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A hundred years ago, it was the Helwe family circus. Following the 1953 revolution, the circus was centralised, & performers were sent to the Soviet block to learn their craft. With the open door policy of the 70s, the state gave up its control of the animals, the core skill of the Helwe clan. Lions & their tamers have crossed paths with state leaders ever since. On the other hand, a legacy of underfunding has dogged the acrobats & clowns. Once the Egyptian circus traveled as far as North Korea and Canada, until the current regime, in power since the 1980s, lost interest & cut funding for international tours. During the economic stagnation of the last 20 years, the young generation of performers have looked beyond the state to supplement their meager state salaries. |
TV adverts, weddings, kids birthdays, day jobs, whatever it takes. Waleed, an acrobat & clown, remembers how his parents received medals & traveled the world during Sadat's regime, while little attention has been given to the young during Mubarak's regime. Hamada Kouta is a 22 year old lion tamer & a descendant of the El Helow tamers. His great-uncle was killed by a lion in front of the audience. Hamada has a vision & circles the globe. He is lucky to leave Egypt. His father & sister still believe in the state. But for young acrobats like Waleed, a trip to the rural governorates could be as far as they travel. But they still perform & keep the old family traditions from the 1890s alive. |
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