Betsy Golden Kellem – författare

This collection of primary sources brings together a series of documents derived from archives, journals, newspapers, out-of-print books, memoirs, letters, and other written materials pertaining to the circus during the long nineteenth century (1789-1919). Historians concur that the ‘modern’ circus emerged in London in the late-eighteenth century, following the entrepreneurial initiatives of Philip Astley (1742-1814). It soon spread to Scotland, Ireland, France, Russia, Scandinavia, and other regions of Europe. Introduced to the United States by and English equestrian, John Bill Ricketts, in 1793, the modern circus transformed into a movable tent show by 1825. Following the Civil War and the development of railroad transport, the uniquely American circus transformed again into an ‘industrialized juggernaut’ capable of entertaining a large and diverse population from coast to coast. Transmitted across the globe through the British colonial project, the circus flourished in the colonies of Australasia, South Africa, South- and Southeast Asia, and was nourished by traditional performance forms of China, Japan, India, and Southeast Asia. The modern circus evolved through interaction with different geographies, socio-political contexts, new technologies, cultural heritage, and absorption of vernacular performance forms.

Accompanied by extensive editorial commentary, and edited by an international team of scholars, this collection will be of great interest to students and researchers of circus studies, theatre and performance studies and cultural history.

This collection of primary sources brings together a series of documents derived from archives, journals, newspapers, out-of-print books, memoirs, letters, and other written materials pertaining to the circus during the long nineteenth century (1789-1919). Historians concur that the ‘modern’ circus emerged in London in the late-eighteenth century, following the entrepreneurial initiatives of Philip Astley (1742-1814). It soon spread to Scotland, Ireland, France, Russia, Scandinavia, and other regions of Europe. Introduced to the United States by and English equestrian, John Bill Ricketts, in 1793, the modern circus transformed into a movable tent show by 1825. Following the Civil War and the development of railroad transport, the uniquely American circus transformed again into an ‘industrialized juggernaut’ capable of entertaining a large and diverse population from coast to coast. Transmitted across the globe through the British colonial project, the circus flourished in the colonies of Australasia, South Africa, South- and Southeast Asia, and was nourished by traditional performance forms of China, Japan, India, and Southeast Asia. The modern circus evolved through interaction with different geographies, socio-political contexts, new technologies, cultural heritage, and absorption of vernacular performance forms.

Accompanied by extensive editorial commentary, and edited by an international team of scholars, this collection will be of great interest to students and researchers of circus studies, theatre and performance studies and cultural history.

The fascinating story of how nineteenth-century circus women performed impossible feats and changed American culture.

Jumping Through Hoops reveals the hidden history of early female circus performers: boundary-breaking women like Lavinia Warren, known as The Queen of Beauty; Millie-Christine McKoy, the Two-Headed Nightingale; and Patty Astley, the mother of the modern circus. These astounding female and gender-nonconforming artists wrestled snakes, performed magic tricks with electricity, and walked across waterfalls on tightropes, shattering taboos by performing in public at a time when “respectable” women were mostly confined to their homes.

Betsy Golden Kellem deftly explores how major forces in the long nineteenth century combined to create the uniquely American spectacle of the traveling circus. During the transformation of the circus from scrappy “mud shows” to a major international business, these extraordinary circus women challenged contemporary ideas of femininity, creating new possibilities for women far beyond the big top.