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The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present
The extraordinary story of a young man’s plunge into the unique and wonderful world of the circus—taking readers deep into circus history and its renaissance as a contemporary art form, and behind the (tented) walls of France’s most prestigious circus school.
When Duncan Wall visited his first nouveau cirque as a college student in Paris, everything about it—the monochromatic costumes, the acrobat singing Simon and Garfunkel, the juggler reciting Proust—was captivating. Soon he was waiting outside stage doors, eagerly chatting with the stars, and attending circuses two or three nights a week. So great was his enthusiasm that a year later he applied on a whim to the training program at the École Nationale des Arts du Cirque—and was, to his surprise, accepted.
Sometimes scary and often funny, The Ordinary Acrobat follows the (occasionally literal) collision of one American novice and a host of gifted international students in a rigorous regimen of tumbling, trapeze, juggling, and clowning. Along the way, Wall introduces readers to all the ambition, beauty, and thrills of the circus’s long from hardscrabble beginnings to Gilded Age treasures, and from twentieth-century artistic and economic struggles to its brilliant reemergence in the form of contemporary circus (most prominently through Cirque du Soleil). Readers meet figures past—the father of the circus, Philip Astley; the larger-than-life P. T. Barnum—and present, as Wall seeks lessons from innovative masters including juggler Jérôme Thomas and clown André Riot-Sarcey. As Wall learns, not everyone is destined to run away with the circus—but the institution fascinates just the same.
Brimming with surprises, outsized personalities, and plenty of charm, The Ordinary Acrobat delivers all the excitement and pleasure of the circus ring itself.
When Duncan Wall visited his first nouveau cirque as a college student in Paris, everything about it—the monochromatic costumes, the acrobat singing Simon and Garfunkel, the juggler reciting Proust—was captivating. Soon he was waiting outside stage doors, eagerly chatting with the stars, and attending circuses two or three nights a week. So great was his enthusiasm that a year later he applied on a whim to the training program at the École Nationale des Arts du Cirque—and was, to his surprise, accepted.
Sometimes scary and often funny, The Ordinary Acrobat follows the (occasionally literal) collision of one American novice and a host of gifted international students in a rigorous regimen of tumbling, trapeze, juggling, and clowning. Along the way, Wall introduces readers to all the ambition, beauty, and thrills of the circus’s long from hardscrabble beginnings to Gilded Age treasures, and from twentieth-century artistic and economic struggles to its brilliant reemergence in the form of contemporary circus (most prominently through Cirque du Soleil). Readers meet figures past—the father of the circus, Philip Astley; the larger-than-life P. T. Barnum—and present, as Wall seeks lessons from innovative masters including juggler Jérôme Thomas and clown André Riot-Sarcey. As Wall learns, not everyone is destined to run away with the circus—but the institution fascinates just the same.
Brimming with surprises, outsized personalities, and plenty of charm, The Ordinary Acrobat delivers all the excitement and pleasure of the circus ring itself.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
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603 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
December 23, 2019
Duncan Wall's "The Ordinary Acrobat" does for the circus what Melville's Moby-Dick does for whales. Both a fascinating personal narrative of the author's year-long foray into training at France's Ecole Nationale des Arts du Cirque, and simultaneously a comprehensive introduction to circus history (covering each discipline from juggling to clowning to trapeze individually), "The Ordinary Acrobat" is that rare niche volume that fully conveys the magic and charm of an idiosyncratic passion to a wider audience. There does arise at times an encyclopedic sensibility. Wall writes, for instance: "Historically, as we have seen, there have been various classes of clowns, though they could generally be grouped into three types: the auguste de soiree, the auguste de reprise, and the clown d'entree (including white clowns)." (One is reminded of Caesar enumerating and describing the tribes of Gaul.) But the text is never tedious, never overburdened with details. Some tidbits are truly fascinating: for instance, the anti-circus laws passed by various American communities in the 19th century or the prosecution of six acrobats for witchcraft in Pennsylvania in 1929. Or when Wall comments that one of the perks of being a professional circus performer is "lots of very good sex." At other times, Wall is insightful and illuminating, as when he describes how an advance as simple as the free-standing tent transformed the art form, enabling travel to meet the masses of the American continent. Yet what truly sets this book apart from other circus memoirs (and I have read many) is Wall's recognition and balanced depiction of recent transformations in the circus world. He both credits corporate circuses like Cirque du Soleil for reinvigorating the medium and also worries that they will replace the art of circus with a more formulaic craft. His ability to capture this conflict with poignancy and emotional resonance is impressive. Yet I suspect he need not fret too much. To quote Wall quoting circus historian Anthony Hippisley Coxe: "The circus is a disease which it is very difficult to eradicate."
