Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons'

Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons' PDF Author: Steve Ward
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 152670689X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 221

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Book Description
The true story of a larger-than-life man who changed the world of entertainment in eighteenth-century England. The world of the circus has a long and colorful history, but it was with a man named Philip Astley that the modern circus was founded. In April 1768, Astley pegged out a circular ride on the banks of the river Thames and gave performances of trick riding to a paying audience. He was an accomplished horseman, a military hero, and an instinctive showman. Above all, he was an entrepreneur who realized that people would pay good money to be entertained and to be entertained well. He created the comic character Billy Buttons, and other acts were added to his performances: clowns, rope dancers, tumblers, and strongmen. The circus, as we might recognize it today, was born. This book investigates the life and times of this veritable giant of the circus world. Standing well over six feet tall, with a stentorian voice and character to match, he was difficult to ignore. From his early days as an apprentice cabinetmaker and his military exploits in the 15th Dragoons to the trials and tribulations of establishing himself as a respected performer and his international successes in France and Ireland, this is a detailed account of the larger-than-life figure that was Philip Astley.

Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons'

Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons' PDF Author: Steve Ward
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 152670689X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 221

Get Book

Book Description
The true story of a larger-than-life man who changed the world of entertainment in eighteenth-century England. The world of the circus has a long and colorful history, but it was with a man named Philip Astley that the modern circus was founded. In April 1768, Astley pegged out a circular ride on the banks of the river Thames and gave performances of trick riding to a paying audience. He was an accomplished horseman, a military hero, and an instinctive showman. Above all, he was an entrepreneur who realized that people would pay good money to be entertained and to be entertained well. He created the comic character Billy Buttons, and other acts were added to his performances: clowns, rope dancers, tumblers, and strongmen. The circus, as we might recognize it today, was born. This book investigates the life and times of this veritable giant of the circus world. Standing well over six feet tall, with a stentorian voice and character to match, he was difficult to ignore. From his early days as an apprentice cabinetmaker and his military exploits in the 15th Dragoons to the trials and tribulations of establishing himself as a respected performer and his international successes in France and Ireland, this is a detailed account of the larger-than-life figure that was Philip Astley.

Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons'

Father of the Modern Circus 'Billy Buttons' PDF Author: Steve Ward
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781526706904
Category : Circus
Languages : en
Pages : 126

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Book Description
The world of the circus has a long and colourful history, but it was with a man named Philip Astley that the 'modern' circus was founded. It was 250 years ago, in April 1768, that Astley pegged out a circular ride on the banks of the Thames and gave performances of trick riding to a paying audeince. Trick riding was nothing new, so what made Astley so popular? He was an accomplished horseman, a military hero and an instincitve showman. Above all, he was an entrepreneur who realized that people would pay good money to be entertained--and to be entertained well. He created the comic character of Billy Buttons, and other acts were added to his performances: clowns, rope dancers, tumblers, and strongmen. The circus, as we might recognize it today, was born. _Father of the Modern Circus-- 'Billy Buttons'_ investigates the life and times of this veritable giant of the circus world. From his early days as an apprentice cabinetmaker and his military exploits in the 15th Dragoons to the trials and tribulations of establishing himself as a respected performer and his international successes in France and Ireland, this book gives a detailed account of the larger than life figure that was Philip Astley.--Back cover.

The End of the Circus

The End of the Circus PDF Author: Paul Bouissac
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1350166502
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
This book analyses two features of the traditional circus that have come under increasing attack since the mid-20th century: the use of wild animals in performance and the act of clowning. Positioning this socio-cultural change within the broader perspective of evolutionary semiotics, renowned circus expert Paul Bouissac examines the decline of the traditional circus and its transformation into a purely acrobatic spectacle. The End of the Circus draws on Bouissac's extensive ethnographic research, including previously unpublished material on the training of wild animals and clown make-up, to chart the origins of the circus in Gypsy culture and the drastic change in contemporary Western attitudes on ethical grounds. It scrutinizes the emergence of the new form of circus, with its focus on acrobatics and the meaning of the body, showing how acrobatic techniques have been appropriated from traditional Gypsy heritage and brought into the fold of mainstream popular entertainment. Questioning the survival of the new circus and the likely resurgence of its traditional forms, this book showcases Bouissac's innovative approach to semiotics and marks the culmination of his ground-breaking work on the circus.

England Re-Oriented

England Re-Oriented PDF Author: Humberto Garcia
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108495648
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 367

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Book Description
Between 1750 and 1857, westward-bound Central and South Asian travelers connected imperial Britain to Persian Indo-Eurasia by performing queer masculinities.

20 Years of Laughter

20 Years of Laughter PDF Author: Clowns of America International
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 1596520736
Category : Clowns
Languages : en
Pages : 156

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Book Description


Teaching Comprehension Strategies: Book E 9-10 years

Teaching Comprehension Strategies: Book E 9-10 years PDF Author:
Publisher: R.I.C. Publications
ISBN: 1741265266
Category : Comprehension
Languages : en
Pages : 107

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Book Description
A series of books using modelling, guided and independent practice to teach students strategies they can use to develop different reading comprehension skills.

Mr. Billy Buttons

Mr. Billy Buttons PDF Author: Walter Lecky
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description


Circus Notes and Jottings

Circus Notes and Jottings PDF Author: Steve Ward
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781979036214
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 198

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Book Description
Circus Notes and Jottings is a collection of writings advocating the place of circus as an educational medium and the development of youth circus. It is drawn from forty years of experience and charts the author's developing ideas.

Step Right Up!

Step Right Up! PDF Author: LaVahn G. Hoh
Publisher: Betterway Books
ISBN:
Category : Circus
Languages : en
Pages : 286

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Book Description
Describes all aspects of the circus and the evolution of every act from its beginnings to today's performances. With more than 300 photographs.

The Education of a Circus Clown

The Education of a Circus Clown PDF Author: David Carlyon
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 113754743X
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 219

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Book Description
2017 Freedley Award Finalist, Theatre Library Association 2016 Best Circus Book of the Year, Stuart Thayer Prize, Circus Historical Society The 1960s American hippie-clown boom fostered many creative impulses, including neo-vaudeville and Ringling's Clown College. However, the origin of that impulse, clowning with a circus, has largely gone unexamined. David Carlyon, through an autoethnographic examination of his own experiences in clowning, offers a close reading of the education of a professional circus clown, woven through an eye-opening, sometimes funny, occasionally poignant look at circus life. Layering critical reflections of personal experience with connections to wider scholarship, Carlyon focuses on the work of clowning while interrogating what clowns actually do, rather than using them as stand-ins for conceptual ideas or as sentimental figures.