Difference between revisions of "Main Page"

From Circopedia

 
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<div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!</div><div style="font-size:165%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#996666;">Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατε!</div><div style="font-size:165%; 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/>
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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
<div style="top:+0.2em; font-size:110%;"> Circopedia was originally created with the support of the [http://www.bigapplecircus.com/ Big Apple Circus],<br />and has been inspired and funded by the [http://www.sdrubin.org/ Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation].</div>
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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/>
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<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/>
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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
  
===HAROLD ALZANA===
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===THE ANDREU-RIVELS===
[[File:Harold_Alzana_(Cushman).jpg|right|300px]]
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[[File:Knie_Poster_-_Andreu-Rivels.jpeg|right|300px]]
Harold Alzana was, from the late forties to the mid-sixties, a star fixture of Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus. His daredevil manner&mdash;working on the high wire without a balancing pole and at high speed, which contrasted with the traditionally slow, seemingly careful, approach of the great high wire acrobats, such as The Wallendas, that had preceded him&mdash;inspired many of the high wire acts that are seen today.
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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).
  
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.
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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&mdash;and later married&mdash;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.
  
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.
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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.
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The war over, Harold Alzana decided to leave the darkness of Maltby coalmines and tempt his luck in the circus spotlights: It was social climbing in every sense of term! His break came in 1946, when impresario Clem Butson, 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.
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If it was certainly, from the audience point of view, a spectacular finale, 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''. ([[Harold Alzana|more...]])
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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&mdash;the children doing a variety of acts, including acrobatic dancing, perch-pole balancing, and a hand-balancing act&mdash;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 Biographies==
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==New Essays and Biographies==
  
* [[Baptiste Loisset]], Circus Owner and Equestrian
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* [[Émilien Bouglione/fr|Émilien Bouglione]], French version
* [[The Kornilov Dynasty]], Elephant Trainers
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* [[Kremo Family]], icarists
* [[Sergei Korolev]], Acrobat
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* [[The Ziratron]], Israel's first Circus
* [[Victor Fomine]], Acrobat, Circus Coach
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* [[Carlos Guity]], acrobat
* [[Annie Fratellini]], Clown, Circus Director
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* [[James Clowney]], acrobat
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Kozhevnikov_Video_(1963)|Ivan Kozhevnikov]], Juggler (1963)
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* [[Angie_McIlroy_Video_(2026)|Angie McIlroy-Wagar]], aerial hoop (2026)
* [[Rampin_Video_(2015)|Los Rampin]], Clown Entrée (2015)
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* [[Rosemarie_Dorning_Elephant_Video_(1978)|Rosemarie Dorning]], dog and elephant act (1978)
* [[Togni_Elephants_Video_(1988)|Flavio Togni]], Elephant Act (1988)
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* [[Americano_Video_(1968)|Circo Americano in Madrid]], documentary (1968)
* [[Ivanov_Troupe_Video_(2018)|Ivanov Troupe]], High Wire (2018)
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* [[Pepin_Leon_Video_(1982)|Pepin León Trio]], clowns (1982)
* [[Gino_Donati_Video_(1962)|Gino Donati]], Comedy Acrobatics (1962)
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* [[Kathy_Donnert_Video_(2021)|Kathy Donnert]], foot juggling (2021)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==
  
* [[Rosa_Bouglione_Video_(2012)|Rosa Bouglione]]'s interview on Franch Television (2012)
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* [[Gneushev_Video_(c.1990)|Valentin Gneushev interview]] on Russian Television (c.1990)
* [[Circo_Price_Video_(2017)|A Short History of Madrid's Old Circo Price]], Documentary (1970)
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* [[Dominique_Jando_Video_(2025)|Dominique Jando interview]] by the Circus Historical Society (2025)
* [[Anastasia_Dementieva_Video_(2017)|Anastasia Dementieva-Kornilova]] – Vadim Vernik Interview (2017)
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* [[Evelyn_and_Andre_Video_(2015)|Evelyn & André Interview]] on Blikk TV (2015)
* [[Freres_Knie_Video_(1962)|''Les Frères Knie'']], Documentary (1962)
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* [[BAC_Blumberg_Video_(1977)|''For A Moment You Fly'']], The First Season of The Big Apple Circus (1977)
* [[Jean_Richard_Video_(1979)|Jean Richard and Jean-Pierre Richard]] at the Cirque Jean Richard – Christian Boner Interview (1979)
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* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)
 
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==2018 Circopedia Award==
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* [[Dandies_Video_(2018)|''Dandies'' (Yury Kreer, Johnny Gasser, Kirill Ivanov)]], Russian Barre
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==New Circopedia Books==
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==Circopedia Books==
  
 
* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
 
* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
  
==A Message from the Editor==
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==A Message from the Founder==
  
''CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly&mdash;and sometimes daily&mdash;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 [[Special:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  
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''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&mdash;and sometimes daily&mdash;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'''
 
:'''Dominique Jando'''
 
:Founder and Curator
 
:Founder and Curator

Latest revision as of 20:04, 11 June 2026


Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!
Bienvenida! ✫ Benvenuto! ✫ 歡迎 ! ✫ Vítejte! ✫ Καλώς ήρθατ ε!
Üdvözöljük! ✫ Добре Дошли! ✫ Welkom! ✫ Ласкаво Просимо!
Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!

Circopedia is an independent educational website, initially created as a project of the original, non-profit Big Apple Circus.

In The Spotlight

THE ANDREU-RIVELS

Knie Poster - Andreu-Rivels.jpeg

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 actAct performed by Icarists, in which one acrobat, lying on his back, juggles another acrobat with his feet. (Named after Richard Risley Carlisle, who developed this type of 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-handAn acrobatic act in which one or more acrobats do hand-balancing in the hands of an under-stander. 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-poleLong perch held vertically on a performer's shoulder or forehead, on the top of which an acrobat executes various balancing figures. balancing, and a hand-balancing act—before joining the Cirque Caron in Grenoble. There, the Andreu siblings learned trickAny specific exercise in a circus act. riding and began to play musical instruments.... (more...)

New Essays and Biographies

New Videos

New Oral Histories

Circopedia Books

A Message from the Founder

CIRCOPEDIA is a constantly evolving and expanding archive of the international circus, maintained by reliable circus historians and specialists. New videos, biographies, essays, and documents are added to the site on a weekly—and sometimes daily—basis. Keep visiting us: even if today you don't find what you're looking for, it may well be here tomorrow! And if you are a serious circus scholar and spot a factual or historical inaccuracy, do not hesitate to contact us: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.

Dominique Jando
Founder and Curator