May 5, 2013
I have no way of being objective about this book. Duncan is writing about the realm nearest and dearest to my heart - circus artistry and education, and the connections and disparities between the European and American versions of these things. His life experience echoes mine in uncanny ways, and I found my own opinions and passions somewhere in every chapter.
With all that said, I believe Duncan has done an admirable job in bringing together the memoir of his own unusual journey, the richness of circus history, and reflections on where circus is headed. There is so much of tremendous value in this book, and I hope it gets the wide readership it deserves.
a favorite quote...
"...the blood rush of big feeling, the swelling sense of fantastical possibility, the awareness of your mental aperture ticking open a notch."
With all that said, I believe Duncan has done an admirable job in bringing together the memoir of his own unusual journey, the richness of circus history, and reflections on where circus is headed. There is so much of tremendous value in this book, and I hope it gets the wide readership it deserves.
a favorite quote...
"...the blood rush of big feeling, the swelling sense of fantastical possibility, the awareness of your mental aperture ticking open a notch."
March 12, 2013
I requested this book from the library back in October - no clue that it wasn't coming out until March, I had done a keyword search for circus and it came up. The premise of the book - the author discovers new circus in France and on a whim enrolls in France's École Nationale des Arts du Cirque - really intrigued me, as I stumbled into circus late in life and with no acrobatic or dance training at all. The blurb on the back cover is about Wall's first (well, not exactly, but close) trapeze class, so I was hoping to read more about his struggles with learning more acrobatic stuff.
While the book doesn't really go into much detail about that - I think there's one chapter about his experiences on the trapeze and the history - this was an interesting read. Having read a number of books about circus, some information was already known to me but the writing style kept me going. There were about three chapters devoted to juggling, which almost makes me want to give that a try, and three chapters about clowning, which I have no desire to try - I would have preferred six chapters devoted to trapeze! But contemporary names and acts are mentioned that I could connect to real life experience, and overall this was a good mixture of traditional and historical circus and how it evolved into modern and new circus.
Again Cirque du Soleil is not cast in the best of lights, but Wall does a fair job of talking about them in the context of history and it's mostly the view of the circus world in general that looks down on Cirque du Soleil, not necessarily Wall himself. Heck, if you watch the miniseries "The Fire Within" (about the making the Cirque show "Varekai"), Cirque du Soleil is not cast in the best of lights.
So, if you are a fellow circophile, you will want to read this book.
While the book doesn't really go into much detail about that - I think there's one chapter about his experiences on the trapeze and the history - this was an interesting read. Having read a number of books about circus, some information was already known to me but the writing style kept me going. There were about three chapters devoted to juggling, which almost makes me want to give that a try, and three chapters about clowning, which I have no desire to try - I would have preferred six chapters devoted to trapeze! But contemporary names and acts are mentioned that I could connect to real life experience, and overall this was a good mixture of traditional and historical circus and how it evolved into modern and new circus.
Again Cirque du Soleil is not cast in the best of lights, but Wall does a fair job of talking about them in the context of history and it's mostly the view of the circus world in general that looks down on Cirque du Soleil, not necessarily Wall himself. Heck, if you watch the miniseries "The Fire Within" (about the making the Cirque show "Varekai"), Cirque du Soleil is not cast in the best of lights.
So, if you are a fellow circophile, you will want to read this book.
September 22, 2018
GUYS I FINALLY FINISHED A BOOK THIS YEAR! CAN YOU BELIEVE. But if I can only finish one book in 2018, I'm glad it is this one. It was everything I wanted to know about circuses, but also through a person going to College for Circus with his cohort. And obviously I felt all the connectedness to Duncan Wall's Journey and also understanding art and its impact on people and history. Its a great book. Recommend to anyone who loves circus and is totally confused about the history and how America became a circus desert that is control by the image of Soleil and Barnum. France, circus, art theory and history what more could you ask for in a book! Also the best quotes.
