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Send
in the clowns... the Big Top is back!
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Nouveau,
new, contemporary - call it as you will, the circus
is back in style. Take a ringside seat as we enjoy
all the traditional fun of one of the oldest shows
on earth . . .
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 "When
I was a child, the first time I saw the circus arrive,
it was like an apparition in the night. Like a giant
balloon that had landed without warning - there
it was in front of my house in the morning, as if
it had appeared from nowhere.."
Federico Fellini
from "Fellini TV. Director's Notebook. I clowns"
The circus, one of our oldest and best-loved forms
of entertainment, is making a welcome comeback with
its magical combination of acrobatics, tricks, dance
and theatre all performed with a well-dosed mix
of poetry and comedy. Renewed interest in the big
top was reflected in this year's Venice
Biennale (programme in Italian only,
-ed.)which has a special section dedicated to circus
arts as well as the exciting International Festival
of Contemporary Circus (nouveau cirque,
in French) which was recently held in Brescia.
So, send in the clowns . . .
 Italians
in the ring
France was the first country to rediscover the
wonder of the circus when, in 1985, Cultural Minister
Jack Lang doubled government subsidies to circuses
and financed related projects. Thanks to his initiative
80 circus schools were opened in France. Now, we
in Italy are beginning to open our eyes to the delights
of the big top, even though the only remaining circus
school, the National
Circus School in Cesanatico risks
closure each year due to lack of financing. The
school, which lasts five years, trains trapeze artists,
jugglers, acrobats, ropedancers and contortionists
all of whom dream of becoming the next David
Larible, the most famous clown in
the world. Larible, who despite his name is Italian,
worked with household names such as the Togni and
Medrano circuses before leaving for the United States
and becoming a muse for filmmaker Woody Allen.
Another illustrious Italian abroad is the choreographer
Francesca
Lattuada, who is currently based
in Paris. Lattuada choreographed "La Tribù
iOta", the acclaimed tightrope and trapeze show
produced by the Centre National des Arts du Cirque.
Not to speak of those who ably move from one circus
to another, such as Livio
Togni, lion trainer by trade and
politician (in the ranks of the Italian left-wing
party Rifondazione Comunista) by vocation. Togni,
who sits on the 7th Permanent Commission (for education,
cultural issues, scientific research, entertainment
and sport), says that this renewed interest in the
circus blows a welcome wind of change and
can only help revive circuses as we know and
love them.
And what article on the circuses would be complete
without mentioning, Alessandro
Serena, nephew of the great Moira
Orfei, Italy's homespun circus superstar. Serena
has devised his own show, Ombra di luna - which
he co-produced with Venice Biennale and presented
at the Brescia festival - dedicated to the Gilgamesh
Epic and is a symbol of man's inner
journey towards self-discovery and awareness.
The Greatest Show on Earth
Don't miss the show! Here are some of the top circuses
playing throughout Italy in the following weeks:
Mestre (VE) Venice Biennale:
Ombra
di luna Parco della Bissuola, from
September 12th to 16th and
20th to 21st.
La
baraque cantine musicale Parco
della Bissuola, from September 13th to
18th and 24th to 27th
Rome:
Tribù
iOta (RomaEuropa Festival) Piazzale
Villa Medici, from September 19th to
23rd
Turin:
Teatro
Gobetti Palazzina Stupinigi
Cirque Plume - from October 11th to 21st
Eclats Sol Air - from October 26th to
28th
IXBE - from November 30th to December
2nd
Le Grain - from December 14th to 16th
Venice:
Casanova's Erotic Circus from the Compagnia
de Calza "I Antichi" February 2002
Ladies and Gentlemen ItaliaPlease is proud
to present the nouveau cirque. Join us on
a virtual tour of the nouveau cirque as we
go to Mantua
for the Literature
Festival and lend our eyes and ears
to the amazing
Cirque du Bidon
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| by
ELENA
GUARNERI |
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September
2001
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THE SURVIVOR'S 
