Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, say goodbye to the ‘Greatest Show on Earth’.
A 14-year-old girl named Zazel was the first to be shot out
of a cannon, in 1877 London. In the
140 years since, the act’s safety has been vastly improved but never perfected.
One circus historian estimated that 30 human cannonballs have died in
performance accidents. The most recent death occurred in 2011.
The oohs and ahs and wonderment and elephants and tigers and clowns getting out of Volkswagens... well, this generation 'has an app for that.'
End of an era.
ReplyDeleteThe Circus Arts have moved on.
ReplyDeleteCirce Du Soliel style circuses are now in the ascendancy. However, there are circus acts like NYC's Big Apple Circus around.