April 13, 2013
This book should have decided early on what it should have been. This should have been either a memoir about the author's introduction to circus life and culture. But it also wanted to be a book about circus history which is not the same as circus culture which is really where this book lost me.
I am typically very intrigued about history but sadly the history aspects really distracted from what the book introduced itself as first, a memoir. Like there were moments where he was working a particular skill set, and then it will insinuate that he is about to meet someone that turns the concepts of that skill on its head. But then immediately it goes into the history of juggling or equestrians that just really takes you out of the memoir.
Also the whole searching for the grave of the "Father of the Circus" kind of seemed very unnecessary and pretentious. I am sure his need to pay homage to that figure was genuine but how it was presented in the book really made me roll my eyes and wonder why I am supposed to care.
That is one big failing of the book. It is obvious that the author is passionate about the circus, especially its history. But it fails to make the reader interested in it. Which made all of the reverences towards the art of being a circus performer seem ridiculous and overblown.
I am sure that there is great care and mastery in being a circus performer. There is a great intelligence associated with it, but this book did very little to communicate that.
I am typically very intrigued about history but sadly the history aspects really distracted from what the book introduced itself as first, a memoir. Like there were moments where he was working a particular skill set, and then it will insinuate that he is about to meet someone that turns the concepts of that skill on its head. But then immediately it goes into the history of juggling or equestrians that just really takes you out of the memoir.
Also the whole searching for the grave of the "Father of the Circus" kind of seemed very unnecessary and pretentious. I am sure his need to pay homage to that figure was genuine but how it was presented in the book really made me roll my eyes and wonder why I am supposed to care.
That is one big failing of the book. It is obvious that the author is passionate about the circus, especially its history. But it fails to make the reader interested in it. Which made all of the reverences towards the art of being a circus performer seem ridiculous and overblown.
I am sure that there is great care and mastery in being a circus performer. There is a great intelligence associated with it, but this book did very little to communicate that.
November 5, 2020
This is by far the beat of the circus books I’ve read. Like the others, it is centred around a privileged white boy who leaves home to spend time with the circus. This particular writer, however, is much more self-aware than the others were, which is a refreshing change. He is able to recognise his own hubris in thinking that because he was a decent soccer player he would automatically be able to do acrobatics.
This writer has also done the work - this book is a detailed and loving account of the history of the circus. He knows what the circus is and has been and, unlike all the others, he doesn’t spend the whole book mooning because he discovered that the “magic” doesn’t exist backstage and that even flying on the trapeze is a job you have to work at.
This book is a great choice if you want to learn about the circus, past, present and future. Recommended.
This writer has also done the work - this book is a detailed and loving account of the history of the circus. He knows what the circus is and has been and, unlike all the others, he doesn’t spend the whole book mooning because he discovered that the “magic” doesn’t exist backstage and that even flying on the trapeze is a job you have to work at.
This book is a great choice if you want to learn about the circus, past, present and future. Recommended.
July 22, 2013
I checked this book out of the library because I enjoy memoir. What I really enjoyed about this book, however, was the circus history. Highly readable, entertaining, and interesting.
June 7, 2014
This book is a gift to lovers of the circus, or circophiles, of which I am most certainly one. Author Duncan Wall got a Fullbright fellowship to study at France's National School for the Circus Arts and wrote about his experiences, the history of circus, and the (improving) state of contemporary circus. If you love circus, read this book. And if not, go see some contemporary circus pronto.
History - practitioners of circus arts predate the Christian Era, and were part of the games of Rome. After being sacked, performers took to the road for many tough centuries, none worse than the fifteenth and the plague as outsiders were banned. Lucky performers became part of ruling courts, until fairgrounds provided a venue in the 16th century. Philip Astley is the "father of the circus", first brought together horsemanship (the reason the circus is in a ring), tumbling, clowning in his outdoor amphitheater in 1769. The overlap with the industrial revolution and the mixing of social classes in an unprecedented way could be clearly seen in the audience of a circus. Also benefitted from move to cities and need for urban entertainment. Founder of first American circus John Bill Ricketts in 1793, his competitor Joshua Brown was first to use a tent, which enabled circus to make it to smaller towns. PT Barnum came to circus late in life, made his money via his American Museum in NYC where people could experience all kinds of wonders of the world (pre-movies, pre-television), and freaks. Every famous freak of the mid 1800s was employed by Barnum at some point. As American circuses grew to massive size, the closeness and physical intimacy was lost for spectacle and sensory overload, particularly in clowning, where storytelling gave way to the clown car.
