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==In The Spotlight==
 
==In The Spotlight==
  
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===PARIS'S NOUVEAU CIRQUE===
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===THE CIRCUS ON TSVETNOY BOULEVARD===
  
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Located from 1886 to 1926 on the rue Saint Honoré in Paris, a chic shopping thoroughfare at a stone’s throw from the Place Vendôme, the Nouveau Cirque was the most elegant and innovative circus of the French capital—and, for that matter, of Europe. For many years, it was the High Society’s circus of choice. Its relatively small size gave it warmth and intimacy (it was sometimes referred to as a "bonbonniere"), but in time, the Nouveau Cirque’s limited capacity made it difficult to manage. It began to lose its prominence before the first World War and proved unable to adapt to the post-war era.
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Circus buildings with a long history have something magical. They seem haunted by the protective ghosts of the great star performers who, over the years, have graced their ring. The world’s oldest extant circus building, Paris’s Cirque d’Hiver, where Jules Léotard originated the flying trapeze in 1859, is one of them. The glorious Circus Ciniselli in St. Petersburg, Russia’s oldest circus, is another one. And in Moscow, there is Circus Nikulin—"the Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard."
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[[File:Circus_Salamonsky_Moscow.jpg|right|450px]]
  
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The Nouveau Cirque was built for its times—what is remembered today as the Parisian "Belle Époque" ("Beautiful Era"), of which it was one of the jewels. After WWI, Paris entered the Jazz Age. Then, in the early 1920s, the venerable Cirque d’Hiver, completely refurbished, returned to the presentation of circus shows after a rather futile hiatus as a movie-house and theater; the Cirque Medrano began to enjoy one of its more lucrative periods; and the brand-new Empire Music-Hall Cirque opened its doors Avenue de Wagram: The small "bonbonniere" that was the Nouveau Cirque looked suddenly like a remnant of another era. It faced a competition it was ill-equipped to fight. Once a revolutionary and trendsetting house whose rich and often glorious life had lasted forty years, the Nouveau Cirque finally called it quits.
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The Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard: Three distinct circus buildings, actually, have been known under that name. The three buildings have occupied the exact same place, 13 Tsvetnoy Boulevard, with no longer interruption than the time needed for their reconstruction. Yet, for the Muscovites, they have been one and the same—their circus, just wearing different coats.
  
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The Nouveau Cirque was created by Joseph Oller (1839-1922), an imaginative entrepreneur and prolific provider of Parisian amusements. He was born Josep Oller i Roca in Terrassa, in Spanish Catalonia, on February 10, 1839; his parents were Francesc Oller, a fabric merchant, and his wife, Teresa, née Roca. The family emigrated to France when Josep was two years old, and the Ollers settled in Paris where Josep, now Joseph, was raised. He eventually returned to Spain to study at the University of Bilbao in the Basque Country, and while there, he discovered cockfighting, which was still very popular in the nineteenth century. His passion for this gory game led him to become a bookmaker—his first entrepreneurial endeavor.
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Before the Soviet revolution, Russian circus history was principally written in St. Petersburg, the Russian Empire’s capital, and began when the French equestrian Jacques Tourniaire built the ''Cirque Olympique'', Russia’s first circus, in 1827 near the Fontanka canal, on the spot where Circus Ciniselli (which is extant) would be erected half a century later. Tourniaire had performed in Moscow in 1826, but this was in the private manège of the Pashkov House, which today houses the Russian State Library—with its magnificent manège refurbished as its main reading room.
  
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Back to Paris, Oller transferred his bookmaking activities to horse racing. France had gained by then a new Emperor, Napoléon III, whose half-brother, the Duc de Morny, had been influential in the development of horse racing in France and had built the Deauville-La Touques racetrack in 1862. Morny died in 1865, but with his help, Oller had begun to develop the concept of the "pari mutuel" (literally meaning "mutual betting"), an innovative system in which bets are placed in a pool, and the winners share the losers' stakes—after the bookmaker has taken his commission. Oller put his new system to work in 1867; it replaced advantageously fixed-odds betting and made him a rich man indeed. Oller also launched ''Le Bulletin des Courses'', France’s first horse-racing journal.... ([[Nouveau Cirque (Paris)|more...]])
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Moscow’s first circus was a wooden structure erected in the Niskuchnye Gardens in 1830, which lasted three summer seasons. The second circus, [[Laura Bassin]]’s, was built in 1853 and lasted only two seasons. The third was the circus the Austrian-Hungarian equestrian Carl Magnus Hinné had built in 1869 as the Moscow branch of his St. Petersburg flagship circus; it would remain active, under various managements, until 1896.  Then, in 1880, Albert Salamonsky (1839-1913), a brilliant German equestrian and director, built a brand new circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard.
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Hinné had hired Salamonsky in 1869 to perform with his horses and his company in the Austrian-Hungarian director’s new building in Moscow. Salamonsky, who was an accomplished high school rider, and an outstanding trainer of "liberty" acts, had obtained a considerable success with Hinné, and he began afterward to tour regularly in Russia. In 1879, he built a circus in Odessa, but a shrewd businessman, he knew that the place to make real money was Moscow—the Empire’s wealthy merchant center—where Hinné’s circus, which was mostly harboring foreign touring companies, had no true identity of its own..... ([[Circus Nikulin|more...]])
  
