his parody of an opera diva. He was assisted in the ring by his son Juanito and later, after Cirkus Schumann had ceased to exist, by his daughter, Paulina. The two sketches remain masterpieces of clowning, among the few that are impossible to replicate. In 1960, they were the center pieces of Cirque Medrano's Christmas program, in a very successful production titled ''Rêve de Clown'' ("A Clown's Dream"), which marked Charlie's triumphal return in front of a Parisian audience.

Charlie Rivel published his autobiography in Denmark in 1971, titled ''Stakkels Klovn'' (''Poor Clown''). The manuscript was immediately translated into several languages. In 1972, he appeared as himself in a sequence for Federico Fellini's film ''I Clowns''. In December 1974, he was the very first recipient of the Gold Clown award at the 1st [[International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo]]. He was seventy-eight years old.

By then, he was approaching the end of his career. He continued to work in carefully selected events or for limited engagements in prestigious circus buildings, such as Munich's Kronebau, Madrid's Circo Price, or Copenhagen's old [[Cirkusbygningen (Copenhagen)|Cirkus Schumann]], which had become [[Cirkus Benneweis]]. He also appeared on television in Sweden and Spain, either as guest, host, or as the subject of movie shorts and documentaries.

In 1979, Charlie's son Juanito started his own clown career at Circus Knie, where he revived the Andreu-Rivels' legendary ''Little Bridge'' entrée with [[Gaston Hani]] and [[The Knie Dynasty|Rolf Knie, Jr.]] Charlie's wife, Carmen, passed away in 1972. Ten years later, he married Margarita Camas in Barcelona; he was eighty-six. That same year, in 1982, he agreed to travel to Madrid to perform with the famous [[Circo de Los Muchachos]], a remarkable children's circus, whose performers were young orphans. It would be his last performance.

In 1981, Charlie Rivel received the cross of the Nordstjärneorden (Order of The Polar Star), the highest civic distinction in Sweden, which was presented to him by the Swedish Minister of Labor. But Charlie's later years were plagued with respiratory ailments, and on July 26, 1983, he passed away at the hospital of Sant Pere de Ribes in Catalonia, Spain. The following morning, photographs of the great clown were prominently displayed, surrounded by flowers, in the shop windows of Stockholm.

Statues of Charlie Rivel stand in Munich (near Circus [[Kronebau]]), Barcelona, and Cubelles.

==Suggested Reading==

* Tristan Rémy, ''Les Clowns'' (Paris, Bernard Grasset, 1945 — Reissued in 2002 by Grasset & Fasquelle, Paris) — ISBN 2-246-64022-9

* Sebastià Gasch, ''Charlie Rivel, pallasso català'' (Barcelona, Ed.Alcides, 1962)

* Charlie Rivel, ''Stakkels Klovn'' (Copenhagen and Stockholm, Nordisk Forlag a.s., 1971)

* Charlie Rivel, ''Poor Clown'' (London, Michael Joseph, Ltd., 1973) — ISBN 0-7181-1180-X

* Josep Vinyes Sabatés, ''Charlie Rivel'' (Barcelona, Thor, 1983)

* Jordi Jané, ''Charlie Rivel'' (Barcelona, Generalitat de Catalunya, 1996)

==See Also==

* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Trapeze_Video_(1942)|Charlie Rivel, trapeze act]], from the movie ''Akrobat Schö-ö-ön'' (1942)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(1965)|Charlie Rivel, with Juanito Rivel]], at Cirkus Schumann in Copenhagen (1965)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(1969)|Charlie Rivel, with Juanito Rivel]], at Circo Price in Madrid (1969)
* Video: [[Charlie_Rivel_Video_(c.1980)|Charlie Rivel, musical entrée]], at the Royal Circus in Stockholm (1977)
* Biographies: [[The Andreu-Rivels]], [[Paulina Schumann]], [[The Charlivels]]

==External Links==

* Charlie Rivel Tribute Album: [http://clownplanet.com/clowns/charlie-rivel/ clownplanet.com/clowns/charlie-rivel]
* Danmark på Film – documentary tribute: [https://www.danmarkpaafilm.dk/film/charlie-rivel-en-film-om-en-klovn Charlie Rivel – ''En film om en clown'']

