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:90%;"> Circopedia was originally created with the support of the [http://www.bigapplecircus.com/ Big Apple Circus]<br />and 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, originally created as a project of the non-profit [[Big Apple Circus]]''.</div><br/>
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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
[[File:Kio_Poster_Carriage.jpg|right|300px]]
 
===KIO===
 
  
From the 1920s to about 2010, three magic acts have been performed under the name "Kio," first by Emil Kio (1894-1965), then by his sons, Igor (1944-2006) and Emil (b.1938). Kio, whether the original Emil Kio or his sons, had an exceptionally brilliant career in the Soviet Union (and later, the Russian Federation) as well as around the world, where they performed extensively on international tours of the "Moscow Circus." Kio’s illusions had a unique particularity: they were created to be performed exclusively in the ring. Together, Emil Kio, Igor Kio and Emil Kio, Jr. have performed for an estimated audience of 180 million worldwide, which arguably makes theirs the most widely seen act in the history of Magic.
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===WALTER NONES===
 +
[[File:Walter_Nones.jpeg|right|400px]]
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Even though he was not born in the circus, Walter Nones (1934-2016) was, in Italy, a reformer of the classic circus form, one of the few circus visionaries who have marked the second half of the 20th century (from Arturo Castilla to Jean Richard and Gerry Cottle) and built true circus empires in their own countries equating in strength the circus empires of yore.
 +
 
 +
Walter Nones was also a remarkable acrobat and a superb animal trainer; he had an engaging personality—as much when ha addressed his audience as when, away from the spotlight, he acted as the "general" of his enterprises, or in his dealing with the media and the Italian administration. Endowed with a solid intuition and a rare ability for taking calculated risks, he was able to change directions and diversify his company many times; his constant imperative was novelty, for which he was faithful to the style and methods of the great Italian variety entrepreneurs.
 +
 
 +
Walter Nones was able to build with his wife, Moira Orfei, a legend that went well beyond their circus—a circus that was certainly unique in the fact that it traveled constantly for fifty-five years without ever taking a true break! Nones was among the Italian pioneers of the internationalization of show business and, as such, he even became instrumental in the establishment of new relations between the former USSR and the Vatican.
  
Even more than their illustrious father, who was a bona fide star of the Soviet circus, Emil, Jr. and Igor became celebrities in their own right; they appeared on television, either as program hosts or in their own magic shows, and on film, and they were regularly and, sometimes, opulently chronicled in the Russian press&mdash;and by the Soviet gossipmongers, who showed a tabloid interest for the peculiar intricacies of their multiple marriages, notably Igor’s matrimonial and extra-marital adventures.  
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Walter Nones was born in Trent, capital of the Trentino province in northern Italy, on June 18, 1934, the oldest of the four children of Giuseppe Nones and his wife, Adele, née Medini, a circus artist. Giuseppe was a cabinet maker; he spent his life between his workshop and the gym, following in that an old Trent tradition: A great number of its citizen had developed over the years a passion for gymnastics. With three of his gymnast friends, he had gone to perform as an acrobat in Bernardo Medini’s circus, where he met Adele, the seventh of the fourteen children that Medini had with his wife, Adalgisa Caroli. They fell in love and got married…
  
Advertised simply as "KIO," the various Kio magic acts were what the Russians call an ''attraction'', a presentation that can fill up to the entire second half of a circus performance. Kio’s original act had been created by magician Emil Hirschfeld-Renard in 1932. After his death in 1965, the act was inherited by Emil's younger son and assistant, Igor (who presented it in his father’s version until 1976, and then completely revamped it), and was reproduced in 1966 as a second Kio unit presented until the early twenty-first century by Igor’s elder brother, Emil, Jr.... ([[Kio|more...]])
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At the outbreak of World War II, however, Giuseppe Nones stopped his circus escapades and returned to his workshop and a stable and more secure occupation. Walter, his brother Guglielmo, and his sister Loredana, were sent to study in a Salesian college. Sharing their father's passion for acrobatics, the siblings began to perform in school shows and took lessons from a well-known acrobat, Bruno Marcantoni, who had performed in the United States with the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1910.... ([[Walter Nones|more...]])
  