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
 
==New Essays and Biographies==
  
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* [[Totti Alexis]], Clown
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* [[Alessandro Guerra]], Equestrian, Circus Director
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* [[Ross Mollison]], Circus Producer
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* [[Jimmy Scott]], Clown
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* [[Don Saunders]], Clown
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* [[Alexis Gruss, Jr.]], Equestrian, Circus Owner
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* [[Jo-Ann Jennier]], Aerialist, Animal Trainer
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* [[Alona Zhuravel]], Hand-Balancer
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* [[Ethel Jennier]], Aerialist, Animal Trainer
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* [[George Carl]], Clown
  
 
==New Videos==
 
==New Videos==
  
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* [[Totti_Alexis_Video_(2019)|Totti & Charlie Alexis]], musical clowns (2019)
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* [[Sandro_Montez_Video_(2023)|Sandro Montez]], dog act (2023)
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* [[Collins_Brothers_Video_(1993)|The Collins Brothers]], comedy trapeze act (1993)
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* [[Caitlin_%26_Spencer_Video_(2022)|Caitlin & Spencer]], Aerial Hoop (2022)
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* [[Totti_Alexis_Video_(2015)|Totti Alexis]], musical clown (2015)
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* [[Gimenez_Sisters_Video_(2023)|Brihanna & Miranda Giménez]], Washington Trapeze (2023)
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* [[Totti_Alexis_Video_(2010)|Totti Alexis]], clown (2010)
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* [[Cousins_Video_(2023)|Julot Cousins]], swaypole (2023)
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* [[Peter_Shub_Video_(2015)|Peter Shub]], clown (2015)
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* [[Devlikamov_Video_(2023)|Olga & Marat Devlikamov]], Chinese Pole (2023)
  
 
==New Oral Histories==
 
==New Oral Histories==

Latest revision as of 20:55, 1 September 2024


Welcome! ✫ Bienvenue! ✫ Willkommen! ✫ Добро Пожаловать!
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Velkommen! ✫ Tervetuloa! ✫ Дабро Запрашаем! ✫ Välkommen!

Circopedia was originally inspired and funded by the Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation.

In The Spotlight

THE CIRCUS ON TSVETNOY BOULEVARD

Circus buildings with a long history have something magical. They seem haunted by the protective ghosts of the great star performers who, over the years, have graced their ring. The world’s oldest extant circus building, Paris’s Cirque d’Hiver, where Jules Léotard originated the flying trapezeAerial act in which an acrobat is propelled from a trapeze to a catcher, or to another trapeze. (See also: Short-distance Flying Trapeze) in 1859, is one of them. The glorious Circus Ciniselli in St. Petersburg, Russia’s oldest circus, is another one. And in Moscow, there is Circus Nikulin—"the Old Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard."

Circus Salamonsky Moscow.jpg

The Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard: Three distinct circus buildings, actually, have been known under that name. The three buildings have occupied the exact same place, 13 Tsvetnoy Boulevard, with no longer interruption than the time needed for their reconstruction. Yet, for the Muscovites, they have been one and the same—their circus, just wearing different coats.

Before the Soviet revolution, Russian circus history was principally written in St. Petersburg, the Russian Empire’s capital, and began when the French equestrian Jacques Tourniaire built the Cirque Olympique, Russia’s first circus, in 1827 near the Fontanka canal, on the spot where Circus Ciniselli (which is extant) would be erected half a century later. Tourniaire had performed in Moscow in 1826, but this was in the private manège of the Pashkov House, which today houses the Russian State Library—with its magnificent manège refurbished as its main reading room.

Moscow’s first circus was a wooden structure erected in the Niskuchnye Gardens in 1830, which lasted three summer seasons. The second circus, Laura Bassin’s, was built in 1853 and lasted only two seasons. The third was the circus the Austrian-Hungarian equestrian Carl Magnus Hinné had built in 1869 as the Moscow branch of his St. Petersburg flagship circus; it would remain active, under various managements, until 1896. Then, in 1880, Albert Salamonsky (1839-1913), a brilliant German equestrian and director, built a brand new circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard.

Hinné had hired Salamonsky in 1869 to perform with his horses and his company in the Austrian-Hungarian director’s new building in Moscow. Salamonsky, who was an accomplished high schoolA display of equestrian dressage by a rider mounting a horse and leading it into classic moves and steps. (From the French: Haute école) rider, and an outstanding trainer of "liberty"Liberty act", "Horses at liberty": Unmounted horses presented from the center of the ring by an equestrian directing his charges with his voice, body movements, and signals from a ''chambrière'' (French), or long whip." acts, had obtained a considerable success with Hinné, and he began afterward to tour regularly in Russia. In 1879, he built a circus in Odessa, but a shrewd businessman, he knew that the place to make real money was Moscow—the Empire’s wealthy merchant center—where Hinné’s circus, which was mostly harboring foreign touring companies, had no true identity of its own..... (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. 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
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