Real Risk: Coin of the Authentic Circus

From the first year of posting ...

A Golden Dragon Equilibrist Versus a Coreto High Wire Walker.

At the Golden Dragon Acrobats, who appeared last week on the stage of Berkeley’s Zellerbach, a very showmanly young hand balancer working the old chair-stacking routine gave us reason to feel fear, respect, hope and admiration. As he added, first one, then another and yet another chair to up his eerie elevation, we were treated to something we once took for granted under our now-emasculated big tops. (Who is he? The producer, whom I e-mailed, refused to provide a name.)

Just when you thought he had gone as high as he could go, there came that look on his playfully taunting face —— should I add just one more chair? Increase the danger and prolong your state of suspense and dread? From his perch on high, this slyly humorous entertainer smiled down upon our mounting sense of unease. We were on edge; not he. A circus owner somewhere should grab him fast by a contract.

What charges our emotions during such a performance is a feeling that only though skill, careful calculation, courage and resolve, can the performer stay on course and avoid the unthinkable. Every moment is in the balance as the stakes grow higher. A metaphor for life?

Now ask yourself: would you feel the same drama were the young man strapped to a mechanic? With a mechanic, it is impossible for the artist to succeed purely on skill. In fact, the artist does not have to succeed at all, because a lifeline will be there to save any tragic errors.

In contrast, at Cirque du Soleil’s latest under-canvas opus Corteo -- a fantasy sampler of many things that may you leave you with a new-found appreciation for the artistic brevity of the Three Stooges -- you can glance up at a young ballerina walking a "high wire," tethered, every antiseptic step of the way, to a thick white rope. You might wonder if Cirque intended to mock the dangers inherent in real circus as old hat. If, indeed, they are determined to deconstruct your appetite for the real thing by coercing you into buying the image without the reality?

Gradually, these insipid interludes will self-destruct. Audiences will tire of synthetic courage and go elsewhere for the real thing in other forums. Have you heard of extreme sports? Once at the circus, that's what you got.

Once at the circus, on her own, the extremely real Josephine Berosini, Circa 1955. Photo by Ted Sato.

First posted May 24, 2007

Sunday Morning, Looking Back: Baraboo Revisited — So Many Ringling Secrets Still to Uncover

This first appeared on May 19, 2007


A deceptively small town off the beaten path, Baraboo is where the five Ringling brothers launched a showbiz dream that took them to the top of the big top. This is where they raised their first tent. Where they developed a rare working chemistry (no contracts ever signed) that made them the envy of the show world. Make no mistake, my friend, this is the place. Give it a little of your time — it seems to float in limbo like Brigadoon — and you can get answers to questions you never asked but should have ... Talk to a towner and chances are, she knows someone who knew somebody who was there when the red wagons rumbled and the elephants roared. And did you realize that ...

The combined genius of the brothers crowds the barns and the files, the train yards and the halls of Circus World (they’ve dropped "Museum" from the title). Among the attractive displays at the fabulously upscale Irvin Feld Center, my absolute favorite is a revelation: the most emotionally engaging photo I have ever seen of the brothers (Otto was away at the time -- you can view it right here, down below.) They appear serenely linked by a shared sense of divine destiny. From whence the mindset? From Al? From all four in blessed unspoken camaraderie?

Altogether, a magnificent collection which likely dwarfs any other such facility on the planet, luckily Circus World was recently given a reprieve under the new direction of Stephen Freese ... Here in its spangled shadows, you’ll glimpse the tarnished trappings of a once-superior amusement giant that ruled sawdust lots from coast to coast — long before the decline of so many great American icons. Before Santa Fe’s Super Chief faded into Damtrak mediocrity ... before Ford lost out to Toyota, circus to cirque ... Here, I walk the streets listening for clues, reaching for fresh insights at ground zero... hoping to make contact ... Can you hear me, Charles? Alf T.? Al? What did you guys really think?

On a Thursday evening, into the Al Ringling Theatre I venture.
Did you know that, according to the theatre Historical Society of America, this was the country’s first "movie palace"? A man near a popcorn machine waiting for an audience to appear tells me with a shrug that if somebody does show up, he will run the film ... How poignant ... I have just come from the dineresque Little Village Cafe down the street, where a perfect Caesar salad with chicken was served me while Ella on cd sang from the great American songbook. (Try their blackened salmon, another treat.) Now, the movie guy is encouraging me to take a look-see in the empty theatre, and I am awed by its grand tattered opulence.

