Agency through Otherness: Portraits of Performers in Circus Route Books, 1875-1925Main MenuIntroductionIntroduction to the book and information about ways to navigate the content.The American Experiment: Circus in ContextCircus performers and American history timelineRouting the Circus: The Things They CarriedCircus Routes Map, 1875-1925Ethnological Congresses and the Spectacleby Rebecca FitzsimmonsOutsiders in Demand: Chinese and Japanese Immigrant Performersby Angela Yon and Mariah WahlShattering Gender Roles: Women in the Circusby Elizabeth HarmanSide Show Sounds: Black Bandleaders Respond to ExoticismAnnexed Circus Musicians by Elizabeth C. HartmanNative Performance and Identity in The Wild West Showby Mariah WahlShowmen's Rests: The Final CurtainCircus Cemetery Plots by Elizabeth C. HartmanList of PerformersPerformers covered in this exhibitBibliography & Further ReadingsBibliography and readings for each chapterAcknowledgementsAngela Yon72f2fd7a28c88ceeba2adcf2c04fee469904c6f1
Ida Miaco
1media/spc_152_047idamiaco_thumb.jpg2021-03-18T02:24:34-07:00Angela Yon72f2fd7a28c88ceeba2adcf2c04fee469904c6f1382943Contortionist in the Route Book of the John Robinson's 10 Big Shows Combined Season of 1899plain2021-03-18T02:28:13-07:001899Media is provided here for educational purposes only.20190218080329Angela Yon72f2fd7a28c88ceeba2adcf2c04fee469904c6f1
This page is referenced by:
12021-03-14T18:03:59-07:00Daring Women15plain10399142021-04-29T13:53:24-07:00As women advocated for themselves and found a place within the circus, many unique acts arose. Women were found in almost every sector of the circus by the mid 1920’s. From aerialists and highflyers to musicians and contortion, women were a part of it all. How they arrived at these positions often involved family. Whether they were born into the circus or married into it, more often than not they were legally a part of the circus family. This familial aspect was used often by the circuses to promote their shows, proving to the laypeople that they were living in an upstanding community, using ‘stories of marriage and children as a positive avenue to present their female employees in a favorable light to the American public.” 24 To an extent, this was true as life within the circus was highly structured and proper. There were also strict rules on behavior and appearance, especially for the women, to make sure that they remained in a good light and stayed safe while on the road.
Though women were less prevalent in the circus, the women that did make it into the show were typically the highlight of the performance, especially within family troupes. Marriages and family connections were constantly made and intertwined in the circus with hopes for a better job placement. The means by which women found work within the circus were varied, but they used these to their advantage to promote themselves and be the biggest success stories under the big top.