Golden age of juggling 1880-1920. Cinquevalli a star around 1900, Enrico Rastelli famous in 1920s and thought of as best juggler ever, who threw more and bigger objects higher and faster - 10 balls (or 8 while skipping a rope), for example. Jérôme Thomas current legend.
Trapeze invented by Jules Leotard in 1859 (to think, he is more famous for bodywear!), brought more risk to the circus. Became a god for 10 yrs, died at 28 from smallpox.
Not much time spent on animals in circus, but know this: lion tamers like a lion who is farting a lot - it smells hideous but they know the animal is well fed!
Modern circus is not simply entertainment, it is art. It is not just a series of skillful displays, it's a vehicle for personal expression. The act is not competitive, your real act is who you are.
The circus was and can be the ultimate popular art, where people of all classes and races gather. It gave way to television, which pulls people down and isolates them. Popular art should bring people together, unify them and pull them upward. It should engender civic discussion, inspire and enlighten.
History - practitioners of circus arts predate the Christian Era, and were part of the games of Rome. After being sacked, performers took to the road for many tough centuries, none worse than the fifteenth and the plague as outsiders were banned. Lucky performers became part of ruling courts, until fairgrounds provided a venue in the 16th century. Philip Astley is the "father of the circus", first brought together horsemanship (the reason the circus is in a ring), tumbling, clowning in his outdoor amphitheater in 1769. The overlap with the industrial revolution and the mixing of social classes in an unprecedented way could be clearly seen in the audience of a circus. Also benefitted from move to cities and need for urban entertainment. Founder of first American circus John Bill Ricketts in 1793, his competitor Joshua Brown was first to use a tent, which enabled circus to make it to smaller towns. PT Barnum came to circus late in life, made his money via his American Museum in NYC where people could experience all kinds of wonders of the world (pre-movies, pre-television), and freaks. Every famous freak of the mid 1800s was employed by Barnum at some point. As American circuses grew to massive size, the closeness and physical intimacy was lost for spectacle and sensory overload, particularly in clowning, where storytelling gave way to the clown car.
Golden age of juggling 1880-1920. Cinquevalli a star around 1900, Enrico Rastelli famous in 1920s and thought of as best juggler ever, who threw more and bigger objects higher and faster - 10 balls (or 8 while skipping a rope), for example. Jérôme Thomas current legend.
Trapeze invented by Jules Leotard in 1859 (to think, he is more famous for bodywear!), brought more risk to the circus. Became a god for 10 yrs, died at 28 from smallpox.
Not much time spent on animals in circus, but know this: lion tamers like a lion who is farting a lot - it smells hideous but they know the animal is well fed!
Modern circus is not simply entertainment, it is art. It is not just a series of skillful displays, it's a vehicle for personal expression. The act is not competitive, your real act is who you are.
The circus was and can be the ultimate popular art, where people of all classes and races gather. It gave way to television, which pulls people down and isolates them. Popular art should bring people together, unify them and pull them upward. It should engender civic discussion, inspire and enlighten.
July 25, 2013
Wall, on a year abroad, sees a French new circus, becomes enraptured with circus, applies for and receives a Fulbright to study circus at France’s national school for circus. I really loved this book.
That said, would I have liked mention of the major (to me and its time) movie Les Enfants du Paradis/ Children of Paradise? Yes. Lecoq, as a teacher of clowns, was mentioned often, but Etienne Decroux, a teacher of mimes, was not.
I did not know that circus started worldwide nearly two hundred fifty years ago, as a way for an enterprising cavalryman named Philip Astley to show off his horsemanship. They were in a ring because that was how horses were and are shown. At first, permanent circus buildings were built for them, tents came later. At one point Astley had nineteen circuses in Europe.(How was Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show not a circus?)
