SNIFFINIG OUT CIRCUS A LA CARTE IN BITS AND BOTS: ARE YOU READY FOR VIRTUAL?

  Cirque Italia Water Circus 

A recent article in Bandwagon declaring 2024 “A Year of Revival for the American Circus,” works overtime to include anything that incorporates circus acts, either at the center, or in the shadows of experimental. The writer, Rodney A. Huey, is remarkably charitable in admitting into his feel-good survey practically anything that drops or alludes to the C word at the ballyhoo — and even some, like 7 Fingers, that technically don’t. But then, neither does New Ringlng.  

In olden golden days gone by when circus was circus, big tops awesome and little tops charming joined the April parade of gilded caravans down sawdust trails, throwing up fresh white canvas, sending giddy banners galloping gaily into  the wind. Red wagons convened onto open fields where canvas was spread, laced up, and raised skyward. And a magic city was born.  A city of amazing acrobats and animals, rowdy clowns and blazing spectacle.  Bring it back, you know who!

 Cirque Ma'Ceo

 

Being there in the middle of it all was a unique sensation.  We went in guilt-free, no pickets at the marque shaming what we were about to be thrilled by, and came out hopelessly addicted to the likes of Francis Brunn, the Cristianis, La Norma ...  

 Cirque Paranormal promises vampires and creepy clowns

And once upon a better season, they all gave you a circus, period, and you know exactly what I am talking about    At one time in this hyper competitive nation, even the smallest shows laid claim to three rings.  

Now today, a show may rig its aerial trappings from the wings of a theater, spot the props in public parks or on cruise ships, even at concert halls, purpose being to draw some kind of a crowd.  These specialized adventures are what some call boutique circuses.

Le Grand Cirque

 

Seven Fingers Passagers 

Full menu circus sill thrives in  Russia and parts of Europe.  Italy still loves the animals, and the Monte Carlo Circus Festival still celebrates the best of them with Gold Clowns.  In the  UK, all but two or three shows are now all-human. A few circuses stateside (Culpepper, Hanneford,  Loomis) still dare to feature exotics.  Some take a middle road with domestics, like  Zoppe Family Circus, which does not draw protesters to its collaboration with dogs and horses.  

 Cirque Ma'Ceo

Among the animal-free  shows, some can’t resist parading the banned in the safer, more cowardly form of costumed performers ---or bots.  Ringling’s insertion of a small robotic, mutt, conveys a promising insecurity at the top.

Here is where the Bandwagon story rumbles down the runs and then, instead of heading for an open field, chases a wide-ranging array of amusements (cerebral to carnal) that use circus primarily as a draw. Huey  brings on  the word “fusion’ in order to grant these entities the making of a grand revival. But the word feels like a strained euphemism in order to cast a wider net for triumphal image-building.    

In fact, “circus” as we have known it, was invented in an act of fusion, when London horse rider  Philip Astley added rope walkers, clowns and acrobats to his equestrian exhibitions in an open field.

Cirque Kalabante

Huey places the new Ringling acrobatic show at the center of it all, reporting on its “resounding success” (his source, Feld Entertainment) The article was published before New Ringling shut down to spend the greater part of a year planning its next edition. Given the near impossibility of our ever knowing what sort of business Ringling actually did, there is the rather bleak image of angry Yelp Reviews, averaging 1.5 stars, and of Reddit threads revealing skimpy crowds, i.e. "Recent tour stops seem to be struggling to get people in the door, especially for evening shows."  I find this plausible given a call I made to  the 20,000 seat Crypto.Com arena in L.A, where the show played, and was told that the average attendance had been between six and eight thousand per show. Like all the fan magazines, in this instance, Bandwagon can’t bring itself to function beyond a press release.

In the meantime, what I mostly see is circus a la Carte, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  It gives you more options to consider.  Hard core circus fans prove themselves to be, at least in public posturing and feel-good reviews, quite willing to gratefully embrace what still parades as a circus

It could be worse, I suppose.  The insane rise of AI will not doubt one day bring about the first  virtual circus show. Are you ready? Don’t throw away your tapes and movies just yet. And stay tuned to dog-loving America’s Got Talent on TV. First episodes usually push circus acts. Wonder why?  
 

 Old Ringing, 2017