Get Free Ebook The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall
Make use of the innovative technology that human establishes this day to find guide The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall effortlessly. But initially, we will ask you, how much do you enjoy to review a book The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall Does it consistently until finish? For what does that book review? Well, if you actually love reading, aim to check out the The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall as one of your reading compilation. If you just read guide based upon requirement at the time and incomplete, you have to aim to like reading The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall initially.
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall
Get Free Ebook The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall. Let's read! We will certainly commonly learn this sentence all over. When still being a kid, mom utilized to order us to consistently review, so did the educator. Some e-books The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall are completely checked out in a week and we require the commitment to sustain reading The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall What about now? Do you still like reading? Is checking out simply for you which have obligation? Not! We right here supply you a new e-book qualified The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall to read.
As known, experience and also encounter about session, amusement, and also expertise can be gotten by just reviewing a publication The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall Also it is not directly done, you could recognize even more about this life, regarding the world. We provide you this correct as well as easy way to obtain those all. We offer The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall as well as many book collections from fictions to science at all. One of them is this The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall that can be your companion.
Exactly what should you think much more? Time to obtain this The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall It is very easy then. You could just sit and remain in your location to obtain this publication The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall Why? It is on-line book shop that supply numerous collections of the referred books. So, just with internet connection, you could enjoy downloading this publication The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall and also varieties of publications that are looked for now. By seeing the link page download that we have actually provided, the book The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall that you refer so much can be discovered. Simply conserve the requested book downloaded and install and afterwards you could appreciate guide to review every time and also area you want.
It is extremely easy to review the book The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall in soft documents in your gadget or computer. Once again, why need to be so hard to obtain the book The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall if you can choose the easier one? This web site will certainly relieve you to pick and decide on the best collective publications from one of the most ideal seller to the released publication just recently. It will always update the compilations time to time. So, link to internet and also see this site always to obtain the new book everyday. Now, this The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey Into The Wondrous World Of The Circus, Past And Present, By Duncan Wall is yours.
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 history: 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.
- Sales Rank: #968408 in eBooks
- Published on: 2013-02-26
- Released on: 2013-02-26
- Format: Kindle eBook
From Booklist
Wall had the great fortune of realizing the archetypal childhood dream of running away to join the circus when he secured a Fulbright fellowship to do just that. After visiting the nouveau cirque as a college student in Paris, Wall was intrigued by the high cultural regard the French held for the circus as performance art. Wall spent a year in the intensive Ecole Nationale des Arts du Cirque, learning the skills of juggling, tumbling, and clowning. He also researched the origins of the disparate circus arts, from ancient Chinese culture through the Romans until 1798, when a British cavalier pulled together the circus of human and animal feats. The appeal of traditional circus had been on the wane until Cirque du Soleil dropped the animal acts and focused on choreography and human dexterity with spectacle worthy of Las Vegas. Wall chronicles his year of discovery of the history and future of the circus as well as the dramatic personalities and grueling physical training in this behind-the-scenes look at the evolving art of the circus. --Vanessa Bush
Review
“Lovely…There is plenty in The Ordinary Acrobat to set circusphile and circus-skeptic alike to dreaming.”
—The Washington Post
“An exquisite exposition…Proving himself even more adroit verbally than physically, Wall offers a revelatory love letter to the simultaneously ancient and contemporary art of acrobatics, the circus, and its denizens.”
—Library Journal
“In this enchanting memoir sprinkled with historical anecdotes, Wall pulls the reader into the world of circus, past and present…his captivating journey of discovery may lead others to consider running away to join one.”
—Publisher’s Weekly
“Wall is a charming guide… [his] appreciation of the circus is deepened by his understanding of its long and distinct history.”
—The New Republic
“Blending cultural history with biography, memoir and travelogue, Wall’s carefully balanced book is, in itself, a successful tightrope traverse.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“If ever you have the urge to run away and join the circus, you can save yourself the trip and still have the thrill of it all by reading The Ordinary Acrobat. Duncan Wall’s adventures as a novitiate in a Parisian circus school are wonderfully entertaining. A beautifully written account of life past and present under the big top.”
—Eric Lax, author of Woody Allen: A Biography
“The Ordinary Acrobat is an incandescent odyssey—personally and historically—into the captivating transnational world of the circus. A fascinating, funny, effervescent story told with great affection.”
—Janet M. Davis, author of Circus Age: Culture and Society Under the American Big Top
“Wall [does] an admirable job of pursuing the circus’s road-show mysteries and endlessly winding paths…it isn’t a conventional memoir, but the circus isn’t a conventional subject, either.”
—NPR
“Wall is intoxicated and obsessed with the circus, and…it’s infectious.”
—Biographile
“Lively and wide-ranging…Wall’s eye for anecdote, in both past and present, is sharp.”
—The Seattle Times
“Meticulously researched, intensely reported and brightly written, The Ordinary Acrobat…[is] an entertaining, artistic several-hour act that leaves indelible impressions.”
—The Minneapolis Star Tribune
About the Author
Duncan Wall studied as a Fulbright scholar at France’s École Nationale des Arts du Cirque de Rosny-sous-Bois. He is on the board of directors for the American Youth Circus Organization and was the founder and co–artistic director of the Candidatos, an acclaimed clown-theater company recognized by The New York Times for its contribution to the flowering of contemporary clowning. He lives in Montreal, where he teaches circus history and criticism at the École Nationale de Cirque, Canada’s national circus school.