Wall’s experiences trying to learn to be an acrobat, flyer, juggler, I’m not sure he gives himself much of chance to do clowning, but each of these disciplines is also looked at historically and at modern day and traditional circus companies.
“2002 in France was the ‘Year of the Circus.”’ (15)
“Before mass media, [Pascal] said, before television or the movies, the circus had been the world’s most popular spectator event, a combination of professional entertainment and professional athletics. Like we glorify athletes or movie stars today, audiences had glorified circus performers. ‘This was a celebrity poster for the trainer. It’s the sort of thing a child might have hung on his wall.’” (43)
“Jerome [Thomas, France’s master juggler] takes himself very seriously. He is openly arrogant, even egotistical, and he occasionally refers to himself in the third person, in a way that might be ironic but probably isn’t.” (94)
When he interviews the Jerome Thomas of clowns, Andre Riot- Sarcey, Wall asks him to define clown. “’Let’s say I do this…’
Suddenly his entire physicality changed. He blew his eyes open and puffed out his chest and started strutting in tight circles, his backside jutting out behind him like that of a rooster. I laughed.
Immediately Andre stopped and sauntered back to his seat. ‘Et viola.’
‘What?’
‘What?... That laugh, for a clown, that’s magic. Suddenly I know I’ve done something right. I have approval.’" And on the next page Andre insists that Wall takes this note: “CLOWN = FUNNY” (217)
I received this book from the Amazon Vine program in return for an honest review.
That said, would I have liked mention of the major (to me and its time) movie Les Enfants du Paradis/ Children of Paradise? Yes. Lecoq, as a teacher of clowns, was mentioned often, but Etienne Decroux, a teacher of mimes, was not.
I did not know that circus started worldwide nearly two hundred fifty years ago, as a way for an enterprising cavalryman named Philip Astley to show off his horsemanship. They were in a ring because that was how horses were and are shown. At first, permanent circus buildings were built for them, tents came later. At one point Astley had nineteen circuses in Europe.(How was Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show not a circus?)
Wall’s experiences trying to learn to be an acrobat, flyer, juggler, I’m not sure he gives himself much of chance to do clowning, but each of these disciplines is also looked at historically and at modern day and traditional circus companies.
“2002 in France was the ‘Year of the Circus.”’ (15)
“Before mass media, [Pascal] said, before television or the movies, the circus had been the world’s most popular spectator event, a combination of professional entertainment and professional athletics. Like we glorify athletes or movie stars today, audiences had glorified circus performers. ‘This was a celebrity poster for the trainer. It’s the sort of thing a child might have hung on his wall.’” (43)
“Jerome [Thomas, France’s master juggler] takes himself very seriously. He is openly arrogant, even egotistical, and he occasionally refers to himself in the third person, in a way that might be ironic but probably isn’t.” (94)
When he interviews the Jerome Thomas of clowns, Andre Riot- Sarcey, Wall asks him to define clown. “’Let’s say I do this…’
Suddenly his entire physicality changed. He blew his eyes open and puffed out his chest and started strutting in tight circles, his backside jutting out behind him like that of a rooster. I laughed.
Immediately Andre stopped and sauntered back to his seat. ‘Et viola.’
‘What?’
‘What?... That laugh, for a clown, that’s magic. Suddenly I know I’ve done something right. I have approval.’" And on the next page Andre insists that Wall takes this note: “CLOWN = FUNNY” (217)
I received this book from the Amazon Vine program in return for an honest review.
March 6, 2013
"Juggling is a language-- dramatic, poetic, humorous, theatrical. It participates in the mysteries of gravity and the cosmos." pg. 94
"A clown is a poet in space," André interrupted. "Do you know who said that?"
"I don't."
"That was your compatriot, Henry Miller. A clown is une bête de la scène. He doesn't know the rules, so he makes them up as he goes. Every moment is an adventure, a new life-- the present instant! Always the present! Like an animal." pg. 209
"Acrobats tend to be pretty easygoing, which is about right, since they have to take risks. Or think of contortionists. The ones I know all tend to be pretty hard on themselves, which in a way is good, since you success as a contortionist is totally determined by how hard you're willing to push yourself."
"So what are clowns?"
