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==Acrobat, Aerialist==

''By Dominique Jando''


[[Image:M P Benac And A Gruss Poses Equestres.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Marie-Pierre Bénac and Alexis Gruss]]Marie-Pierre Bénac was not born into the circus. Yet during a circus career that spanned twelve years and two continents, she proved herself a very gifted and extremely versatile performer.

Born in Toulouse, France, on August 3, 1956, she began training in gymnastics at age twelve, studying at the Lycée of Font-Romeu in the French Pyrenées Mountains, where she had been sent to treat her asthma. As luck had it Font-Romeu was home to a training facility for the French national gymnastics team: she was in the right surroundings. 

===Le Cirque à l'Ancienne===

Upon graduating from high school, Marie-Pierre went on to study design at Paris University, but she found that she missed the physical activity she had enjoyed in Font-Romeu. In 1976, just to "keep in shape," she decided to apply to the Conservatoire National des Arts du Cirque (also known as École au Carré), directed by [[Alexis Gruss, Jr.|Alexis Gruss]]. Founded in 1974, the Conservatoire was the first professional circus school in Western Europe.

Alexis Gruss was sufficiently impressed with Marie-Pierre's gymnastics background that he brought her into the resident company of his [[Cirque à l'ancienne]]. A repertory circus that formed part of the Paris Cultural Center, Alexis Gruss's ''Cirque à l'ancienne'' (Old-Time Circus) has been credited with spearheading the European circus renaissance of the 1970s and the "new circus" movement. It would become, in the 1980s, the French National Circus. 

Marie-Pierre performed fifteen different acts over the course of her seven years with the Cirque à l'ancienne, including: Roman Rings; flying trapeze; Russian Barre; floor acrobatics; several equestrian acts, including a unique acrobatic adagio on horseback with Alexis Gruss; and even a teeterboard act with elephants.

===The Big Apple Circus===

In 1984, Marie-Pierre moved to the United States, where she joined the [[Big Apple Circus]]'s resident company of performers. There she first recreated her Russian Barre act with [[David Dimitri]] and [[Sacha Pavlata]], and for six years, she displayed her remarkable versatility, performing&mdash;among other acts&mdash;a superb tight-wire duet and a pas-de-deux on the back of two elephants, both with David Dimitri. She was also featured in a trapeze act, and she performed for the last time her Russian Barre act in 1992-93 with [[Glen Nicolodi]] and [[Julian Stachowski]].

Marie-Pierre and David Dimitri performed their tight-wire act with [[Circus Knie]] in Switzerland in 1988, where, in 1989, they also performed a Russian Barre act with [[Franco Knie]]. Marie-Pierre returned to the Big Apple Circus in 1991, again becoming a member of its resident company. She remained there until 1993, when she retired from the circus, marrying musician Dino Govoni. After working for a time as a physiotherapist, she went back to college, earning an Associate degree in Art and Humanities, and Masters degrees in French and in Adolescent Education. She and Dino separated in 2008. They have a son, Michael.

==Image Gallery==

<gallery>
Image:M P Benac And A Gruss Poses Equestres.jpg|Marie-Pierre Bénac and Alexis Gruss, ''Poses Equestres'' (1978)
Image:Benac Acrobatics Cirque Gruss.jpg|Acrobatic act rehearsal (Marie-Pierre on top), Cirque Alexis Gruss, Paris (1981)
</gallery>

==See Also==

* Video: [[Gruss_Benac_Video_(1977)|Alexis Gruss, Jr. & Marie-Pierre Bénac, ''Les Poses Équestres'']], at Cirque Gruss in Paris (1977)

*Video: [[David_Dimitri_and_Marie-Pierre_Bénac_BAC_Video_1986|David Dimitri & Marie-Pierre Bénac, Tight-Wire act]] in the Big Apple Circus production of ''Carnival and Mardi Gras'' (1986)

*Video: [[David_Dimitri_and_Marie-Pierre_Bénac_BAC_Video_1987|David Dimitri & Marie-Pierre Bénac, Pas-de-Deux on elephants]] with [[William Woodcock, Jr.|Bill Woodcock]] in the Big Apple Circus production of ''1001 Arabian Nights'' (1987)

*Video: [[Katja_Schumann_High_School_Video_-_1991|Marie-Pierre Bénac and Katja Schumann in ''The Horse and the Dancer'']] in the Big Apple Circus production of ''Greetings From Coney Island'' (1991)

*Video: [[Stachowski_Nicolodi_Benac_Russian_Barre_1992_Video|Marie-Pierre Bénac, Glen Nicolodi & Julian Stachowski, Russian Barre]], in the Big Apple Circus production of ''Goin' Places'' (1992)


[[Category:Artists and Acts|Benac, Marie-Pierre]]
[[Category:Acrobats|Benac, Marie-Pierre]]
[[Category:Aerialists|Benac, Marie-Pierre]]
[[Category:Russian Barre|Benac, Marie-Pierre]]
[[Category:Tight Wire|Benac, Marie-Pierre]]
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