==Image Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:Pedro_and_Juan_Andreu_With_Jose_and_Nena.jpg|Pedro Andreu and brother Juan, with José and Neña (c.1905)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu_Perch_Act.jpg|Neña & José (top) Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu_Girl_HandToHand.jpg|Neña & José (top, as a girl) Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña & José Andreu in their balancing act (c.1907)
Image:Nena_and_Polo_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña, Polo, and José Andreu (c.1910)
Image:Polo_Rene_and_Jose_Bobby.jpg|The Andreus: Polo, René, and Boby (Charlie) (c.1915)
File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|Charlie & The Rivels Poster (c.1916)
File:Rivels_Trio_1927.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1920)
Image:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|The Rivels: Polo, Charlie, and René (c.1920)
File:Charlie_and_the_Rivels.JPG|Charlie and The Rivels (c.1920)
Image:Jose_Rivel_as_Charlie.jpg|José Rivel as "Charlie" (c.1920)
File:Andreu_(1924).jpg|The Rivel Troupe (1924)
Image:Les_Andreu.jpg|Les Andreu, Acrobatic Troupe: José is third from the right (c.1924)
Image:Rene_Polo_and_Charlie_Andreu_Rivels_and_Children.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels and their children (c.1925)
Image:Adreu_Rivels_(1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at the Empire, Paris (1925)
File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels: Charlie, René, and Polo (c.1925)
File:Cirkus_Schumann_-_The_Rivels_(c.1928).jpg|The Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (c.1928)
Image:Juanito_and_Paulina-Rivel_and_Polo_Charlie-Rogelio_Rene.jpg|The Andreu Rivels with Charlie's children, Juanito and Paulina (c.1930)
File:Rivels_(1933).jpg|The Rivels with their children (1933)
File:Rivels.jpg|Polo, Charlie and René Rivels (c.1934)
File:The_3_Rivels.jpg|Polo, Charlie & René Rivels (c.1934)
File:Charlie-Rivel_-_Akrobat_Schööön_(1943).jpg|''Akrobat Scö-ö-ö-n!'' (1943)
File:Charlie_Rivels_-_Laurel_and_Hardy.jpeg|Charlie Rivel with Laurel & Hardy (1947)
Image:Juanito_Valentino_Charlie_Jr_and_Paulina_Rivel.jpg|Charlie's children: Juanito, Valentino, Charlie, Jr., and Paulina (c.1950)
Image:Cirkus_Schumann_(1953).JPG|Charlie Rivel at Cirkus Schumann in Copenhagen (1953)
File:Charlie_Rivel_-_Der_Spiegel_1953.jpg|Charlie Rivel in ''Der Spiegel'' (1953)
File:Rivel_Circus_Collien.jpg|Charlie Rivel at Circus Collien (1955)
Image:Charlie_Rivel.jpg|Charlie Rivel uttering his catchphrase, "Akrobat, Schööön!" (c.1960)
File:Rivel_-_Antoni_(1967).jpg|Poster by Ib Antoni (1967)
Image:The_Charlivels.jpg|The Charlivels (c.1970)
File:Charlie_Rivel_Color.jpg|Charlie Rivel (c.1970)
Image:Charlie Rivel Chair.jpg|Charlie Rivel in his chair and guitar entrée (c.1975)
File:Charlie_Rivel_-_Chair.jpeg|Charlie Rivel in his chair and guitar entrée (c.1975)
Image:Charlie Rivel Guitar.jpg|Charlie Rivel Playing the Guitar (c.1975)
File:Krone_Rivel.jpg|Charlie Rivel at Munich's Kronebau (1981)
File:Christel_Krone_-_Charlie_Rivel.jpeg|Charlie Rivel and Christel Sembach Krone (1981)
File:Charlie_Rivel_Statue_-_Barcelona.JPG|Statue of Charlie Rivel in Barcelona
Image:Rivel_by_immanuel_Giel_01.JPG|Charlie Rivel by Immanuel Giel
</gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Rivel, Charlie]]
[[Category:Clowns|Rivel, Charlie]]

File:Nena and Jose Andreu Girl HandToHand.jpg

2026-06-04T20:13:56Z

Djando:

Neña and José (top) Andreu, with José in drag, in their balancing act (c.1907) - ''Photo: Johnny Rivel Collection''

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[The Andreu-Rivels]], [[Charlie Rivel]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Andreu, Neña & José]]

File:Nena and Polo and Jose Andreu.jpg

2026-06-04T20:11:37Z

Djando:

Neña, Polo and José Andreu (c.1910) - Photo: Johnny Rivel collection

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[The Andreu-Rivels]], [[Charlie Rivel]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Andreu, Neña, Polo & José]]

The Andreu-Rivels

2026-06-04T20:10:52Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Andreu-Rivels 1958.jpg|150px|right]]
==Clowns==

''By Raffaele De Ritis and Dominique Jando''

The career of the Andreu-Rivels (also known as The 3 Rivels) spanned half a century, from 1920 to 1970. With a trio that has seen three different compositions while remaining centered around René Rivel, the brothers Andreu (Charlie, Polo, René, Celito, and Rogelio) were one of Europe’s most successful and celebrated clown act—even though over the years, their fame has been unduly shadowed by the stature (and it can be said, the considerable ego) of one of the trio's original members, [[Charlie Rivel]], who left his brothers in 1935 to replicate the family act with other, anonymous partners and eventually pursue a "solo" career (albeit never without uncredited partners).

===The Andreu Family===

Their father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (?-1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, Pedro and Juan began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

[[File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|thumb|left|310px|Circo Andreu's Company (c.1916)]]In 1896, they were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie, 1896-1983) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. The following year, Marie-Louise gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915). At age two, little José appeared in his father's risley act. Then the family went on to perform with the Cirque Caignac, where little José appeared in a parody of a strong-man act and in a hand-to-hand balancing act with his sister, for which he was originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

While they were touring in France, the family continued to grow: Polo (Paul, 1899-1977) was born in Avallon in 1899, and René (1903-1976) in Aubusson in 1903. Then, the Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trick riding and began to play musical instruments.

The Andreu family went on to perform in other small French circuses, where José, Neña and Polo appeared in a balancing trio called ''Los Pepitos''. It was probably in 1905, at the circuses [[Cirque Zanfretta|Zanfretta]] and [[Cirque Lambert|Lambert]], that the three siblings began work on their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, with Neña as the catcher. The following year, in 1906, José got a first taste of clowning, when the director, Monsieur Lambert, called on him to replace the house clown, Carleto. Celito (Marcel, 1906-1969) was born that year in Elbeuf, and Rogelio (Roger, 1909-2001) three years later, in 1909, in Roubaix. They would soon become part of the family acts.

After finally being accepted by a talent agency, the Andreus began to work regularly in French circuses. In 1910-12, they appeared in several minor variety theaters in Paris and on the stage of various Italian theaters. In 1913, during an engagement with the French [[The Rancy Dynasty|Cirque Alphonse Rancy]], Pedro Andreu performed for the first time with his family in his native Catalonia, at Barcelona's Tivoli, before opening his own ''Circo Reina Victoria'' in 1915. José (under the name Boby) and Polo performed their first clown entrée in the new family circus.

The Andreus' new circus venture lasted about ten years, alternating with foreign contracts. The family's main act remained their standing-frame flying-trapeze act, in which José started developing a comic character. Their second act was a large risley presentation (a widely popular specialty at the time), which included their father and another catcher. In time, Celito and Rogelio would also develop an acrobatic and juggling act.

===Charlie and The Rivels===

In the late 1910s, circus and variety shows were invaded by parodies of Charlie Chaplin, whose extremely popular movie character, the Tramp, had become a customary comic addition to specialty acts in need of a comedy boost. José, who already used comedy in the trapeze act he now did with his brothers René and Polo, introduced his "Charlie" character in 1916 in Madrid. To distinguish their trapeze act from the Andreus' risley act on the bills, the family titled it ''Charlie and the Rivels'' (''Charlot et les Rivels''). From then on, José Andreu would be known as Charlie Rivel.