Most helpful customer reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
You'll be tempted to skim and dig for the interesting bits
By Miss Darcy
I wanted to give this a shot because I recently fell in love with Water for Elephants. The best part of the book is that (eventually) you *can* piece together an impression of what the circus is like today. I've taken off two stars because the other reviewers are correct. While the author's personal experience with the circus is in here, so is the history---a lot of history. Some of it is dry, and because it's woven in, the story of the author's experience frequently seems interrupted by History Breaks. It's like watching a great show that keeps getting interrupted with commercials. Even if they're good ones, it's still an interruption. Here's an example from p. 258:
"You must be here for the tour!"
I looked up. Chantal, a small, pert woman in casual Friday attire, stood on the other side of the turnstiles. Her hands were open in a gesture of generosity.
"Welcome to Cirque!" She was smiling.
I beamed back. "It's great to be here!"
And away we went.
**** So now, reader, you are excited, right? The tour is about to begin. But no. Here is how the book continues instead.
IN THE HOLLYWOOD VERSION of the modern circus story, the birth of Soleil in 1984 is often considered the moment when the circus as an art form rushes headlong into modernity . . .
You'll be less disappointed if you know what you're getting into. The story is still worth picking up. Hope this helped.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful.
A comprehensive history and detailed personal story...impressive combination
By Nathan Webster
Author Duncan Wall has done an impressive job combining both a comprehensive history of various (most?) aspects of the original circuses of European and US history alongside his own memoir of his performing life and skills.
One of those narratives would be impressive enough and to combine them both so well is a strong achievement.
For the right audience - performers, those with an interest in creative performance, or those who have relationships with performers - I think this would easily be a five-star book. I think anyone with a connection to creative, physical performance could appreciate the history first, but even more Wall's accounts of the demands and amazing effort required of the participants. For instance, I'd never looked at 'juggling' with any sort of the fine-tuned attention that Wall gives it here. A performer could point to examples and say, "see, this is what I'm doing. Get it?" or a family member could understand, "wait, this is what he had to learn to do?"
Overall, I liked it - for me, without as direct a 'performer' connection, it sometimes provided too much information for my interest level and my attention to the details tailed off. At parts I was completely engaged, and at other times simply less connected with the subject matter.
That's just me as an audience of one, though, and is no criticism of the amazing amount of research that Wall has provided. I think any fan of history will find something to appreciate - some audiences will simply engage differently than others.
This is an aspect of American (and cultural) history that I think it's fair to say is often overlooked. We look at the "circus" as some dusty relic, but so much of the entertainment we take for granted today came from circus backgrounds (Cirque De Soleil is obvious, and Wall mentions them - but, in addition, think of any large-scale "Lady Gaga" concert production, for example). Appreciating that background - which we spend a lot of money to witness - is a result of close studies of books like this.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful.
Both a multitude of facts and a moving experience shared.
By Kim Karas
In consideration of other reviews here and my own reading taste I will first tell you what I think is most helpful to a majority of readers, there is a lot of circus history here. We are talking about a lot of facts! Author Duncan Wall who decided to enter a circus training school in Paris essentially on a whim, becomes not only interested in the experience but has a thirst to learn about the history of the circus itself. I personally read a lot of memoirs and also appreciate varied non-fiction in addition to fiction novels. That said, what some consider dry is actually fascinating to me and that is why The Ordinary Acrobat was a true delight for me to read!
We most often think of the circus being comprised of generational participants with fine tuned skills that are practiced from a very young age. It's described as a way of life and a tradition passed down in families. So when it came to The Ordinary Acrobat, I was expecting the unique view of an "outsider" who jumps into this world. I did expect more of that view than the utter volume of facts however, if you take in mind that the author then goes on teach circus history then you will know better what to expect here. Having read the novel "The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb" which is a bit of historical fiction, I was familiar with some of the facts beforehand. I have read a few other fictional stories of the circus or travelling shows before that give you the feel but without the history lesson. Duncan Wall brings the two together because the information he discovers is told along with his fascination on the subject. We watch his interest in circus history grow and the telling for me was so moving, I could feel how enchanted and fascinated he was to discover more. His perspective unique and ability to convey his experience with such feeling is remarkable.
His training at the school is interesting, physically and emotionally he had no idea what he was getting himself into. He immediately gets a wake up call to the fact that there is a big difference between being athletic and being able to do acrobatics. Starting from nothing, then getting some basic skills, he goes on to become obsessed with juggling. It's said that's a common thing that jugglers experience. The thing he went in the least interested in or able to relate to was clowning. Keeping an open mind he learns more about the art of clowning than he would have imagined possible, the true theatrical component to it. There is a good deal of comparison between the American and European versions of the circus. While the American pangs a feeling of nostalgia, the European inspires more a vision of art. Hence I am happy to have found this book categorized in the art category here on Amazon. If anything, that's the point that you walk away from the strongest here the art of circus.
Back in the seventies, I went to the circus as a kid and was fascinated (possibly even overwhelmed.) In the 1990's I was treated to the experience of a Cirque du Soleil show and fell in love. We went on to refer to it as "the grown-up" circus and was very dramatic and theatrical, interesting to explain to friends and family who at the time never heard of anything other than the Ringling Bros. sort of circus. The European and world variety takes it to a whole other level artistically. Not to down up on Cirque du Soleil but the criticism of that company from a world view is the commercialism. Still for me at that time, it was so magical, emotional and thought-provoking. This book hit me in that same "new" way.
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall PDF
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall EPub
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall Doc
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall iBooks
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall rtf
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall Mobipocket
The Ordinary Acrobat: A Journey into the Wondrous World of the Circus, Past and Present, by Duncan Wall Kindle
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar