History of circus dynasties is as exhilarating as their death-defying stunts
By Peter Ross
from: scotsman.com
Published on Saturday 30 June 2012
BACKSTAGE at Zippo’s, 76-year-old Norman Barrett, unblushingly billed as “the world’s greatest ringmaster”, is waiting to make his entrance.
He stands, head bowed, behind red velvet, the spotlight passing through a gap between the curtains, painting a silver stripe down the front of his body from top hat to shoes, and intensifying the already considerable twinkle in his bright blue eyes. He punches a white-gloved fist into a white-gloved palm, psyching himself up, and, as the curtains open, steps into the familiar glare and roar, a perfect grin transforming features which a moment ago were serious, perhaps even steely. “My lords, ladies and gentlemen,” he bellows, “welcome to the circus!”
It shouldn’t exist any more, the old-fashioned circus. Health and safety legislation, political correctness, and the ever-increasing sophistication of children should, in theory, have done for the big top and its motley denizens. The fact that circuses continue to tour Scotland and still seem able to pull considerable crowds is, I believe, a cause for cheer. It shows that we haven’t grown so jaded that we can’t be thrilled and delighted by the ingenuity and pluck which these performers demonstrate twice each day during the season.
read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/scotland-on-sunday/scotland/history-of-circus-dynasties-is-as-exhilarating-as-their-death-defying-stunts-1-2386074
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