Timoteo's Fabulous Ragged Circus

Vienna’s Prater is an amusement park and a desire machine. No mechanical invention, no novel idea or sensational innovation could escape incorporation into the Prater. The diverse story-telling in Ulrike Ottinger’s film “Prater” transforms this place of sensations into a modern cinema of attractions. The Prater’s history from the beginning to the present is told by its protagonists and those who have documented it, including contemporary cinematic images of the Prater, interviews with carnies, commentary by Austrians and visitors from abroad, film quotes, and photographic and written documentary materials. The meaning of the Prater, its status as a place of technological innovation, and its role as a cultural medium are reflected in texts by Elfriede Jelinek, Josef von Sternberg, Erich Kästner and Elias Canetti, as well as in music devoted to this amusement venue throughout the course of its history.

Once a year, people from different marginalized communities meet together in the woods to delve into the art of circus and have this discipline become a common way to express themselves, away from the city.

Errol Morris’s Fast, Cheap & Out of Control interweaves the stories of four men, each driven to create eccentric worlds from their unique obsessions, all of which involve animals. There’s a lion tamer who shares his theories on the mental processes of wild animals; a topiary gardener who has devoted a lifetime to shaping bears and giraffes out of hedges and trees; a man fascinated with hairless mole rats; and an MIT scientist who has designed complex, autonomous robots that can crawl like bugs.

A Documentary on the Creation of OVO, by Cirque du Soleil

This documentary highlights the evolution of Brazil's Circo Voador venue from homespun artists' performance space to national cultural institution.

The Story of an Encounter is a documentary that captures the unexpected encounter between México and Cirque du Soleil creators in the mist of the creation of LUZIA, Cirque du Soleil next big top show. It is a cultural and intimate story of the meeting of creative minds seen through personal interactions and relationship building of the show creators. Filmed in Mexico City, Tijuana, Oaxaca and Montréal, this series features: Daniele Finzi Pasca (Co-author and Director of LUZIA), Patricia Ruel (Direction of Creation), Simon Carpentier (Composer), Eugenio Caballero (Set and Props Designer) as well as Majo Cornejo and Rodrigo de la Mora (Musicians).

A young girl has already seen everything there is to see and her world has lost all meaning. Her anger shatters her world and she finds herself in the universe of QUIDAM, where she is joined by a playful companion, as well as another mysterious character who attempts to seduce her with the marvelous, the unsettling and the terrifying.

Alegría is a mood, a state of mind. The themes of the show, whose name means "jubilation" in Spanish, are many. Power and the handing down of power over time, the evolution from ancient monarchies to modern democracies, old age, youth - it is against this backdrop that the characters of Alegría play out their lives. Kings' fools, minstrels, beggars, old aristocrats and children make up its universe, along with the clowns, who alone are able to resist the passing of time and the social transformations that accompany it.

From the Italian 'saltare in banco' – which literally means 'to jump on a bench' – Saltimbanco explores the urban experience in all its myriad forms. Between whirlwind and lull, prowess and poetry, it takes spectators on an allegorical and acrobatic journey into the heart and soul of the modern city.

Icarus is the main character of Varekai, who falls to the ground, breaking his legs as he does. He is suddenly in a strange, new world full of creatures he has never seen before. Parachuted into the shadows of a magical forest, a kaleidoscopic world populated by fantastical creatures, this young man sets off on an adventure both absurd and extraordinary.

Footage from the premiere of Charlie Chaplin's 1928 film 'The Circus'.

Drawing upon a vast and richly visual archive and featuring a host of performers, historians and aficionados, this four-hour mini-series follows the rise and fall of the gigantic, traveling tented railroad circus and brings to life an era when Circus Day would shut down a town and its stars were among the most famous people in the country.

It is considered the largest traveling circus in Europe and is one of the oldest in Germany: Circus Krone celebrated its 100th anniversary a few years ago. However, the history of the family business actually began back in 1870 - when the founding couple toured the fairgrounds. The small animal show became a dazzling entertainment giant.

Since 1993, Cirque du Soleil has produced seven original, permanent shows in Las Vegas, creating a garden of delights that has transformed the very nature of entertainment in this desert oasis. Cirque du Soleil: Flowers in the Desert presents mesmerizing performances, recorded in High Definition, of Mystère™, "O™", KÀ™, LOVE™, and their latest production, Viva ELVIS™, as well as sneak peeks of Zumanity™ and CRISS ANGEL® Believe™. Now the artistic universe of Cirque du Soleil is captured in a two-hour performance special, Cirque du Soleil: Flowers in the Desert, an extraordinary entertainment experience that is part of special programming premiering on PBS, check your local station for dates and times.

One man, one camera, one goal...to capture the essence of adventure. An experimental, often abstract new type of filmmaking process creating color rich visuals combined with a lush soundtrack that grounds the project. A unique cinematic experience.

As Cirque du Soleil reboots its flagship production, O, more than a year after an abrupt shutdown, performers and crew members face uncertainty as they work to return to their world-class standards in time for the (re)opening night in Las Vegas. With unfettered access, filmmaker Dawn Porter captures the dramatic journey of the world's most famous circus act on its way back from the brink.

While writing a book on the circus, author John Shawcross reflects upon the great acts he has seen over the years and the mystique of circus people. He recalls the solo trapeze act of La Mara; Tarzan, Sahib, and their elephant; Marco's sword-balancing act; an archery act in which Grey Arrow shoots an apple off the head of Zuni, his wife; the Mascott Sisters' head-to-head balancing act on a high ladder; the juggling of Rudy Cardenas; high bar specialists, the Tongas; Gunther Gebel Williams with his tiger; the flying bar act of the Laribles; Carl Sembach-Krone's trained horses; lion tamer Pablo Noel; the Gaonas and the Four Titos on the trampoline; the Flying Armors on the flying trapeze; Frieda Krone and her elephants; Fredy Knie, Sr., and his Lippizaner; the Francesco Clowns; Lilly Yokoi on her bicycle; Mendez and Seitz on the tightrope; and Pauline Schumann on the trick horse.

In the magical world of La Nouba, dreams become reality and talent turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. La Nouba is, literally, a waking dream come true – clowns, ballerinas, trapeze artists, an incredible BMX bicycle act – and much more.

A story of the world's first female tiger trainer who claimed her love for her tigers was so great she wanted to die in the ring. Raised in poverty in Kentucky, Mabel Stark joined the circus in 1911 and became the first woman to train tigers, earning the center ring despite being told that women couldn't work the big cats. In a 57-year career, she headlined shows with Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey, survived multiple maulings and marriages, starred in Hollywood movies, and managed up to 20 cats by forming intimate relationships with each, rather than using the whip. Her life ended tragically just outside of Jungleland in Thousand Oaks, CA, and her legacy and the golden era of the American circus is recounted by former animal trailers, performers and historian Janet Davis, with Mabel's voice, from her memoir "Hold That Tiger", provided by Oscar ®-winner Melissa Leo.

From the slow waitings for opening of the big top to the loneliness in the dressing room backstage, Abuhadba follows the life of a small circus in Chile run entirely by a traditional circus family.