Le cirque, quelle famille !

Some of their names have resonated throughout circus history for decades, even centuries, while others have remained anonymous artists, remembered only by the spectators who applauded them. There are many families in the circus world: from the Ringling Brothers in the United States to the Fratellini dynasty in France, the Knie family in Switzerland, and the Ronaldo circus in Belgium. Some lineages have founded famous troupes, others have created schools, invented equipment or techniques that still bear their names and continue to inspire current generations.

From fathers to sons, mothers to daughters, circus arts are often a true family affair. They were called “children of the circus”: the children of artists trained by their own parents, introduced at a very early age to the rigor, danger, and beauty of the craft. Their learning differed from that of the outside world: it took place in a universe where knowledge was transmitted by example, observation, and repetition, rather than through textbooks or classrooms.

Growing up under the big top or traveling with nomadic troupes akin to street performers also meant adopting a way of life, a deliberately marginalized identity, where solidarity and sharing everyday life merged with performance. These legacies remain at the heart of the circus imagination today.

TOHU is proud to present a selection of works from the Jacob-William collection, which it preserves, and would like to acknowledge the valuable collaboration of the National Circus School Library.