My digs are another civic landmark — the Gollmar House, a bed and breakfast in a stately old Victorian on Third Street now run by John and Sharon, who display a certain delight in hosting strangers from afar. They have assigned me the Queen Ann upstairs. Other than being chased by an invading bat while John and Sharon are out taking a "walk," the furnishings are old world fine. The late Don Marcks would have felt perfectly at home here. And I am fairly shocked to learn that the Gollmar Brothers put out the fourth largest rail show in 1916. Please sign me up, somebody, for circus 1A. Blame it on those Ringling press agents.

Baraboo, rife with Ringling lore, is also culturally "with it." At Annie’s Village Booksmith each Friday evening, poets from nearby gather to share verse (from young love lost to post-hippie anger) with like-mined souls. Encouraged by Sharon of Gollmar, I have come here to sample the soft cozy ambiance after taking in the film "Blades of Glory’ at the Al Ringling — Nine teenagers and I showed up to give the guy at the popcorn machine a reason to turn the projector on. (Note to the avid restorationists known as Al Ringling Theatre Friends: the gas lamps, smelling too much like unlit pilot lights, are a tad unsettling.)

Earlier that day in the depths of Circus World’s vast archival regions, reinstated archivist-in-chief Erin Foley invites me to dig for some truth through the imposing Ringling-Barnum archives. Boxes upon boxes. I select a couple, and in them discover stunningly rare handwritten notes by John Ringling North that put far more emotion into a man too often viewed as distant and unengaged. And for a bonus, CW's "Heavy," who restores wagons and oversees the grounds, drives me back to an off-site shed that shelters carnival wagons, among them Foley & Burk's Thimble Theatre fun house. The thing fascinated me at the Sonoma County Fair in my boyhood ... Next dream: to see the Thimble Theatre up and open for business again ... Heavy also takes me on an impromptu tour of the imposing train barns nearby , which someday may be opened to the public. What bold industrialists the brothers were!

At lunch, Erin and I find a table at the Opera cafe upstairs on Oak Street in one of the town’s older buildings. The place is a buzz with the chatter of ladies who lunch... Gracious is the atmosphere ... In the evening, I sit on a bench at town square, observing the passing scene. Boys on bikes. Girls making an impression. Men walking dogs.

The next morning at the Gollmar, a kindly retired dentist who hardly looks or acts his nearly 88 years named Bob Dewel arrives to share breakfast with me and two other Golmar guests. We are dazzled by a succession of irresistible plates, a feast fit for Ringling royalty prepared by Sharon and served by her waiter-bus boy husband John. And of course, we talk circus. Did you know, for instance, that there was an eighth Ringling boy named George? He died in infancy. And here I must tell you, with great regrets, that an entire roll of film I shot containing pictures of this time-period's events was completely lost.

.... A few hours later, Bob offers to give us his Al Ringling Theatre tour, and what an eye opener it is. More Ringling facts and mythology — they haunt this sacred palace, and Dr. Bob is determined not to let the world forget. Not to let a landmark fall into tragically irreversible disrepair as so many have. What a lucky town: the good doctor who once drilled for gold is now drilling through paint and fabric for color authenticity to help restore a theatre to the way it actually was in the beginning, and he is drilling for funding from people of means. The town only has two in the millionaire class, he shares, and one of them (name not given) is connected to the circus. Bob is also a self-effacing organist of superb keyboard skills who thrills us with a few tunes. The music is sent gloriously through 600 pipes. Movie palace, yes. "We’re not good at promoting ourselves," Bob will state more than once during the tour.


We are invited backstage to examine the old gears and pulleys, and then up to the balcony to view the very seat at which, it has been carefully surmised, Al Ringling himself sat on opening night, November 17, 1915 when a touring production from New York of Lady Luxury brought the curtain up on the virgin stage. Louise Ringling sat next to the now virtually blind Al, painting for him pictures of the event. To reach their private box, the two had crossed the street and entered through the stage door, then up a private staircase so that Al could avoid lobby talk. Within six weeks, the mightiest of all the Ringling brothers (sorry, John) was dead ...

From circus to rails. Returning to California on the Coast Starlate, what a treat to discover on our consist a parlor car from Santa Fe, circa 1956, named the Pacific. Shades of rail travel USA when trains competed for customers as today’s pc makers do. Remember the free market? Remember the California Zephyr, the Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha [above, left], Rodgers & Hammerstein on Broadway, and the Greatest Show on Earth under the greatest big top on earth?

