The Contemporary Circus

The fun, energy, and hard work integral to the exciting world of the circus is lovingly captured in The Contemporary Circus: Art of the Spectacular, an in depth look at the creative process of today's circuses. Through numerous personal interviews with directors, designers, composers and performers, author Ernest Albrecht provides a unique inside view of the journey through which the most innovative and exciting modern circuses are produced, from the director and production team to the performers, and from designing the circus to setting it to music. Case studies of specific productions by the Big Apple Circus, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, and Cirque du Soleil illuminate the artistic give-and-take necessary in such a collaborative process, proving the circus a true art form, one as artistic as theatre or dance. A variety of performers such as animal trainers, dancers, and clowns discuss their approach to their individual specialties, and the text concludes with an examination of the world's circuses and schools and their methods for training circus artists. A full photo spread of 30 beautiful photos will help inspire and enlighten artists and fans alike.

Autorentext

By Ernest Albrecht

Inhalt

Part 1 Acknowledgments
Part 2 Introduction: The Circus as an Art Form
Part 3 Part I. The Creative Team
Chapter 4 1 The Director and the Creative Process
Chapter 5 2 Designing the Circus
Chapter 6 3 Setting the Circus to Music
Part 7 Part II. The COllaboration (Case Studies)
Chapter 8 4 Ringling's 131st Edition
Chapter 9 5O Notes
Chapter 10 6 The Making of a Major New American Spectacle
Chapter 11 7 The Big Apple Circus's Clown Around Town
Part 12 Part III. The Performers
Chapter 13 8 Circus Sets
Chapter 14 9 Clowns on Clowning
Chapter 15 10 Training the Artists and Building and Maintaining the Performance
Part 16 Bibliography
Part 17 Index
Part 18 About the Author