The legend later perpetrated by Charlie Rivel is that the brothers simply made up the name Rivel by picking letters at random. As a matter of fact, ''Rivel'' had been for a long time the stage name of Pedro Andreu, which he used for all the acrobatic troupes he created with his partners and children. Where the name actually came from remains a matter of speculation.

[[File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|thumb|right|300px|Charlie, René & Polo Andreu-Rivels]]
Meanwhile, René and Polo, with René as the traditional whiteface clown and Polo as his auguste, had developed an excellent clown duet. René was an elegant clown, et Polo a remarkable auguste—in the opinion of many, much more talented than his brother Charlie. For during a tour in Morocco, Charlie became "Boby" again, and joined the act. Since Charlie had a gift for comedy, they decided to form a clown trio, in the fashion of the successful Fratellini brothers, the shining stars of Paris's [[Cirque Medrano (Paris)|Cirque Medrano]]. Their father helped them develop an entrée that made good use of their exceptional acrobatic skills. It became the brothers' second act.

The success of the Rivels' comedy-trapeze act, coupled with the Andreu clown trio, propelled them into big-time circuses and variety theaters: the London Coliseum in 1923 and, the following year, [[Cirque d'Hiver]] in Paris, where they were a sensation with the savvy Parisian circus audiences. [[Bertram Mills Circus]] at London's Olympia quickly followed.

The Rivels were allegedly sued by United Artists for using the Chaplin movie persona without permission (perhaps simply for doing it too well and too successfully, for there were hundreds of Chaplin impersonators in the business). Charlie consequently performed in the trapeze act as a generic drunk character. In any event, the Rivels continued to work in the most prestigious houses, including Cirque Medrano in Paris (1925), the Scala in Berlin (1927), and [[Cirkus Schumann]] (1928).
Soon their Andreu clown trio began to gain preeminence over their Rivels trapeze act. Although they were clearly inspired by the Fratellinis' trio structure, the Andreus had the advantage of their exceptional acrobatic talents, and they were soon recognized as one of the best clown trios of their time. René was the whiteface clown; Polo was the first auguste, or ''contre-pitre'', the center figure of the trio; Charlie was the second auguste. They had two main entrées in their repertoire: an egg routine, and their famous acrobatic sketch, ''The Little Bridge'', in which they tried to build (eventually succeeding) what is known in circus acrobatics as a bridge—a sort of moving human bridge.

Their clown act could easily last up to thirty-five minutes: Clowns, in the European circus, are often the stars of the show. Charlie, like Albert Fratellini, quickly became the central figure of the trio, and like Albert Fratellini, he developed an eccentric character with exaggerated makeup and costume. Charlie's signature red hair, large square red nose, long red T-shirt, oversized black shoes, and childish behavior became familiar all over Northern Europe. Yet, Polo, with his high-pitched, plaintive voice, was also highly recognizable.

In 1930, the trio embarked on a one-year South American tour before returning to the vast German circus and variety circuit. But the working atmosphere between the siblings had deteriorated. Charlie, the most identifiable of the brothers, was the star, and he knew it. He resented the fact that his father still ran the trio's business, and wanted a larger share of the act's substantial income. In 1935, at the [[Circus Schumann (Frankfurt)|Circus-Varieté Schumann]] of Frankfurt, Charlie decided to part ways with his father and brothers and to build a career of his own with his sons and his wife.

===René, Rogelio & Celito===

[[File:Knie_Poster_1954.JPG|thumb|300px|left|Celito Rivel]]Charlie's departure was marred by a series of lawsuits regarding such professional technicalities as the rights to use the stage name Rivel, or the ownership of Charlie's famous expression, "Akrobat — schööön!" ("Acrobat — beauuutiful!"). These issues were eventually settled; it was ruled that the name Rivel belonged to all the siblings, having to be used with their first name in front, and Charlie could keep his trademark expression. Celito, who took Charlie's place, eventually used a variant: "Acrobat — oh, süüüß!" ("Acrobat — oh, sweeet!').

René, Polo and Celito continued to perform the same acts in German variety theaters, with no less success than they had enjoyed before. Celito had replaced Charlie in the flying-trapeze act as well as the clown entrée, and the younger Rogelio also joined the act in 1937. Then, in 1941, it was Polo's turn to leave the family acts. He worked for a time with the well-known French clown [[Alex Bugny]], then with [[Andreff]] and [[Louis Comotti]] at [[Circus Knie]] in 1943, before teaming up again with Alex Bugny and finally embarking on a "solo" career, with the help of his sons. Rogelio took his place in the trio.

After World War II, René, Celito, and Rogelio still performed the now classic Andreu-Rivels acts with the same success in major European circuses, including [[The Hagenbeck Dynasty|Hagenbeck]], [[Circus Williams|Williams]], [[Circus Scott|Scott]], [[The Strassburger Family|Strassburger]], [[Cirque Pinder|Pinder]], [[Cirque Amar|Amar]], and several engagements with Circus Knie in Switzerland. It was there, in 1952, that Celito performed his Tramp parody on the trapeze in front of an appreciative Charlie Chaplin—the act that had given his brother José his stage name: Charlie. The Andreu-Rivels also appeared in several television shows in Europe, and twice on the ''Ed Sullivan Show'' (1962 and 1965) in the United States.

René, Celito and Rogelio performed their trapeze act for the last time in 1963: Celito was 57 at the time, René was 60. Celito died six years later, in 1969; he was replaced by the Portuguese clown Fernando ("Fofo") Marquez—the first time that a member of the Andreu-Rivels trio was not himself an Andreu. Then in 1971, Johnny Rivels, René's son, replaced his father. At that point, it can be said that the Andreu-Rivels trio of legend had ceased to exist: René had been the immutable central figure of the act, in whatever formation, since its inception in 1920, and the celebrated trio had evolved around him. René passed away in 1976, at age 73.