Georges mulled it over for a second and said, "I'm hesitating, because my instinct is to say that clowns are sensitive. But that's not quite right. Or it doesn't do them justice. 'Passionate' is probably a better word. Real clowns are passionate."
Out of curiosity, I asked Georges what he was studying.
"I'm a juggler," he replied, before adding wryly, "We tend to be heady." pg. 213-214.
"Don't you ever worry about it?" I asked Jérôme after one of my own mistakes.
A wry smile spread across his face. "Worry about what?"
"About the balls falling."
He recoiled in mock surprise. "But of course they're going to fall. You couldn't juggle if they didn't." pg. 105
"You don't find your passions. They find you." p. 95
"A clown is a poet in space," André interrupted. "Do you know who said that?"
"I don't."
"That was your compatriot, Henry Miller. A clown is une bête de la scène. He doesn't know the rules, so he makes them up as he goes. Every moment is an adventure, a new life-- the present instant! Always the present! Like an animal." pg. 209
"Acrobats tend to be pretty easygoing, which is about right, since they have to take risks. Or think of contortionists. The ones I know all tend to be pretty hard on themselves, which in a way is good, since you success as a contortionist is totally determined by how hard you're willing to push yourself."
"So what are clowns?"
Georges mulled it over for a second and said, "I'm hesitating, because my instinct is to say that clowns are sensitive. But that's not quite right. Or it doesn't do them justice. 'Passionate' is probably a better word. Real clowns are passionate."
Out of curiosity, I asked Georges what he was studying.
"I'm a juggler," he replied, before adding wryly, "We tend to be heady." pg. 213-214.
"Don't you ever worry about it?" I asked Jérôme after one of my own mistakes.
A wry smile spread across his face. "Worry about what?"
"About the balls falling."
He recoiled in mock surprise. "But of course they're going to fall. You couldn't juggle if they didn't." pg. 105
"You don't find your passions. They find you." p. 95
Read
September 1, 2012This book is three books: a memoir about attending an elite circus school in France, an absorbing international history of the circus, and a breathless report on the underground circus scene.
I enjoyed the first two components far more than I would have expected—turns out the history of the circus is kind of a history of international culture in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. But throughout the third part, the so-called exposé, I was incredulous. Duncan Wall, don't be telling me about these avant-garde circuses happening under my nose. You can't trick me. I have the internet! See, here I am typing these bogus-sounding names into Google, and—
oh. How about that. There's a burgeoning artsy-pants contemporary circus scene. How about that.
Anyway, for most of you reading this review, you're probably not thinking, "How I've waited for a book about the circus to come out!" You're probably thinking, "Interesting, but I think my life can proceed without reading this book." But I encourage you to think of the circus scene as an anthropological imperative: it behooves you to know more about this way of life.
I enjoyed the first two components far more than I would have expected—turns out the history of the circus is kind of a history of international culture in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. But throughout the third part, the so-called exposé, I was incredulous. Duncan Wall, don't be telling me about these avant-garde circuses happening under my nose. You can't trick me. I have the internet! See, here I am typing these bogus-sounding names into Google, and—
oh. How about that. There's a burgeoning artsy-pants contemporary circus scene. How about that.
Anyway, for most of you reading this review, you're probably not thinking, "How I've waited for a book about the circus to come out!" You're probably thinking, "Interesting, but I think my life can proceed without reading this book." But I encourage you to think of the circus scene as an anthropological imperative: it behooves you to know more about this way of life.
August 13, 2014
This is a fascinating book. The author became intrigued by the circus as a college student on a visit to Paris. He was able to secure a Fulbright fellowship to return for an in-depth study. His way of going about this was to enroll in a preparatory school for the prestigious national French circus school. In addition to a great deal of research on the history and personalities of the circus, he chronicles his experiences with juggling, flying, and clowning on his way to becoming an “ordinary acrobat. My favorite line: “the trapeze is not a metaphor, the trapeze is real.” Nevertheless, for most of us, the trapeze is a metaphor and the book provides a glimpse into the archetypal attraction of the circus.
