WIRTHS’ CIRCUS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XVII, Issue 994, 25 March 1909, Page 17

WIRTHS’ CIRCUS.

Wirths’ Circus, which has been making a tour of the Dominion and recently of the Waikato and Thames districts, opened in Auckland on Monday evening with a considerably augmented menagerie and the strongest combination of star performers that has probably yet been seen in Auckland. The great tents, which are pitched in Stanley St. were thronged with an interested audience, whose attention was held for nearly three hours, while a really first class programme. which was placed before them, was negotiated. Since their last visit to Auckland the Wirth Bros, have added to their zoological collection, and are now showing a valuable lot of animals including some halfdozen elephants, a giraffe which cost £lOOO, lions, tigers, hyenas, baboons, monkeys, polar and Himalaya bears, a fox, a jackal and a kangaroo etc., the whole of the collection being a very interesting one. The giraffe, as the latest and most valuable attraction, is kept in seclusion, and only makes his appearance during the performance, when he is led round the ring for inspection. He stands 13 feet high and is still growing. On Monday night, by way of contrast, the kangaroo (a young animal) was led around the ring immediately in the wake of ’His Majesty, the giraffe, and a good deal of fun was evoked thereby. The performance opened with a grand parade in which the whole of the company took part, with the elephants gaily caparisoned, the sacred cattle camels and other animals led by their attendants, following. Eight lady and gentlemen riders attired in Swiss costume and carrying floral garlands, subsequently entered the ring, and went

through a series of graceful movements, described on the programme as “ Grand Garland Entrees.” To them succeeded Master Eddie Christie riding and driving eight ponies, the performance being greatly appreciated by the crowd. Then followed a clever display of tumbling in which artists from England, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Australia took part. A noticeable feature of the programme was the very clever and sensational tumbling of the artists, a trio of whom gave a remarkably fine exhibition, tumbling, turning and somersaulting with bewildering rapidity and with almost perfect similarity of motion. A lady tumbler capped the performance, by cleverly executing eighteen somersauits with a Catherine Wheel rapidity. Otto and Emil, and the brothers Rodriques gave equally acceptable exhibitions on the Roman rings, and in trapeze and step balancing, their astonishing feats being greeted with every sign of approval. The Gammon Bros., three very clever acrobats with their dogs proved themselves past-masters in their art. with their astonishingly daring acrobatic movements, the tumbling tricks of their dogs adding to the interest. The most sensational act of the evening was probably that of Ilket. who while balancing himself on the top of two ladders, held a wire rope between hi s teeth, to which was suspended his companion, a lady introduced on the programme as Jennie, who pedalled vigorously on her bicycle while thus suspended above the platform. The two artists gave other clever exhibitions, which were well received. The Sydney Bros, are a pair of very clever trick cyclists, who concluded a highly sensational performance by “ looping the loop ” in mid-air, remaining seated on a motor-cycle, which, despite the double somersault, landed safely on its wheels. The riding feats of George, Alex, Eddie and May Christie and of Miss Margarette Jandeschewsky, as also John Wilby Cook, described as the champion jockey, added greatly to the interest of the ring events, which concluded with a high jumping contest between Maori, the New Zealand champion pony, and Lady Morton, said to be the champion jumper of the world, having a record of 7 feet 3% inches. The performances with the animals were better than usual, the elephants proving especially entertaining in their evolutions which began with d,ancing and ended up with the youngest elephant standing on his head, another walking gingerly along the tops of a dozen wooden bottles, and advancing or retreating at his keeper’s command. The three tigers each took

part in the cage events, but the sensation of the evening, so far as these menagerie performances were concerned, was undoubtedly the turn in which the lion, the goat, the dog, the kangaroo, the pony and the trainer took part, the animals gravely following one another round the ring, and finally lying down together. The

clowns and dummies, who form no inconsiderable part of the company, were much in evidence during the evening, and provided the crowd with plenty of humour and amusement. The circus remains open to morrow and Saturday.