In 1978, Rogelio Rivel entered in an agreement with a former concession manager for [[Circus Willy Hagenbeck]] to launch a ''Circus Rivels''. This was not to the taste of Charlie Rivel, who didn't want his own name, still very well known in Germany, to be confused with that of his brothers: The circus title was changed to ''Renee Rivels''. Charlie also lobbied his friends among German circus owners to make sure that the new circus had a difficult start... The stars of the show were the 3 Rivels: Rogelio and Johnny, with Fofo Marquez, who were supported by a solid program. As expected, the tour had a shaky start, but it went on—until tragedy struck: Fofo Marquez was electrocuted and died in a freak accident. Rogelio Andreu-Rivel decided to close the show, which had lasted only a few months.

Rogelio, the last of the legendary Andreu-Rivel trio, returned to Spain, while Johnny Rivel remained in Germany, where he established himself as a music composer. Rogelio continued to be active until his death in 2001, and had ensured the continuation of the Andreu-Rivels' legacy with the opening in 1999 of the Escola de Circ Rogelio Rivel, the first circus school in Barcelona.

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Charlie Rivel]]

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Nena_and_Polo_and_Jose_Andreu.jpg|Neña, Polo and José Andreu (c.1910)
File:Polo_Rene_and_Jose_Bobby.jpg|Polo, René and José Andreu-Rivels (c.1915)
File:Circo_Andreu_Poster_(c.1916).jpg|Circo Andreu's Company (c.1916)
File:Rivels_Trio_1927.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1920)
File:Charlie_and_the_Rivels.JPG|Charlie and The Rivels (c.1920)
File:Polo_Charlie_and_Rene_Rivels.jpg|Charlie and the Rivels (c.1920)
File:Les_Andreu.jpg|The Andreu Troupe (c.1924)
File:Andreu_(1924).jpg|The Andreu Troupe (1924)
File:René_Andreu-Rivel.jpg|René Andreu-Rivel (c.1925)
File:René_Rivel.jpg|René Andreu-Rivel (c.1925)
File:Rene_Polo_and_Charlie_Andreu_Rivels_and_Children.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels and their children (1925)
File:The_Andreu-Rivels_(c.1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1925)
File:Adreu_Rivels_(1925).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at Paris's ''Empire'' (1925)
File:Cirkus_Schumann_-_The_Rivels_(c.1928).jpg|The Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (c.1928)
File:Juanito_and_Paulina-Rivel_and_Polo_Charlie-Rogelio_Rene.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels with Celito and Charlie's children (c.1930)
File:Rivels_(1933).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels with their children (1933)
File:Rivels.jpg|The Andreu-Rivels (c.1934)
File:The_3_Rivels.jpg|The 3 Rivels (c.1934)
File:Polo-Celito-Rene-Rivels_Ad_(1936).JPG|The 3 Rivels at Cirkus Schumann (1936)
File:Cicus_Knie_-_Celito_Rivel_(1954).jpg|Celito Rivel at Circus Knie (1954)
File:Knie_Poster_1954.JPG|Celito Rivel at Circus Knie (1954)
File:3_Rivels_(1955).jpg|The Andreu-Rivels at Circus Barlay (1955)
File:Andreu-Rivels_1958.jpg|Celito, René and Rogelio Rivels (1958)
File:René_%26_Rogelio_Rivels.jpg|René and Rogelio Andreu-Rivels (c.1960)
File:Img018.jpg|Celito Rivel (1961)
File:Andreu_Rivels_1961.jpg|Rogelio, Celito & René Rivels (1961)
File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|Marcus Campbell's Poster for Circus Knie (1961)
File:Knie_1961_illustré.jpg|The 3 Rivels at Circus Knie (1961)
File:Pinder_1963.jpg|The Rivels at Cirque Pinder (1963)
File:Circus_Renée_Rivel_(1978).jpg|Circus Renee Rivels (1978)
</Gallery>

==External Links==

* [http://www.escolacircrr.com/ www.escolacircrr.com]

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Andreu-Rivels]][[Category:Clowns|Andreu-Rivels]]

File:Nena and Jose Andreu.jpg

2026-06-04T20:07:45Z

Djando:

Neña & José Andreu in their balancing act (c.1912) - ''Photo: Johnny Rivel Collection''

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[The Andreu-Rivels]], [[Charlie Rivel]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Rivel Charlie]]

File:Nena and Jose Andreu.jpg

2026-06-04T20:06:15Z

Djando:

Neña & José Andreu in their balancing act (c.1912) - Photo: Johnny Rivel Collection

[[Category:Photo Archive|Andreu, Neña & José]]

File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

2026-06-04T20:04:48Z

Djando: /* See Also */

Promotional postcard featuring Neña Andreu and her brother José (the future Charlie Rivel) in their acrobatic act (c.1910) — ''Circopedia Archive''

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[Charlie Rivel]], [[The Andreu Rivels]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Rivel Charlie]]

File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

2026-06-04T20:04:28Z

Djando:

Promotional postcard featuring Neña Andreu and her brother José (the future Charlie Rivel) in their acrobatic act (c.1910) — ''Circopedia Archive''

==See Also==

* Biographies: [[Carlie Rivel]], [[The Andreu Rivels]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Rivel Charlie]]

File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

2026-06-04T19:59:15Z

Djando: Djando moved page File:Nena Jose Andrfeu.jpeg to File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

File:Nena Jose Andreu.jpeg

2026-06-04T19:58:29Z

Djando:

Harold Alzana

2026-06-04T19:00:54Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)|right|400px]]
== High Wire ==

''By Dominique Jando''

Harold Alzana (1917-2001) was, from the late forties to the mid-sixties, a star fixture of [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey]] Circus. His daredevil manner—working on the high wire without a balancing pole and at high speed, which contrasted with the traditionally slow, seemingly careful approach of great high wire acrobats such as [[The Wallendas]], who had preceded him—inspired many of the high wire acts that are seen today.

He was born Harold Davis on September 19, 1917 in Maltby, a small mining town east of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. His father, Charles, worked there as a coal miner, but he was also an amateur acrobat and he began training his children (Harold, his brother Edgar, and their sisters Hilda and Elsie) in his backyard, where he had installed a tight wire two feet off the ground.

