The Concept of Circus & Photomanipulation

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A circus is commonly a traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoppers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists  and other stunt-oriented artists. The word also describes the performance that they give, which is usually a series of acts that are choreographed to music and introduced by a “ringmaster”. The traditional circus is held in an oval or circular arena called a ring, which has tiered seating around its edge. In the case of traveling circuses, this location is often a large tent which is nicknamed the “big top”.

In Ancient Rome, the circus was a building for the exhibition of horse and chariot races, equestrian shows, staged battles, displays featuring trained animals, jugglers and acrobats. The circus of Rome is thought to have been influenced by the Greeks, with chariot racing and the exhibition of animals as traditional attractions. The Roman circus consisted of tiers of seats running parallel with the sides of the course, and forming a crescent around one of the ends. The lower seats were reserved for persons of rank; there were also various state boxes, e.g. for the giver of the games and his friends. In Ancient Rome the circus was the only public spectacle at which men and women were not separated. The Latin word circus comes from the Greek word kirkos, meaning “circle” or “ring”.

The modern concept of a circus as a circular arena surrounded by tiers of seats, for the exhibition of equestrian, acrobatic and other performances seems to have existed since the late 18th century.  The popularity of the circus in England may be traced to that held by Philip Astley in London. The first performance of his circus is said to have been held on January 9, 1768. One of Astley’s major contributions to the circus was bringing trick horse-riding into a ring, though Astley referred to it as the Circle. Later, to suit equestrian acts moving from one circus to another, the diameter of the circus ring was set at 42 feet (13 m), which is the size of ring needed for horses to circle comfortably at full gallop. Astley never called his performances a ‘circus’; that title was thought up by his rival John Hughes, who set up his Royal Circus a short distance from Astley’s ‘Amphitheatre of Equestrian Arts’ in Lambeth, London. When Astley added tumblers, tightrope-walkers, jugglers, performing dogs, and a clown to fill time between his own demonstrations, he created a modern circus.