Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoi Boulevard, or Nikulin's Circus, is located on

Tsvetnoi Boulevard Tsvetnoy Boulevard (russian: Цветной бульвар), called ''Trubny Boulevard'' before 1851, is a boulevard in the Meschansky District, central Moscow, Russia. Not a part of the Boulevard Ring, the street runs north/south from Petrovsky B ...

in the

Tverskoy District Tverskoy District ( rus, Тверско́й райо́н, p=tvʲɪrˈskoj, a=Ru-Тверской.ogg) is a district of Central Administrative Okrug of the federal city of Moscow, Russia. Population: The district extends from Kitai-gorod no ...

of central Moscow. It was the only

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclis ...

in the city between 1926 and 1971.

History

Salamonsky Circus

The circus was established by Albert Salamonsky, descended from a family of Jewish circus riders. He constructed the circus building in Moscow on a place where usually travelling shows and vagarious artists performed at fairs. The very first performance was on October 12, 1880. Salamonsky was an innovative entrepreneur — he included non-circus artists like singers, choruses, folk ensembles, he staged shows with 35 riders in the ring and organized first Christmas shows for kids. Salamonsky also strived to make circus art be more accessible; he introduced cheaper rows and standees. Upon his death in 1913, the popularity of the circus decreased.

Soviet Circus

After the Russian revolution, in 1919 the circus was nationalized by the Soviet Government. The Bolsheviks saw the circus art as a very important tool of mass propaganda and tried to ‘revolutionize’ the repertoire. Only in the 1930s did the artists manage to separate the shows from propaganda. In 1945 Nikolay Baikalov was assigned to the director's post; his epoch in the Tsvetnoy became one of the most important parts of the circus's history. The troupe was awarded the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

in 1939. Since the middle of the 20th century, the Soviet circus was well known around the world for its professionalism. In the USSR all circuses were subordinate to the SoyuzGosTsirk (Soviet State Circus) Department, and all the artists were officially hired as its employees. Among the famous performers who worked there were clowns Karandash, Oleg Popov,

Leonid Yengibarov Leonid Georgievich Yengibarov ( hy, Լեոնիդ Ենգիբարյան; russian: Леонид Георгиевич Енгибаров; March 15, 1935 – July 25, 1972) was a Soviet Armenian clown and actor. Biography Leonid Yengibarov was bo ...

and Yuri Nikulin, illusionist Emil Kio, performer Margarita Nazarova, the Durovs,

Yuri Kuklachyov Yuri Dmitrievich Kuklachyov (russian: Ю́рий Дми́триевич Куклачёв; born 12 April 1949, in Khimki) is a Soviet and Russian clown who was awarded the title People’s Artist of the RSFSR People's Artist of the RSFSR (russian ...

, etc.

Nikulin's Circus

Yuri Nikulin, one of the most popular clowns in Russia and successful cinema actor, worked for the Tsvetnoy circus for 33 years. In 1981 he retired from performing and was assigned to the director's post. Nikulin managed the circus for fifteen years. During his office the company managed to survive through the crisis in the 1990s, when the country faced a political and economical collapse. He 'cleaned' the repertoire from Soviet propaganda heritage and welcomed the spirit of new age into the shows.

References

Literature

External links

The official site
of the Moscow Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard. {{coord, display=title, 55, 46, 14, N, 37, 37, 11, E Circuses Theatres in Moscow Tverskoy District Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, Moscow Soviet culture 1880 establishments in the Russian Empire Tourist attractions in Moscow