==New Biographies==
+
==New Essays and Biographies==
  
* [[William Vos]], Animal Trainer
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* [[Cirkus_Verdensteater_(Oslo)|Cirkus Verdensteater]], Oslo Circus Building
* [[Jürg Jenny]], Animal Trainer
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* [[Eddie Murillo]], Circus Agent and Producer
* [[Kio]], Magician
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* [[The Biasini Family]], Circus Owners, Artists
* [[Dimitri]], Clown
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* [[Paul Jerome]], Clown
* [[Oleg Popov]], Clown
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* [[Evelyn and André]], Aerialists, Acrobats
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
* [[Group_A_Music_Video_(1994)|Group A]], Clowns (1994)
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* [[Rudi-Llata_Video_(1956)|The Rudi-Llatas]], clown entrée (1956)
* [[Mikhail_Korolev_Video_(1953)|Isabella & Mikhail Korolëv]], equestrians (1953)
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* [[Steve_Bor_Video_(1985)|Steve Bor]], juggler (1985)
* [[Flying_Bells_Video_(2012)|The Flying Bells]], Flying Trapeze (2012)
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* [[Casartelli_Elephants_Video_(1997)|Eros Casartelli]], elephant act (1997)
* [[Francescos_Castle_Video_(1968)|The Francescos]], Clown Entrée (1968)
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* [[Hng_Thean_Leong_Video_(2024)|Hng Thean Leong]], diabolo act (2024)
* [[Ionova_Reznikov_Video_(1953)|L. Ionova & E.G. Reznikov]], Aerial Perch (1953)
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* [[Trixie_Zavatta_Video_(2024)|Trixie Zavatta]], hand balancer/contortionist on hoverboard (2024)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==
  
 +
* [[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)
 
* [[Durov_Documentary_Video_(c.2000)|Vladimir Durov Documentary]] on Russian Television (c.2000)
 
* [[Dolly_Jacobs_Interview_Video_(2018)|Dolly Jacobs Interview]] at The Ringling (2018)
 
* [[Dolly_Jacobs_Interview_Video_(2018)|Dolly Jacobs Interview]] at The Ringling (2018)
* [[Pinito_del_Oro_RTE_Video_(1970)|Pinito del Oro's Interview]] on Spanish Television (1970)
 
* [[Eradze_Video_(2015)|Gia Eradze]]'s Interview on SSU TV (2015)
 
* [[Rosa_Bouglione_Video_(2012)|Rosa Bouglione]]'s interview on Franch Television (2012)
 
  
 
==Circopedia Books==
 
==Circopedia Books==
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* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
 
* [[Circopedia Books|Philip Astley & The Horsemen who invented the Circus]], by Dominique Jando (2018)
  
==A Message from the Editor==
+
==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 [[Circopedia:Contact|contact us]]: we will definitely consider your remarks and suggestions.''  
+
''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 05:55, 1 July 2025


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, originally created as a project of the non-profit Big Apple Circus.

In The Spotlight

WALTER NONES

Walter Nones.jpeg

Even though he was not born in the circus, Walter Nones (1934-2016) was, in Italy, a reformer of the classic circus form, one of the few circus visionaries who have marked the second half of the 20th century (from Arturo Castilla to Jean Richard and Gerry Cottle) and built true circus empires in their own countries equating in strength the circus empires of yore.

Walter Nones was also a remarkable acrobat and a superb animal trainer; he had an engaging personality—as much when ha addressed his audience as when, away from the spotlight, he acted as the "general" of his enterprises, or in his dealing with the media and the Italian administration. Endowed with a solid intuition and a rare ability for taking calculated risks, he was able to change directions and diversify his company many times; his constant imperative was novelty, for which he was faithful to the style and methods of the great Italian variety entrepreneurs.

Walter Nones was able to build with his wife, Moira Orfei, a legend that went well beyond their circus—a circus that was certainly unique in the fact that it traveled constantly for fifty-five years without ever taking a true break! Nones was among the Italian pioneers of the internationalization of show business and, as such, he even became instrumental in the establishment of new relations between the former USSR and the Vatican.

Walter Nones was born in Trent, capital of the Trentino province in northern Italy, on June 18, 1934, the oldest of the four children of Giuseppe Nones and his wife, Adele, née Medini, a circus artist. Giuseppe was a cabinet maker; he spent his life between his workshop and the gym, following in that an old Trent tradition: A great number of its citizen had developed over the years a passion for gymnastics. With three of his gymnast friends, he had gone to perform as an acrobat in Bernardo Medini’s circus, where he met Adele, the seventh of the fourteen children that Medini had with his wife, Adalgisa Caroli. They fell in love and got married…

At the outbreak of World War II, however, Giuseppe Nones stopped his circus escapades and returned to his workshop and a stable and more secure occupation. Walter, his brother Guglielmo, and his sister Loredana, were sent to study in a Salesian college. Sharing their father's passion for acrobatics, the siblings began to perform in school shows and took lessons from a well-known acrobat, Bruno Marcantoni, who had performed in the United States with the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1910.... (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