January 14, 2022
I have never put so many sticky notes in a book before...from front to back I was captivated by the wealth of history and facts about the circus, not to mention the countless interviews with artists across the globe and their unique perspective on the art form and entertainment evolution. I was fascinated by Wall's immersion into the school and quite jealous of it actually, as only in my dreams would I be able to attend one, or even get into a prep program. Still, it is a dream and this book was very helpful in aiding that journey and informing me on everything of the past, present, and future circus.
July 21, 2014
I already loved circus stuff, and this book made me love it even more. I love the academic stuff, and finding out that circus studies is an actual thing made me so excited. I also loved learning all the history about it, and learning about the different ways countries approach supporting the arts, and the difference that makes in culture, and artistic progression. This book was right up my alley.
April 6, 2013
Duncan Wall does a good job of combining his personal experience at circus school in France with the information he gathers in his academic study of circus history. I found reading about his encounters with individual artists and companies that are part of the nouveau cirque movement inspiring as a performer in the industry.
March 9, 2013
Another one of these contrived "I spent a year doing X" books, this one involving attending a circus school. The passages involving his training at the school were amusing enough but the balance of the book (and there was a whole lot of it) involving the history of the circus was way too much information for me.
March 27, 2013
Fascinating and enjoyable book about the history of the circus, with the foreground of the author enrolled in the first year of the Ecole Nationale des Arts du Cirque in Paris. I hadn't deliberately tried to find a book on this topic--it just happened to be there--but it was like opening what you thought was a closet door and finding yourself in the middle of a whole new world.
September 24, 2013
I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. I got it from the library for research, intending to just skim through and read the relevant bits, but I found it so enjoyable that I read the whole thing.
I think it's the perfect blend of circus history and personal experience. A few parts were a bit slow, but overall a very enjoyable read.
I think it's the perfect blend of circus history and personal experience. A few parts were a bit slow, but overall a very enjoyable read.
July 25, 2014
I'm learning trapeze. This book grabbed me right away - memoir of his years at the federal circus school in France mixed with circus history are captivating. I loved the chapters on clowning, juggling, acrobatics and of course aerial. Funny and at times slightly dry. I loved it and will definitely reread.
May 24, 2013
Very interesting overview history of a subject it turns out I know little about. It was a little heavy on the French circus, but I guess that is understandable since the author was studying in France. Made me want to take up juggling!
July 4, 2021
This gets 4 stars from me, not because of the quality of the writing (which is a little sophomoric), but because of Wall's passion for developing a new circus language, which shines through every page.
January 15, 2014
I adored this book. Not sure it would garner 5 stars from a non-circus-fanatic, but the combination of personal story of his time in a circus school in France and the history of the circus in general was a hit for me. It was oddly exhilarating seeing people and places I know mentioned in print.
March 30, 2014
Absolutely fascinating and particularly so for me because the author centers the book around his Fulbright year in Paris studying the circus, and I happened to be working in Paris when I read it. A must-read for any circophile.
August 7, 2014
I lived in Paris for a few years and went to many of the shows Duncan Wall talks about. I loved the way Wall incorporated circus history with his experience at the circus school. It's a subject very close to my heart and I found his writing lyrical and impassioned.
July 13, 2015
Wall spends a year at a circus school in France, training in multiple disciplines and researching the lost history of circus. From his humorous attempts to tumble and fly, to repeated discoveries of lost cultures and eras, his accounts are engaging and eye-opening.
May 18, 2018
Occasionally wandering in narrative, this is a pretty great romp through circus history/present. Wall takes up learning a lot of different circus arts and it's fascinating (as someone who has done circus - aerial silks) to see it through the eyes of someone just starting. Really enjoyed this book.
May 11, 2021
Memoir of the author's entry into the circus world that also functions as a memoir of the circus as an industry and institution. If you're interested in that, this book won't do you wrong.
November 18, 2022
I feel very sad at the end of this book but also eternally grateful i found this at the back of a bookstore
May 31, 2024
I LOVE THE CIRQUE!!!!
Took forever to finish due to school but alas it has been conquered.
Took forever to finish due to school but alas it has been conquered.
December 9, 2018
I really enjoyed parts of this book, it really isn't a biography but a book on circus history. I enjoyed the author's experience learning juggling and acrobatics at the circus school and the history of juggling and acrobatics was also fun. The part about the clowns was waaay to long for me, that said the author is a great writer and an obvious lover of the circus.
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