Paragraph on “Circus” complete paragraph for Class 9, Class 10, Class 11 and Class 12

Circus

The circuses as we see today came into being in the second half of the 18th century. In those days the acts were limited to trick riding but as time went by more were added and the circuses became a proper show. Initially these circuses were held indoors but eventually large tents were used to provide mobility and the circuses were able to move from town to town. Today when a circus comes to town it is usually in the form of a parade which provides publicity and lets the town folk know that a circus has arrived. In a large open space the circus is housed in very large tent called the ‘Big Top’. The performers live in caravans and the animals are kept in cages.

Inside the big, top, the audience is seated around a circus ring which measure about 40, feet in diameter. The performers enter the ring from

one side and show their feats. Between performances we have the clowns showing their tricks. Simple it may seem but making people laugh is not easy, clowns dress up to suit their roles and put heavy make up on their faces. Flying trapeze artists perform mid-air flips and somersaults by relying upon split second timing. This act was invented in 1859 by a Frenchman called Jules Leotard.

There are a lot of acts which involve feats by animals, these animals are trained to perform these tricks by their trainers. Like the trapeze artists we have the tightrope walkers who walk across a tightly stretched rope and balance themselves with the help of a long pole. In a circus show the Ringmaster is the person who is generally incharge. The circuses move around the cities as fully self contained units, they have their own caravans for the performers and dressing rooms where the performers dress up before a performance. The Performers are assisted by a large number of persons who take care of the odd jobs like rigging up the tents, maintaining the circus arena, feeding the animals and cleaning their cages etc.