Remember, too, when Al Ringling built a palace with a hundred thousand dollars of his own money and in only seven months. And if this town’s kindly dentist turned scholar has his way, Baraboo residents and visitors alike will forever be reminded of what a triumphant and very tangible legacy Al Ringling left the town in which his dream became a reality – and of what a great showman he really was. Oh, those five amazing brothers ... By the way, did you hear about the time when Otto made a bold move to ...

[Except for photos of the Al Ringling Theatre, all other shots are from the camera of Showbiz David]

5/19/07

Showbiz Snaps: Legally Blonde, the musical, Didn’t Fool Me — or the New York Critics

Bubbles Over Broadway

When it tried out in San Francisco earlier this year to hometown acclaim, I refused to grant this hokey contrivance high marks, noting, nonetheless, that it does have a natural audience base in all the teen girls who are said to flood Broadway ticket counters.

Legally Blonde, which just failed to nab a nomination for Best Musical from the Tony people, got little respect from Big Apple critics when it opened on April 30, and I’m feeling (okay, smugly) vindicated. Read Clive Barnes: "amorphous, synthetic and manically empty-headed music." Even the often easy-to-please USA Today added sneer to the jeers: "Whatever pleasures Blonde provides ... are as fleeting and superficial as the highlights." Of course, you’re wondering, but what about the New York Times? Here’s what: "...approximates the experience of eating a jumbo box of Gummi Bears in one sitting." You heard it here first from Showbiz David. You can check out my review by typing "Legally Blonde" in the search box above... Or you can smugly ignore me.

Why do I watch Survivor? Without saying much, well, it’s kind of because if I find somebody whose looks and charm appeal to me, it’s a fun event. Okay, so it’s a flesh show, alright?

Hilarious satire makes a mess of figure skating during the early scenes of Blades of Glory, starring Will Ferrell and Jon Heder, who will end up competing together as the first male-male "pairs" duo. I loved watching the phony baloney world of millionaire fluff bunnies and cutthroat bladsters spoofed (maybe because my sport of roller skating has always been pushed cleverly aside by theirs)--- complete with pip squeak cheerleader-analyst Scott Hamilton (playing himself) taking it over the top. Even the ice-on-mice shows are mercilessly trashed for laughs galore. How I wished this film could have continued apace. But no, it fairly melts away when Heder, who enters as a flaming queen, must learn how to love a real woman. Duh? And what a fairy tale that turns out to be. Get out the ice machine, guys, and sweep this ridiculous hetero farce off the rink...

Late Night watch: I watched Craig Ferguson and found him a bore, then tried him another night and found him a delight. Back again, he started to wear thin. Too much oddball body gyrations bring a stale penchant for Bit drag in. Methinks this Craig needs sharper writing and packaging. Me doubts he's going very far this side of the Atlantic. Super nice guy, and that's probably the problem.

Old flick discovery on tv: Rainbow On the River (1936). With Bobby Breen and May Robson fleshing out the touching tale of a young white kid raised by an ex-slave in post-Civil war South. He gets pulled away to live with his rich snobby in-laws in the big city. Happy ending, and that’s how it should be in this lilting musical fantasy that yet has a real soul. Relationships between people jump ethnic barriers all the time.

Next on the Big Lot: Baraboo Revisited.

Big Top Bits: Kelly-Miller Shines North ... Don Stacey Doesn't ...

From the first year posting ...

"It’s Showtime!" — and away we go at the new Kelly-Miller Circus produced by first-of-May showman John Ringling North II. "It’s Showtime" is the title of the opening production number, a chivari of sorts, or so I am told by manager Jim Royal who has been sending me, in glacially slow doses, program details bit by bit. A would-be archaeologist I have become, digging patiently away --- one pick at a time ... Bit by bit, into focus here we go:

From Mexico to Asia hail Kelly-Miller’s artists in the 18-act layout. Other production flourishes: A return of the North Starlets, down to an affordable foursome who glide around the cloud swing work of Jennifer Nichole. And a red, white and blue climax that fills the tent with flaring flags and confetti drops. Manager Jim stands by smiling "It does my heart good to go into the tent at finale and hear the reaction of our audiences. They are very pleased with the performance."

Has the show a star? Royal tells me that North, who booked all the new acts himself, was "particularly impressed" with contortionist Sai Zhang. "He was right. She gets a great response from the audiences." Bit by bit ...

The first act ever signed by North? The Rosales Family. More to follow from the trenches of Hugo ... Next to come: a complete rundown of the entire performance! I have it, kids...

Sunshine & Shadows: The Big Apple’s Maria Parra, who works dogs for Johnny Peer, is one of 30 Under 30's Picks for 2006. Says, Maria at 28, "I’m learning that you don’t have to go to every party. You don’t have to meet every single person" .... Big Apple Circus, by the way, is hauling in some adoring notices after opening to a New York Times rave last November ... Death stalks the sawdust — a Leitzel replay? Tragically, 35-year-young aerialist Roberto Valenzuela fell to his end while performing on Circo Hermanos Vazques in L.A., and maybe through no fault of his own artistry. Investigations point to rigging failure, and how often that, sadly, is the case ... Circus News.Com is following this story ... Stay out of Connecticut, circus with animals! That’s the intent of one chilly bill (HB 7019) moving through an unfriendly legislature. And if it passes, let the public suffer ... About my circus website ratings, Joan Hart of Circus Vargas e-mailed me: "We were thrilled with your favorable comments." One of the tidy little things about the Vargas site that I like is their concise listing of acts, specially from where they come. Thank God for places like Italy and Chile and Holland and Spain – well you get the picture. Keep spoiling us, World, please ... See the photo, on the sidebar, of North II and Royal I, taken in a revealing flash by Beverly Royal? Now that’s what the theatre calls "character delineation... The ever-resilient Zoppes, led by Alberto, are out with their first newsletter, and it oozes warm Italian charm, complete with Mama’s Recipe ... Go there and be embraced by one of Spangeland’s Great Circus Families ...

http://www.zoppe.net/newsletter.html

And here comes Englishman Don Stacey, raising high once more the Irvin Feld banner ... Go, Don, I feel your Piccadilly pain! Stacey continues to rant against the truth of what really happened. And I’m back on Stacey’s stage, and, gosh, I feel perversely flattered. A reference to me kicks off Stacey’s article about Circus World for the latest issue of King Pole ... As usual, I come off as the guy who loves John North (the original) and hates Irvin Feld, whereas Stacey loves Feld and doesn’t love North.

... I know there are many sincere Irvin Feld fans out there (and I respect them all) who may believe that Feld was actually the better showman. Feld as savior? There, I draw a line. Stacey — going near ballistic this time out — writes, "I am inclined to agree with those who feel that Feld and his family were indeed, the people who saved the oldest and biggest traveling circuses from annihilation" Bombs over the big top, Don? How about turning your radar onto how the Felds have tried to annihilate John Ringling North and Arthur Concello out of circus history?

The nuances, England, the nuances. Here, Don, is what you will find on page 299 of my book, Big Top Boss, concerning my take at one point on Feld's showmanship: "In the mid-1970s the greatest show on earth was as aggressively promoted as it had ever been, with Gunther Gebel Williams at the dazzling forefront of a glamorous and modern Ringling ballyhoo that captured the American public’s fancy." ... To a corner please, go, there to recite that sentence a thousand times over ... The two of us in vaudeville, Don? I could hoof a tad ...

Stacey, who handled publicity for North’s 1963-64 European tour and loathed every performance he was by contract obligated to promote, concedes that he never saw a Ringling circus in America produced by JRN. Hmm, how interesting ...

I’m back at Kelly-Miller digging for the truth, bit by bit ... And that’s a Royal wrap ...

First posted May 5, 2007

Circus Websites Rated – from Victorious to Vague

From Consumer Courts, Showbiz David Division 

Circus Owners, please note: If you believe I have obviously missed something on your website, feel free to e-mail me (click onto the sidebar link "View My Complete Profile" for my e-mail link), and I will be happy to take another look. However, no scores will be readjusted for elements added subsequent to the date of this post. So, please ...
I’ve looked at Websites for shows that regularly tour, season by season and usually tour with the same cast and performance. Therefore, not rated are Shrine circus producers, etc. (The Royal Hanneford site, with good route information, contains a long list of acts that does not apparently describe any particular show.) If a couple of other touring outfits — Moscow State and Walker Bros., both out of Florida — have websites, I could not find them.

I looked at these sites as a consumer, rating each on five key elements: 1 – overall visual impact and appeal; 2 – ease of obtaining route and show schedule information; 3 – visual presentations (and/or descriptions) of the acts offered; 4 — general feedback from customers or critics; and 5 -- ease of purchasing tickets on-line.

Surprisingly, there are missing elements that can sink otherwise good scores. A number of circuses, Ringling included, appear not to share reviews or customer feedback. It might be that these sites do contain such information, but I was unable to locate. Kelly-Miller excludes any references to a route. Good luck tracking them down. Chimera was a no-show at their overly complicated ticket window. Some act photos are static head shots.

With a possible high of "5" in each of the five measured categories, the most any circus website could earn was a perfect score of 25.

Here are the scores from best to worst:

1. Cirque du Soleil (21 points) Although the precious visuals are a little too abstract for my taste, an outstanding presentation overall. Doubly surprisingly for an operation of this magnitude, there are no reviews cited, just apparently fan feedback, which one should view skeptically.
2. Big Apple (20 points, readjusted) Opening page takes way too long to open. Inside, visuals are wonderful, though there is a slightly confusing sprawl to this site. Head shots of the performers are static, nor could I find reviews or feedback. Big Apple responds: Press reviews are, indeed, easier to find than I first reported. Also, in the boxes that contain what I term "static head shots,' there are also icons that will open video clips of the acts, although opening them is on the cumbersome and slow side -- more so than other sites I reviewed which also offer video clips.
3. Universoul Circus (19 points). Generally, another outstanding site. The many news stories featured, however, are virtually impossible to read.

4. a two-way tie:

Carson and Barnes (18 points). Quick and to the point. Routes and a few reviews immediately appear. The basic visuals could be better, and the appealing act photos are somewhat difficult to reach.

Ringling-Barnum (18 points). They do a great job, including video clips, but there is no indication of either audience feedback or press reviews. Ticket purchasing is somewhat limited.

6. a two-way tie:

** Honorable Mention: Circus Vargas (16 points). Fabulous main page design, and super-clean layout of elements for easy linking to show schedules (one month in advance) and brief Vargas history. Outstanding user-friendly on-line ticket sale option features clear diagram of seat locations and prices. No act photos, but good descriptive listing of acts in performance order. No reviews. Still, all circus owners should take a look at this site. Circus Vargas responds: At the same time my posting went up, their webmaster was in the process of posting act photos. A view of the photos since loaded: Very nice, clear and persusive.

New Cole (16 points) Great opening pages featuring fan and employee hype. Otherwise, a staid if clean look overall, with act photos leaving a lot to be desired.

8. Circus Chimera (15 points). The Judkins machine excels on the front end -- visuals are inviting and customer feedback (like that of Cirque) is upbeat and at least fosters an intimate sense of warm community support -- then stumbles at the on-line red wagon. Despite repeated attempts in every which way, I found it infuriatingly impossible to enter a "promo" code, without which, the ticket window remained shut. Otherwise, this site should be a lot higher on the list. Circus Chimera Responds: "We have recently revamped the website. It tells you right there on the ticket page how to get a discount." A recheck of this website reveals the same problem in entering a promo code, for I could not locate. Moreover, the instructions lends the impression that one needs a promo code in order to enter the site, when, in fact, one can ignore this feature. Once you have reached the ticket window, the ordering prompts are quite clear. More from Chimera's Jim Judkins: "I have not received comments or complants from the public. They seem to navigate the site just fine." Okay, good reason, perhaps, when next I do this to engage a panel of three.

9. Circo Vasquez (10 points). Rated because this show plays some U.S. dates. Fairly hopeless, with scare and vague show dates. Little else.

10. Kelly-Miller (7 points) This site opens up very impressively, then takes you nowhere. No routes or on-line ticket sales makes a customer visit virtually useless. In fact, the site seems addressed more to potential sponsors. Nor is any feedback offered. Did I see the same photos last year?

Here are the links:

http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/en/default.htm

http://www.circuschimera.com/

http://www.ringling.com/

http://www.universoulcircus.com/

http://www.carsonbarnescircus.com/

http://www.bigapplecircus.org/

http://www.circusvargas.org/

http://www.colebroscircus.com/index.htm

http://www.kellymillercircus.com/

http://www.circovazquez.com/contacto-eng.php

How Others Rank Them:

Craig Johnson's top three:

1. Carson & Barnes
2. Ringling Bros.
3. Cole Bros.

And Yours???

Have I overlooked something obvious? You are invited to check out the websites and offer your own picks or rebuttals.

Big Top Bits: The White Tops Promises Criticism, Kelly-Miller, More Silence, Cirque, More Fog ...

We begin with my "death" which never happened ... Hamarstrom is not Hallberstam, thank you. Across the years I’ve been confused for the much richer, more famous and prolific writer named David Hallberstam. Tragically, this well-revered author of numerous books on politics and society died in a car crash not far from where I live ... A few people contacted me with guarded concern ... Robert Mitchell's phone message ended, "talk to you later — I hope ..." A mystically inclined e-mail correspondent invited me to "Reply the best way you can." Hmmm. Were I the other Hammarwhatever, an outreach seance back to planet earth might have been in order ...

Talk about being mistaken for someone we are not, seems the new and graphically improved White Tops magazine wants to be mistaken for a serious purveyor of critical reviews. I have in hand a comp copy, sent courtesy of Vern Mendonca (himself on track to be the CFA’s next president-elect). Inside, the usual platitudes embrace all shows big and small ...

Pardon my journalism, but a CFA reality check is in order, folks:. The Circus Fans Association, since is inception in 1927, has been a cheer-leading arm of the circus industry. New editors John and Mardi Wells promise "previews" and "reviews" ---- the latter, actual critiques of "the quality of the overall show " done by "those qualified to do them." And who would those be? Already, me thinks not ...

Raves roll forth apace, nonetheless. Ringling’s 137th opus is heralded as Feld's "best show ever." So, let's see, what if the "review"to follow disagrees? What happens, then, when somebody’s feelings get hurt and somebody (maybe like, say, a performer or owner) cools off on allowing fans coveted "jackpot" privileges in the backyard when the circus comes to town?

... In the same new and improved issue, a letter writer, claiming to have seen 100 circus performances, says this about the semi-new Ringless Bros. Blue, now in its second-year tour: "Let me go on record: this is the best show I have ever seen."

The drumbeat of acclaim never ends. And the fans seem to fall over each other in a mad dash to render their "best ever" reviews. Twas ever thus, I rue ... So many volunteer press agents. So little sobriety ... If only more reviews were thought out the morning after, if you get my drift ...

For the CFA to allow independent criticism goes totally against the organization’s DNA. Many years ago in my bristling adolescence (as opposed to my bristling decline), I managed to sneak past a notice both praiseworthy and critical of Polack Bros, and I have then-White Tops editor Walter H. Hohenadel to thank, thank you. In fact, were it not for the White Tops , believe it or not I might not now be carrying on like I am ... But don’t assume the course I staked out, for a moment codified in CFA ink, was granted many encores. Hardly. More about this remarkable chapter in my mini-career at the typewriter in a future post.

Back to "best ever" sentiments. In promising contrast to the status quo, a gingerly worded — though refreshingly insightful — White Tops review of Traces by Dominique Jando analyzes the show down to the non-circus it is. Operating, however, safely off the sawdust trail, Jando is careful to give the show high marks overall. (To read my own take on Traces, posted last December, type "Traces" in the search box above.) Will Jando and others dare to nitpick away over things they don’t like about "real" circuses? Will the CFA allow an invasion of opinionated fans? Will it dare rile the circus world it revels in celebrating and protecting? "We fight anything that fights the circus," is its still proudly-quoted motto. No, I think not....

Away from CFA hoopla, there are promising signs here and there of free-thinking under the big top, whatever the motives. Over at Circus News.Com, the Zimmers, Al and Beverly of Bradenton, complain that Ringling’s hometown edition at Robards Arena "stunk." Ouch, and don’t submit that to the White Tops. However, I’m sure their red-hot valentine to Sailor Circus in the same piece — "worthy of Madison Square Garden" — would be a front-page candidate.

....

And pardon my journalism, Jim Royal and John Ringling North II, but I am still waiting for details (titles, themes, make up, anything, boys) on the "three small production numbers" you tell me you are presenting to your Kelly-Miller audiences. ... A non-practicing CFAer, I am fascinated with any clues that may tell us something about JRN II’s aesthetics ... Yes, it’s not fun pressing for details, but let me be the one to do it ... My second e-mail to Royal awaits a royal thaw ...

Future best-evers, brought to us by CircusNews.Com: Cirque Du Soleil, at work on its new tent show Koza, promises a "return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil." I hope this means the simplicity they brought to L.A. in 1987 — before Vegas called ... Moscow hosts the Third Global Circus Festival from June through August. Thirteen countries are expected to compete, and what an exciting bash that should be! .... Cirque’s Koza circuses around "a melancholy loner in search of his place in the world." ... Cirque’s other show getting prepped for Madison Square Garden in November, follows the quest of a boy named Wintuk "to find snow and adventure."... That should keep the ice machines working overtime ... Ah, yes, leave 'em gasping over the substance stuff ...

You can have all the dry ice and soul-searching you want. I’ll take the circus that center rings Matinee, the sensational 9-year old mare who has rewritten the book on dressage. She, in my opinion the best ever, is profiled right here on this blog, and it’s all free ...

And that’s a White Tops Wrap!

Dream Dressage from England ... Pure Circus and Take That, PETA!

The Circus That Once Reigned Supreme

Ride this link to the most amazingly intrepid dancing horse you will likely ever see – Matinee!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKQgTiqhPbw&eurl

The 9-year-old mare, ridden by Andreas Helgstrand, dazzled Brit crowds at the World Equestrian Games in the Musical Freestyle Dressage competition. Here is a link to a video of Matinee's tanbark triumph — a revelation — sent me by my SoCal correspondent, Dame Dither of England. "Poetry in Motion – The Real McCoy," writes the Dame, gushing as rarely she does. Indeed, tally ho, pip pip and a dozen dizzy encores!

There on English soil where the circus was born, behold one sterling example of the mastery that once reigned victorious over pure sawdust — before fog machines, unidentified crawling objects, special effects and naval-gazing ballerinas took over.

Matinee reminded me of circus-going years ago. "She knows where the beat is," says the Dame. Indeed, and so did the big top.

DVD Discovery: The History Boys is Rich and Riveting

>Brilliant in so many ways, The History Boys, written by Alan Bennett (who also wrote the stage play up which it has been adapted) centers its searing drama and comedy on the question of why we learn. Set in England in 1984, eight grammar school lads have scored well enough to apply for Oxford or Cambridge. Their heady headmaster is so madly determined to get them in and enhance his reputation that he hires a young teacher, Irwin, to badger the boys into edgier test-taking attitudes.

Irwin sells out for the chance to land a permanent position at the school by recklessly urging the boys to cease being so factually "bland" and, instead, fabricate their answers to test questions. This sets Irwin in callous contrast to quaintly aging Hector, a professor who revels in the mastering of poetry and philosophy and drama just for the joy of learning.

Essayed by actor Richard Griffiths with well-worn perfection, Hector is a teetering overweight pig of a man with a homely grin and the exquisite ability to impart the value of passing great ideas and prose from one generation to the next.

Hector is also, not to his advantage, a closeted and lonely "married" homosexual who has suffered a thousand unrequited desires at the chalkboard. With little regard for job security, Hector offers motorbike rides to his students and, en route at intersection pauses, gently gropes their genital areas in a a discretly appreciative manner.

Enter one of the eight students, Dakin, played by Dominic Cooper, a charmer who views life amorally. He is not exactly getting what he wants from his current girlfriend, so he eyes the gay options around him like a hungry speculator. He even accepts a motorbike ride from the fat professor, is touched for mere seconds and reports it to the headmaster, who seizes on the incident as a pretext to force Hector out and hand his teaching slot over to the more modern-thinking Irwin.

There is so much more than this. So many riches of thought and irony here to discover. For one, Mrs. Lintott, played by Frances de la Tour (seen here with Dominic Cooper), is a history professor who must tolerate a male dominated world, and she addresses her plight with bitting wit and insight. There are the boys themselves, full of cleverness and ambivalence over Oxford and the future And there is the tragic figure of Hector, about to be early-retired, about to lose the whole reason for his being.

Dakin is the pivotal surprise hero who in the end grows to understand and feel compassion for Hector’s brief indiscretion on him and who takes sly measures to exploit the headmasters’s similar molestations in the straight sphere in order to spare Hector the impending loss of his life in the classroom.

Hector’s redemption is short-lived, for one thing he can’t give up is his love for riding a motorbike with a big helmet on his happy head. His impact on one of his students, though, is not short-lived. "Pass it on!" Hector exhorts the boys their last day of school, alluding to the literary treasures they have confronted, however reluctantly. And one of them does, becoming a professor and passing on Hector’s passion for the chance discovery on the printed page of an idea, a feeling, a story from long ago that can feel so real and relevant today. That can salve painful wounds and offer understanding.