Charles’s training got good results: At age six, young Harold made his performing debut in local fairs and festivals. But this was just fun; when he reached fourteen, Harold Davis, like most young men in Maltby, followed in his father’s footsteps and began working as a coal miner. In 1941, he married his sweetheart, Minnie. World War II was raging, but Harold and his siblings never stopped practicing and improving their high wire act.

===From The Coalmine To The Big Top===

[[Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Harold Alzana (c.1950)]]The war over, Harold Alzana decided to leave the darkness of Maltby coalmines and tempt his luck under the circus spotlights: It was social climbing in every sense of term! His break came in 1946, when impresario [[Clem Butson]] (1904-1988), then producer of Blackpool’s [[Tower Circus]], gave "The Sensational Alzanas" (as Harold and his siblings had named their act) a contract for the summer season. The highlight of the act was Harold crossing the wire on a bicycle with his sisters hanging from a trapeze suspended under it.

It was certainly, from the audience point of view, a spectacular finale, but it was not in actuality much of a trick since the trapeze provided Harold’s bicycle with a counterweight: The more at risk were actually Hilda and Elsie. But Harold’s solos on the wire were another matter altogether, and this didn’t fail to impress one of [[John Ringling North]]’s European talent scouts. Johnny North immediately saw star potential in Harold Alzana, and the act was booked for the 1947 season of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, ''The Greatest Show On Earth''.

Thus the Alzanas moved to the United States, minus Edgar, who decided to stay in England. (Edgar would eventually create his own high wire act, The Derricos.) Their first appearance at Madison Square Garden in New York, where ''The Greatest Show On Earth'' traditionally began its season, was an unmitigated success. Harold started his act climbing a wire at a 45º angle up to his platform, without the help of a balancing pole. His various crossings with his sisters were interspersed with his fast-paced solos, notably a high-speed tempo rope skipping with carefully staged near-misses. Like his ascent to the platform, Harold's solos were all performed without balancing pole or safety device.

===Solo Star Performer===

Staging the ''impression of danger'' is common circus practice, but it doesn’t preclude the ''reality of danger'', whether it is or not apparent to the audience. Harold Alzana had his share of accidents, including one in his very first season with ''The Greatest Show On Earth''—a forty-feet fall with his sister Hilda, in which both performers were injured. Eventually, Hilda and Elsie decided to retire from the act, and Harold continued to work as a solo performer, with increasing success.

Harold Alzana remained with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey until 1964. During that time he returned to Europe only twice: The first time for the Christmas season of 1949-50 at the [[Harringay Circus|Harringay Arena]] in London; the second time in 1963, with ''The Greatest Show On Earth'', in a short-lived European tour that was a disappointment and was quickly aborted—although Alzana’s personal success was as big in Europe as it had been in the United States. He made a last appearance in Europe in 1966, in the hit British television show, ''Hippodrome'' (known in the United States as ''Live From The Hippodrome'').

Harold Alzana continued to perform sporadically until the early 1970s, and then retired to his home of Sarasota, Florida, America’s ''Circus Town''. Yet, he kept a wire rigged in his backyard, and continued to practice regularly, well into his eighties. In 1991, he was induced into the [[International Circus Hall of Fame]] in Peru, Indiana. Harold Alzana passed away on February 23, 2001, leaving the souvenir of one of the greatest high wire performers of all times.

==See Also==

* Video: [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold Davis and his sisters]] practicing at home (1938)
* Video: [[Harold_Alzana_Video_(1966)|Harold Alzana, High Wire]] in the TV show ''Hippodrome'' (1966)

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Harold_Alzana_Practice.jpg|Harold and Elsie Davis in the family backyard (c.1945)
File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)
File:Alzana_-_Sarasota.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
File:The_Alzanas_-_practice.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
Image:The_Alzanas_(c.1950).jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Square Garden (c.1950)
File:Harold_Alzana_-_Madison_Square_Garden.jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Square Garden (1951)
File:The_Alzanas_(1951).jpg|The Alzanas (1951)
Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|Harold Alzana practicing (1951)
</Gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Alzana, Harold]][[Category:High Wire|Alzana, Harold]]

Harold Alzana

2026-06-04T19:00:43Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)|right|400px]]
== High Wire ==

''By Dominique Jando''

Harold Alzana (1917-2001) was, from the late forties to the mid-sixties, a star fixture of [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey]] Circus. His daredevil manner—working on the high wire without a balancing pole and at high speed, which contrasted with the traditionally slow, seemingly careful approach of great high wire acrobats such as [[The Wallendas]], who had preceded him—inspired many of the high wire acts that are seen today.

He was born Harold Davis on September 19, 1917 in Maltby, a small mining town east of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. His father, Charles, worked there as a coal miner, but he was also an amateur acrobat and he began training his children (Harold, his brother Edgar, and their sisters Hilda and Elsie) in his backyard, where he had installed a tight wire two feet off the ground.

Charles’s training got good results: At age six, young Harold made his performing debut in local fairs and festivals. But this was just fun; when he reached fourteen, Harold Davis, like most young men in Maltby, followed in his father’s footsteps and began working as a coal miner. In 1941, he married his sweetheart, Minnie. World War II was raging, but Harold and his siblings never stopped practicing and improving their high wire act.

===From The Coalmine To The Big Top===

[[Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Harold Alzana (c.1950)]]The war over, Harold Alzana decided to leave the darkness of Maltby coalmines and tempt his luck under the circus spotlights: It was social climbing in every sense of term! His break came in 1946, when impresario [[Clem Butson]] (1904-1988), then producer of Blackpool’s [[Tower Circus]], gave "The Sensational Alzanas" (as Harold and his siblings had named their act) a contract for the summer season. The highlight of the act was Harold crossing the wire on a bicycle with his sisters hanging from a trapeze suspended under it.

It was certainly, from the audience point of view, a spectacular finale, but it was not in actuality much of a trick since the trapeze provided Harold’s bicycle with a counterweight: The more at risk were actually Hilda and Elsie. But Harold’s solos on the wire were another matter altogether, and this didn’t fail to impress one of [[John Ringling North]]’s European talent scouts. Johnny North immediately saw star potential in Harold Alzana, and the act was booked for the 1947 season of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, ''The Greatest Show On Earth''.

