Dazzling, clamorous and exotic, the circus is a theatre of the improbable and impossible. From the days of travelling troupes of acrobats and jugglers to the grand spectacle of the Cirque du Soleil, the circus has exerted an indelible fascination. Of all our myths of reinvention, rebirth, second acts and new identities, running away to join the circus has a special allure.
The Greatest Shows on Earth takes us from eighteenth-century hippodromes in Britain to intimate one-ring circuses in nineteenth-century Paris, where Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso became enchanted by aerialists and clowns. Beautifully illustrated, rich in historical detail and full of colourful anecdotes, Linda Simon's vibrant history is as enchanting as a night at the big-top itself.
Hardcover
288 pages
Publisher: Reaktion Books
ISBN: 978-1780233581