Соотношение
Рене Бернард , известная как Коринга (1913-1976), была французским цирковым исполнителем и заклинателем змей. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] Она была объявлена «единственной женщиной -факир в мире» и «единственной женской йоги». [ 4 ]
Ранний период жизни
[ редактировать ]Рене Бернард родилась в Бордо , Франция, в 1913 году. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Она была пять футов в высоту и французского происхождения Индокитая . [ 5 ] [ 6 ] Тем не менее, ее рекламные материалы утверждали, что Коринга родилась в Раджистхане, Индия , была осиротела в возрасте трех лет и выросла Факирами , которые научили ее своих навыков. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ] Один английский репортер написала, что она говорила только по -испански и по -немецки. [ 7 ]
Карьера
[ редактировать ]Кирилл Бертрам Миллс из цирка Бертрам Миллс обнаружил и завербовала Бернарда в 1937 году, когда она совершала акт, включающий в себя босиком босиком по лестнице, сделанной из мечей для небольшого французского цирка. [ 1 ] [ 8 ] Ее поступок также включал танцы на лезвиях бритвы и горячие угли. [ 3 ]
Миллс и Бернард придумали имя Коринга и сфабриковали индийскую предысторию для нее. [ 2 ] [ 9 ] Она была объявлена «единственной женщиной -факиром в мире». [ 1 ] [ 3 ] Эта сценическая персона дала ей культурную идентичность, которая была популярна среди британской и французской аудитории в то время. [10]
Her acts included four female assistants in Eastern-style costumes, five crocodiles, two pythons, two boa constrictors, and having a concrete block broken on her stomach.[1][2][6] Koringa act sometimes including pushing pins and needles into her skin and hanging by her throat from the sharp edge of a sword.[6] She would also enter a state of self-hypnosis and, then, was placed on the sharp edge of two metal plates; a reporter noted that the plates were sharp enough to cut paper and sharpen a pencil.[6] In a variation of this act, she lay across the sharp edge of swords; then, a large stone was placed on her and broken with a hammer.[7]
Her signature act was hypnotizing the eight-foot-long crocodile named Churchill and standing on his head while wearing several snakes around her neck.[11][3][6]Her act concluded with her being buried alive for five minutes in a sand pit filled with snakes or in a coffin filled and covered with sand.[3][5][7] In another variation of her act, she dressed as a female Tarzan, with a leopard print costume.[12]
In 1937, she was featured on the cover of Look magazine.[4] By 1938, she was the leading act for Mills Brothers.[1] On 8 July 1938, Koringa and one of her crocodiles visited Fenwicks department store in Newcastle upon Tyne at the invitation of Arthur Fenwick, one of the directors and a circus enthusiast.[13] By November 1939, it was believed that Koringa earned more than the British prime minister.[14]
By 1942, Koringa had left the Mills Circus and was headlining with a vaudeville tour..[15] In February 1942, she lost control of her largest crocodile and it dived into the orchestra pit at the Palace in Preston.[15] Despite the scattering of the musicians and damage to instruments, Koringa regained control of the reptile and continued her act.[15] The next night, one of her smaller crocodiles bit her chest, below her shoulder.[15] She continued the performance but was unable to complete her show the next night because of the injury which required six stitches.[15] However, a reviewer in The Guardian noted, that her act "belongs to the circus rather than vaudeville."[16]
She also appeared as the headline act in other circuses, including Tower Circus in Blackpool, Cirque Pinder in France, and Boswell Wilkie Circus in South Africa.[1][2] In July 1955, Koringa was bitten by one of her crocodiles while working on a movie scene at Pinewood Studios, requiring her to be hospitalized.[17] She stopped touring in 1960 but continued to perform in France.[1] She retired in 1968.[1]
Free French Forces
[edit]During World War II, Koringa joined the Free French Forces, participating in secret missions.[1]
Fictional and theatrical representations and exhibitions
[edit]Koringa was one of the artists featured in a 2018 exhibition Circus! Show of Shows at the Weston Park Museum, Sheffield.[11]
South African writer Finuala Dowling's 2022 novel The Man Who Loved Crocodile Tamers has Koringa as a central character.[18][19] Koringa is one of the female artists featured in Marisa Carnesky's 2022 production Showwomen.[20][21]
References
[edit]- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j Toulmin, Vanessa (Summer 2007). "Koringa: From Biknar to Blackpool". Cabinet (26). Retrieved 4 December 2023.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "Koringa, 1913 - 1976". Discover Our Archives. University of Sheffield. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Cordner, Chris (20 June 2022). "The crocodile handler who performed on the Hartlepool stage - with snakes around her neck". Harlepool Mall. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Diamond, Debra; Aitken, Molly Emma (2013). Yoga: The Art of Transformation. Smithsonian Institution. p. 259. ISBN 978-1-58834-459-5 – via Google Books.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Ricketts, Charles (2003). The Boswells: The Story of a South African Circus. Charles Ricketts. p. 72. ISBN 978-0-620-30717-8 – via Google Books.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Delmar, Anton (4 April 1948). "Jungle Girl Tames Cros and Pythons". Omaha World-Herald. Omaha, Nebraska. p. 85. Retrieved 7 December 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "Girl Fakir at Olympia". The Daily Telegraph. London, England. 23 December 1937. p. 6. Retrieved 7 December 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Mills, Cyril Bertram (1967). Bertram Mills Circus: Its Story. Hutchinson. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-906798-22-5.
- ^ "Koringa". Musée du Cirque. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Diamond, Debra; Aitken, Molly Emma (2013). Yoga: The Art of Transformation. Smithsonian Institution. p. 261. ISBN 978-1-58834-459-5 – via Google Books.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Katz, Brigit (27 July 2018). "Black and Female Circus Artists Take Center Ring in New Museum Show". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
- ^ Chireau, Yvonne (28 July 2014). "Circus Freaks, White Voodoo Women, and the Amazing Afro". Professor Chireau's Academic Hoodoo. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
- ^ Henderson, Tony (22 May 2019). "Why visitors to Fenwick's in Newcastle once came face to face with a crocodile". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
- ^ "Prysylla's Diary". Evening Chronicle. Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. 22 November 1939. p. 8. Retrieved 7 December 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Crocodiles Mess Up Vaude Act". The Billboard. 54 (15): 13. 14 April 1942 – via Google Books.
- ^ "The Hippodrome". The Guardian. London, England. 24 February 1942. p. 6. Retrieved 7 December 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ «Аллигатор кусает цирковую женщину» . Бирмингемская вечерняя почта . Бирмингем, Англия. 15 июля 1955 г. с. 7 Получено 7 декабря 2023 года - через Newspapers.com.
- ^ Райт, Лоуренс (11 мая 2023 г.). «Коринге и профессор: победить некоторые« вымышленные »границы в« Человеке Финуала Доулинг », который любил укротители крокодила». ANQ: Ежеквартальный журнал коротких статей, примечаний и обзоров : 1–9. doi : 10.1080/0895769x.2023.2210168 . S2CID 258644367 .
- ^ Verduyn, Monique (11 мая 2022 г.). «Обзор книги: это или не роман? Что угодно, это отличное чтение» . BusinessLive . Получено 4 декабря 2023 года .
- ^ Уайвер, Кейт (9 мая 2022 г.). « Трудно найти учителя для сглаживания меча»: захватывающие навыки цирковых шоу-шоу » . Хранитель . Получено 4 декабря 2023 года .
- ^ "ShowWomxn" . Лоури . Получено 4 декабря 2023 года .