Thus the Alzanas moved to the United States, minus Edgar, who decided to stay in England. (Edgar would eventually create his own high wire act, The Derricos.) Their first appearance at Madison Square Garden in New York, where ''The Greatest Show On Earth'' traditionally began its season, was an unmitigated success. Harold started his act climbing a wire at a 45º angle up to his platform, without the help of a balancing pole. His various crossings with his sisters were interspersed with his fast-paced solos, notably a high-speed tempo rope skipping with carefully staged near-misses. Like his ascent to the platform, Harold's solos were all performed without balancing pole or safety device.

===Solo Star Performer===

Staging the ''impression of danger'' is common circus practice, but it doesn’t preclude the ''reality of danger'', whether it is or not apparent to the audience. Harold Alzana had his share of accidents, including one in his very first season with ''The Greatest Show On Earth''—a forty-feet fall with his sister Hilda, in which both performers were injured. Eventually, Hilda and Elsie decided to retire from the act, and Harold continued to work as a solo performer, with increasing success.

Harold Alzana remained with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey until 1964. During that time he returned to Europe only twice: The first time for the Christmas season of 1949-50 at the [[Harringay Circus|Harringay Arena]] in London; the second time in 1963, with ''The Greatest Show On Earth'', in a short-lived European tour that was a disappointment and was quickly aborted—although Alzana’s personal success was as big in Europe as it had been in the United States. He made a last appearance in Europe in 1966, in the hit British television show, ''Hippodrome'' (known in the United States as ''Live From The Hippodrome'').

Harold Alzana continued to perform sporadically until the early 1970s, and then retired to his home of Sarasota, Florida, America’s ''Circus Town''. Yet, he kept a wire rigged in his backyard, and continued to practice regularly, well into his eighties. In 1991, he was induced into the [[International Circus Hall of Fame]] in Peru, Indiana. Harold Alzana passed away on February 23, 2001, leaving the souvenir of one of the greatest high wire performers of all times.

==See Also==

* Video: [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold Davis and his sisters]] practicing at home (1938)
* Video: [[Harold_Alzana_Video_(1966)|Harold Alzana, High Wire]] in the TV show ''Hippodrome'' (1966)

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Harold_Alzana_Practice.jpg|Harold and Elsie Davis in the family backyard (c.1945)
File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)
File:Alzana_-_Sarasota.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
File:The_Alzanas_-_practice.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
Image:The_Alzanas_(c.1950).jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Square Garden (c.1950)
File:Harold_Alzana_-_Madison_Square_Garden.jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Syare Garden (1951)
File:The_Alzanas_(1951).jpg|The Alzanas (1951)
Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|Harold Alzana practicing (1951)
</Gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Alzana, Harold]][[Category:High Wire|Alzana, Harold]]

File:Harold Alzana - Madison Square Garden.jpg

2026-06-04T18:59:52Z

Djando:

The Alzanas (Harold and his wife, Minnie on the bicycle, and his sisters Elsie and Hilda on the trapezes (1951) — ''Photo © Associated Press/Ed Ford''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Harold Alzana]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Alzana, Harold]]

File:Harold Alzana - Madison Square Garden.jpg

2026-06-04T18:58:54Z

Djando: The Alzanas (Harold and his wife, Minnie on the bicycle, and his sisters Elsie and Hilda on the trapezes (1951) — ''Photo © Associated Press/Ed Ford''

The Alzanas (Harold and his wife, Minnie on the bicycle, and his sisters Elsie and Hilda on the trapezes (1951) — ''Photo © Associated Press/Ed Ford''

Harold Alzana

2026-06-04T18:48:49Z

Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)|right|400px]]
== High Wire ==

''By Dominique Jando''

Harold Alzana (1917-2001) was, from the late forties to the mid-sixties, a star fixture of [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey]] Circus. His daredevil manner—working on the high wire without a balancing pole and at high speed, which contrasted with the traditionally slow, seemingly careful approach of great high wire acrobats such as [[The Wallendas]], who had preceded him—inspired many of the high wire acts that are seen today.

He was born Harold Davis on September 19, 1917 in Maltby, a small mining town east of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. His father, Charles, worked there as a coal miner, but he was also an amateur acrobat and he began training his children (Harold, his brother Edgar, and their sisters Hilda and Elsie) in his backyard, where he had installed a tight wire two feet off the ground.

Charles’s training got good results: At age six, young Harold made his performing debut in local fairs and festivals. But this was just fun; when he reached fourteen, Harold Davis, like most young men in Maltby, followed in his father’s footsteps and began working as a coal miner. In 1941, he married his sweetheart, Minnie. World War II was raging, but Harold and his siblings never stopped practicing and improving their high wire act.

===From The Coalmine To The Big Top===

[[Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Harold Alzana (c.1950)]]The war over, Harold Alzana decided to leave the darkness of Maltby coalmines and tempt his luck under the circus spotlights: It was social climbing in every sense of term! His break came in 1946, when impresario [[Clem Butson]] (1904-1988), then producer of Blackpool’s [[Tower Circus]], gave "The Sensational Alzanas" (as Harold and his siblings had named their act) a contract for the summer season. The highlight of the act was Harold crossing the wire on a bicycle with his sisters hanging from a trapeze suspended under it.

It was certainly, from the audience point of view, a spectacular finale, but it was not in actuality much of a trick since the trapeze provided Harold’s bicycle with a counterweight: The more at risk were actually Hilda and Elsie. But Harold’s solos on the wire were another matter altogether, and this didn’t fail to impress one of [[John Ringling North]]’s European talent scouts. Johnny North immediately saw star potential in Harold Alzana, and the act was booked for the 1947 season of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, ''The Greatest Show On Earth''.

Thus the Alzanas moved to the United States, minus Edgar, who decided to stay in England. (Edgar would eventually create his own high wire act, The Derricos.) Their first appearance at Madison Square Garden in New York, where ''The Greatest Show On Earth'' traditionally began its season, was an unmitigated success. Harold started his act climbing a wire at a 45º angle up to his platform, without the help of a balancing pole. His various crossings with his sisters were interspersed with his fast-paced solos, notably a high-speed tempo rope skipping with carefully staged near-misses. Like his ascent to the platform, Harold's solos were all performed without balancing pole or safety device.

