Documents 

In revolutionary France, a girl named Marguerite Lalanne longed to perform above large crowds on a tightrope, just like her acrobatic parents. Sneaking off to the fairgrounds for secret tightrope walking lessons, Marguerite finessed her performance skills, ultimately performing for crowds as a young rope dancer. And eventually, Marguerite would perform as Madame Saqui, waltzing and pirouetting across- and never falling off- countless ropes above adoring crowds. A nouvelle chřie de Paris, Madame Saqui cemented her place in circus history, winning the adoration of the French people and royalty alike, including Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.

La publication des actes du colloque "Du fil à la slackline" marque une première étape de recherche sur les disciplines circassiennes et sportives liées au fil (funambule, slackline, fil de fer). Cet ouvrage regroupe les contributions de plusieurs chercheur.euse.s issu.e.s de différents champs (arts de la scène, STAPS, histoire, ethnologie, arts plastiques et architecture) dans une optique transdisciplinaire. En deuxième partie de publication, trente-six entretiens inédits avec des artistes offrent un bel aperçu de la variété contemporaine des pratiques et des approches de l’équilibre sur fil et permettent, dans leurs points de convergence et leurs singularités, de dégager des pistes de réflexion sur les pratiques contemporaines du fil, sur ses invariants et ses renouvellements.

This is a monumental history of that universally trancing, international phenomenon-the circus. It is the most complete chronicle of circuses and circus lore ever written in the english language. No reader can fail to be impressed by the scope of its coverage and the vividness of its descriptions. No lover of circus wonders can remain unmoved while reading of the people and performances that illuminated circus life.

The author reveals the origins of circus acts among Greek and Roman acrobats and medieval minstrels, tracing their development through eighteenth-century
fairs where they were combined with displays of horse riding in a circular ring to form a new style of presentation. He then follows the evolution of circuses during the nineteenth century, showing how novel acts and exhibitions of animal training were introduced to produce the circus we know today.

Mr. Speaight demonstrates the special way in which the circus grew in the United States, where three-ring circuses were transported over vast distances by railroad; and he describes the Golden Age of the circus in Europe, when circus riders ranked with ballet stars in popular esteem. Finally, he provides an up-to-the-minute account of circuses in the world today.

The author's account is based on many years of research in unpublished manuscripts and museum collections, and he reverses some long.held errors of previous writers on the subject. His book contains exhaustive notes and an appendix, listing circus buildings in London, New york and paris, which brings together information never before printed, giving the book great value as a permanent work of reference. [editor summary]