Extraordinary, Daring, Graceful! Happy in the Chapiteau of Circus Vargas
Wow and WOW, aaahh and wow again.
The audience is awe-struck. Not a soul wants to be elsewhere in this very moment. After all, the magic of the circus captures young and old from its first performance in Paris in 1782. "Circus", a new entertainment, started as a show of equestrian tricks, established by an equestrian rider and an owner of such school, Phillip Astley. To entertain the guests in between the rider's tricks, an acrobatic and jongleur performance was offered; and to provide the best view to all, a circular stage was set up with seats all around, hence the origin of the work circus, from circular.
The feast of strength and agility starts!
Four young men on four trapezes demonstrate skills beyond olympic requirements. They rotate, jump from one trapeze to another simultaneously, they handstand forever on a it and jump down headfirst to leave us aghast. Two full size motorcycles with riders in it are playing playfully in the cage no bigger than 7 m in diameter. You will admire the beauty and grace of the rope athletes or the excellent trumpet and saxophone players that can easily compete with any musician from a reputable music club, you will not believe what the swinging trapeze athlete will show you. You will see much more and will admired the talented beautiful people that are extending in front of our eyes human physical possibilities!
It was thrilling not because we love daring and a danger-posing performance. It was thrilling to see all of the joy, beauty, gifts of incredible hard work, diligence, training and humility.
The same world-class athletes that perform tricks only a few on earth can do -—sell tickets prior the show, popcorn in the intermission, pose with joy for free photos at the end, and then help clean up, pack up only to set up again. Hard life that you can endure for the love of the performance for which many of the acrobats go to prestigious universities in circus and variety studies.
I was happy to see my little students I brought for this extraordinary Thursday evening squeal with joy. I loved the most how at each new number they turned to me to make sure I was as awe-struck as they were. Once assured I was, they smiled and glued their eyes back to the stage.
I love the circus, as it is a wonderful place to parade how our physical limits are crossed decade after decade.
It is inspiring not only as a spectacular joyful show, but as a celebration of an extraordinary discipline.
See you in the chapiteau next time! And if you will hear the well-known music for circus – ta ta tadada tat a taa ra…know that it was composed by a Czech composer Julius Fucik in 1897 and it is called Entry of the Gladiaters. Here it is, it will only lift up your mood!
Short history of circus for those interested: http://www.circopedia.org/SHORT_HISTORY_OF_THE_CIRCUS