===Solo Star Performer===

Staging the ''impression of danger'' is common circus practice, but it doesn’t preclude the ''reality of danger'', whether it is or not apparent to the audience. Harold Alzana had his share of accidents, including one in his very first season with ''The Greatest Show On Earth''—a forty-feet fall with his sister Hilda, in which both performers were injured. Eventually, Hilda and Elsie decided to retire from the act, and Harold continued to work as a solo performer, with increasing success.

Harold Alzana remained with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey until 1964. During that time he returned to Europe only twice: The first time for the Christmas season of 1949-50 at the [[Harringay Circus|Harringay Arena]] in London; the second time in 1963, with ''The Greatest Show On Earth'', in a short-lived European tour that was a disappointment and was quickly aborted—although Alzana’s personal success was as big in Europe as it had been in the United States. He made a last appearance in Europe in 1966, in the hit British television show, ''Hippodrome'' (known in the United States as ''Live From The Hippodrome'').

Harold Alzana continued to perform sporadically until the early 1970s, and then retired to his home of Sarasota, Florida, America’s ''Circus Town''. Yet, he kept a wire rigged in his backyard, and continued to practice regularly, well into his eighties. In 1991, he was induced into the [[International Circus Hall of Fame]] in Peru, Indiana. Harold Alzana passed away on February 23, 2001, leaving the souvenir of one of the greatest high wire performers of all times.

==See Also==

* Video: [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold Davis and his sisters]] practicing at home (1938)
* Video: [[Harold_Alzana_Video_(1966)|Harold Alzana, High Wire]] in the TV show ''Hippodrome'' (1966)

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Harold_Alzana_Practice.jpg|Harold and Elsie Davis in the family backyard (c.1945)
File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)
File:Alzana_-_Sarasota.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
File:The_Alzanas_-_practice.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
Image:The_Alzanas_(c.1950).jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Square Garden (c.1950)
File:The_Alzanas_(1951).jpg|The Alzanas (1951)
Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|Harold Alzana practicing (1951)
</Gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Alzana, Harold]][[Category:High Wire|Alzana, Harold]]

File:The Alzanas - practice.jpg

2026-06-04T18:48:05Z

Djando:

Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana practicing their act in [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey]] winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Harold Alzana]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Alzana, Harold]]

File:The Alzanas - practice.jpg

2026-06-04T18:46:48Z

Djando: Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana practicing their act in Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana practicing their act in [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey]] winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

Harold Alzana

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Djando: /* Image Gallery */

[[File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)|right|400px]]
== High Wire ==

''By Dominique Jando''

Harold Alzana (1917-2001) was, from the late forties to the mid-sixties, a star fixture of [[Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey]] Circus. His daredevil manner—working on the high wire without a balancing pole and at high speed, which contrasted with the traditionally slow, seemingly careful approach of great high wire acrobats such as [[The Wallendas]], who had preceded him—inspired many of the high wire acts that are seen today.

He was born Harold Davis on September 19, 1917 in Maltby, a small mining town east of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. His father, Charles, worked there as a coal miner, but he was also an amateur acrobat and he began training his children (Harold, his brother Edgar, and their sisters Hilda and Elsie) in his backyard, where he had installed a tight wire two feet off the ground.

Charles’s training got good results: At age six, young Harold made his performing debut in local fairs and festivals. But this was just fun; when he reached fourteen, Harold Davis, like most young men in Maltby, followed in his father’s footsteps and began working as a coal miner. In 1941, he married his sweetheart, Minnie. World War II was raging, but Harold and his siblings never stopped practicing and improving their high wire act.

===From The Coalmine To The Big Top===

[[Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Harold Alzana (c.1950)]]The war over, Harold Alzana decided to leave the darkness of Maltby coalmines and tempt his luck under the circus spotlights: It was social climbing in every sense of term! His break came in 1946, when impresario [[Clem Butson]] (1904-1988), then producer of Blackpool’s [[Tower Circus]], gave "The Sensational Alzanas" (as Harold and his siblings had named their act) a contract for the summer season. The highlight of the act was Harold crossing the wire on a bicycle with his sisters hanging from a trapeze suspended under it.

It was certainly, from the audience point of view, a spectacular finale, but it was not in actuality much of a trick since the trapeze provided Harold’s bicycle with a counterweight: The more at risk were actually Hilda and Elsie. But Harold’s solos on the wire were another matter altogether, and this didn’t fail to impress one of [[John Ringling North]]’s European talent scouts. Johnny North immediately saw star potential in Harold Alzana, and the act was booked for the 1947 season of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, ''The Greatest Show On Earth''.

Thus the Alzanas moved to the United States, minus Edgar, who decided to stay in England. (Edgar would eventually create his own high wire act, The Derricos.) Their first appearance at Madison Square Garden in New York, where ''The Greatest Show On Earth'' traditionally began its season, was an unmitigated success. Harold started his act climbing a wire at a 45º angle up to his platform, without the help of a balancing pole. His various crossings with his sisters were interspersed with his fast-paced solos, notably a high-speed tempo rope skipping with carefully staged near-misses. Like his ascent to the platform, Harold's solos were all performed without balancing pole or safety device.

===Solo Star Performer===

Staging the ''impression of danger'' is common circus practice, but it doesn’t preclude the ''reality of danger'', whether it is or not apparent to the audience. Harold Alzana had his share of accidents, including one in his very first season with ''The Greatest Show On Earth''—a forty-feet fall with his sister Hilda, in which both performers were injured. Eventually, Hilda and Elsie decided to retire from the act, and Harold continued to work as a solo performer, with increasing success.

Harold Alzana remained with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey until 1964. During that time he returned to Europe only twice: The first time for the Christmas season of 1949-50 at the [[Harringay Circus|Harringay Arena]] in London; the second time in 1963, with ''The Greatest Show On Earth'', in a short-lived European tour that was a disappointment and was quickly aborted—although Alzana’s personal success was as big in Europe as it had been in the United States. He made a last appearance in Europe in 1966, in the hit British television show, ''Hippodrome'' (known in the United States as ''Live From The Hippodrome'').

