About
Circus — the performing arts tradition combining acrobatics, aerial acts, clowning, trained animals, and theatrical spectacle — has roots in ancient Roman entertainment (chariot racing, gladiatorial combat, animal shows) but modern circus begins with Philip Astley's amphitheater in London (1768), where he discovered that riding in circles (the ring) created centrifugal force that helped equestrians stand on galloping horses. The circular ring (13m diameter — standardized because this is optimal for equestrian acts) became circus's defining architecture.
Circus evolved through the American traveling circus era (Barnum & Bailey, Ringling Bros — 'Greatest Show on Earth'); the Soviet State Circus (which elevated circus to a state-subsidized high art, training acrobats as athletes and creating technically demanding acts); Chinese acrobatic tradition; and Cirque du Soleil (founded Montreal 1984 — reinvented circus without animals, with theatrical narrative, contemporary music, and spectacular production values; became a $1B entertainment brand). Contemporary circus is experiencing a renaissance through 'new circus' companies that treat the art form with the seriousness of ballet or opera. The Flying Wallendas (highwire dynasty, founded 1928) are the most famous circus family — Nik Wallenda crossed Niagara Falls on a tightrope (2012, 550m, 1,800 people watching live).
# Top 10 Circus Arts Performance facts
- 1The Flying Wallendas' most famous act was a 7-person high-wire pyramid — walking 4 stories above the ground while stacked three levels high — performed without a net until 1962, when the pyramid collapsed and two Wallenda family members were killed and two permanently paralyzed
- 2the family continued performing
- 3Cirque du Soleil grew from 20 street performers in Montreal in 1984 to a $1 billion company employing 4,000 people in 44 countries by 2019 — before COVID-19 forced it into bankruptcy, eliminating 95% of jobs, demonstrating both live entertainment's power and its fragility
- 4Soviet state circus produced the world's most technically accomplished circus performers through rigorous training programs at the Moscow State Circus School — treating acrobats as elite athletes trained from childhood — and the tradition continues in Chinese acrobatic schools that feed international productions
Fascinating Facts
- ◆The Flying Wallendas' most famous act was a 7-person high-wire pyramid — walking 4 stories above the ground while stacked three levels high — performed without a net until 1962, when the pyramid collapsed and two Wallenda family members were killed and two permanently paralyzed; the family continued performing
- ◆Cirque du Soleil grew from 20 street performers in Montreal in 1984 to a $1 billion company employing 4,000 people in 44 countries by 2019 — before COVID-19 forced it into bankruptcy, eliminating 95% of jobs, demonstrating both live entertainment's power and its fragility
- ◆Soviet state circus produced the world's most technically accomplished circus performers through rigorous training programs at the Moscow State Circus School — treating acrobats as elite athletes trained from childhood — and the tradition continues in Chinese acrobatic schools that feed international productions
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