Directed by Nicholas Hytner, The History Boys is a major work of art.

Realty check: After writing this review, I looked over some of the reviews it received, and was astonished to find so many snickering dismissals. I also found that the stage play wracked up tons of awards from Ollivers to Tonys (a record six) to Drama Desks to Outer Critics Circles. The entire stage cast played their roles in the film, and to think, when I was in New York last year, I could have got a ticket to see the play!

[orignally posted 4/23/07]

Spring Big Top Bits: Royal Breaks Silence with Message from North II About Production ... Early Season Reports (or Hype?) Promise Better Big Tops

We take them all with a grain of salt, we must, for too often hype parades as honest criticism ... But ... there is reason to believe that America’s big tops are at least sharpening their acts, adding some novelty, still fighting to bring the public the animals it says it wants, and maybe turning the tanbark excitement up a notch ... So, here — hype or honesty — from the field of dreams ...

Sarasota Central has already checked in on Ringling’s latest — the greatest show on earth, claims SC, is back on track, back from the abyss of that Ringless thing it offered last year that a lot of fans are still carping about ... Over on the New Cole Bros. lot, one circus fan is raving about John Pugh’s latest, complete with winning vocalist, a mini-aerial ballet, and a motorbike cage that breaks open! ... To John Ringling North II Presents Kelly-Miller next we go. Manager Jim Royal is high on what his patrons are telling him " We are getting very favorable feedback from our customers (our most important critics), which pleases us.

Ah, yes, if you can’t please the paying customer, you won’t last no matter what the critics say.

Speaking of mini-production, Royal broke a long ominously mum silence to send me a message from John Ringling North II, a man of few words. Kelly-Miller’s new House-of-Ringling owner has apparently followed or been apprised of my hyperventilating over the question: Did he actually deliver any of the "Ringling magic" he had promised the press. So, let’s press on. 30 — count ‘em, 30 – words from JRN II to Showbiz David:

"We have three small production numbers as promised. To judge the quality of our show, Jim and I cordially invite you to see for yourself. Best wishes, John Ringling North II."
So, there is production after all? The question mark extends my open-ended inquiry into Kelly-Miller’s actual performance. Onto my next attempted fact extraction: Just what are these production numbers? Any details, Jim? A hint? A break down of titles or themes?

When Royal e-mailed me yesterday, he was profusely apologetic about getting North’s message (composed before he flew back to Ireland) out to me in a more timely fashion. Bum weather and computer glitches stood in the way

Red wagon wheels keep on spinning, and so do the reports. Some are true ... some just spin. It’s only April ...

Sunday Morning, Looking Back: Huell Howser’s California is Television Gold

This first appeared on April 19, 2007

In the age of spin and sleaze — when hip hoppers go criminal to boost record sales and international hookers become cultural icons in their death – what a pleasure to watch Huell Howser’s California’s Gold — that is if you live in the golden state and hunger for a semblance of reflective sanity in the shadows of nature and history.

Howser is a big tall guy from Tennessee who gets awe-shucks excited over sunsets and old abandoned docks, over off-beat museums and restored windmills. He takes the time to savor the unrushed moment, and for this we thank the various PBS stations on which his excursions, as refreshing as a drink of pure spring water, are aired.. Howser deserves a slew of Emmys.

Here he is, talking to park guides and curators ...

... Now, the clouds are breaking a little bit, and we’re looking off at the distance at the blue sky and the reflection in the water, and it goes all the way around here. This is – boy, this really is spectacular!

... Oh, look at that fish jump. Oh, my gosh! One of the big trouts jumped right on cue for us!

... Oh, wow. She’s been sitting here since 1931. Look at this. You almost have to be here to feel what this feels like, but to actually be here this close to it, it’s kind of like giving her the respect that she’s due...

... Well, she’s not looking to good these days but atleast she’s here. That’s what’s important. We touched her, we came up close to her, and we’ve felt her good vibes, thousands of California stories connected with that old boat — people who rode on her in those train cars, being here with her has been an absolutely wonderful experience. Thank you all very much. We found her, the old Solano, a fine example, even though she’s grown up in weeds and trees, and she’s rusting away and falling down into the mud, she’s still a fine example of california’s gold.

Television has too many Jerry Springers. It has only one Huell Howser.

4.19.07