Harold Alzana continued to perform sporadically until the early 1970s, and then retired to his home of Sarasota, Florida, America’s ''Circus Town''. Yet, he kept a wire rigged in his backyard, and continued to practice regularly, well into his eighties. In 1991, he was induced into the [[International Circus Hall of Fame]] in Peru, Indiana. Harold Alzana passed away on February 23, 2001, leaving the souvenir of one of the greatest high wire performers of all times.

==See Also==

* Video: [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold Davis and his sisters]] practicing at home (1938)
* Video: [[Harold_Alzana_Video_(1966)|Harold Alzana, High Wire]] in the TV show ''Hippodrome'' (1966)

==Image Gallery==

<Gallery>
File:Harold_Alzana_Practice.jpg|Harold and Elsie Davis in the family backyard (c.1945)
File:Alzana_RBBB_Poster.jpg|Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey poster (1947)
File:Alzana_-_Sarasota.jpg|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana in practice (1948)
Image:The_Alzanas_(c.1950).jpg|The Alzanas at Madison Square Garden (c.1950)
File:The_Alzanas_(1951).jpg|The Alzanas (1951)
Image:Haeold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|Harold Alzana practicing (1951)
</Gallery>

[[Category:Artists and Acts|Alzana, Harold]][[Category:High Wire|Alzana, Harold]]

File:Alzana - Sarasota.jpg

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Harold, Hilda, and Elsie Alzana practicing their act at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Harold Alzana]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Alzana, Harold]]

File:Alzana - Sarasota.jpg

2026-06-04T18:40:02Z

Djando: Harold, Hilda, and Elsie Alzana practicing their act at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

Harold, Hilda, and Elsie Alzana practicing their act at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida (1948) — ''Document: Los Angeles Public Library''

File:The Alzanas (c.1950).jpg

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Djando:

The Alzanas (Harold, and his sisters Hilda and Elsie) in the finale of their act at Madison Square Garden; their father, Charles Davis, is spotting in the ring below (c.1950) — ''Photo © Time, Inc.''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Harold Alzana]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Alzana, Harold]]

File:The Alzanas (c.1950).jpg

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Djando:

The Alzanas (Harold, and his sisters Hilda and Elsie) in the finale of their act at Madison Square Garden (c.1950) — ''Photo © Time, Inc.''

==See Also==

* Biography: [[Harold Alzana]]

[[Category:Photo Archive|Alzana, Harold]]

Main Page

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==In The Spotlight==

===THE ANDREU-RIVELS===
[[File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|right|300px]]
The career of the Andreu-Rivels (also known as The 3 Rivels) spanned half a century, from 1920 to 1970. With a trio that has seen three different compositions while remaining centered around René Rivel, the brothers Andreu (Charlie, Polo, René, Celito, and Rogelio) were one of Europe’s most successful and celebrated clown act—even though over the years, their fame has been unduly shadowed by the stature (and it can be said, the considerable ego) of one of the trio's original members, Charlie Rivel, who left his brothers in 1935 to replicate the family act with other, anonymous partners and eventually pursue a "solo" career (albeit never without uncredited partners).

Their father, Pedro Jaime Andreu Pausas (c.1865-1957), was the son of a cabinetmaker from Barcelona, Spain. In the 1880s, when he was fifteen years old, Pedro and his brother Juan left home to follow Circo Milá. As members of the circus, Pedro and Juan began performing a trapeze act. Pedro later joined another circus, Circo Alegría, where he met—and later married—a French acrobat, Marie-Louise Lasserre Seguino. Spain had fallen on hard times, and in order to survive, the young family decided to cross into France, where they hoped to find work. As they made their way toward the border, they performed in village squares across Catalonia.

In 1896, they were traveling in a hand-drawn wagon when Marie-Louise gave birth to José (the future Charlie, 1896-1983) in Cubelles, a village near Barcelona. Surviving as best as they could, they finally reached France three months later. They soon secured an engagement with the small Cirque Dusoulier. The following year, Marie-Louise gave birth to her second child, a daughter, Neña (Marie-Louise Andreu, 1897-1915). At age two, little José appeared in his father's Risley act. Then the family went on to perform with the Cirque Caignac, where little José appeared in a parody of a strong-man act and in a hand-to-hand balancing act with his sister, for which he was originally dressed as a girl—which made their "all-girl" act look more attractive to agents and directors.

While they were touring in France, the family continued to grow: Polo (Paul, 1899-1977) was born in Avallon in 1899, and René (1903-1976) in Aubusson in 1903. Then, the Cirque Caignac was destroyed by a storm in 1904, and the Andreu family again fell to performing in village squares—the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trick riding and began to play musical instruments.... ([[The Andreu-Rivels|more...]])

==New Essays and Biographies==

* [[Émilien Bouglione/fr|Émilien Bouglione]], French version
* [[Kremo Family]], icarists
* [[The Ziratron]], Israel's first Circus
* [[Carlos Guity]], acrobat
* [[James Clowney]], acrobat

==New Videos==

* [[Alzana_Video_(1938)|Harold, Elsie, and Hilda Alzana]], high wire (1938)
* [[Bobby_Roberts_Video_(1985)|Bobby Roberts]], elephant act (1985)
* [[Gunther_Gebel_Tiger_Video_(1985)|Gunther Gebel-Williams]], tiger act (1985)
* [[Flying_Girls_Video_(2009)|The New Flying Girls]], flying act (2009)
* [[Zapashny_Video_(1965)|The Zapashny Troupe]], jockey-acrobats-aerialists combination (1965)

==New Oral Histories==

* [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev interview]] on Russian Television (c.1990)
* [[Dominique_Jando_Video_(2025)|Dominique Jando interview]] by the Circus Historical Society (2025)
* [[Evelyn_and_Andre_Video_(2015)|Evelyn & André Interview]] on Blikk TV (2015)
* [[BAC_Blumberg_Video_(1977)|''For A Moment You Fly'']], The First Season of The Big Apple Circus (1977)
* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)

==Circopedia Books==

* [[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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''

:'''Dominique Jando'''
:Founder and Curator