Behind the Spectacle: Jews, Circuses, and Nazi Germany

Circuses were a popular form of entertainment in Nazi Germany and across Europe in the decades leading up to World War II. Jewish circus artists helped shape the industry in the late 19th century, and some—including a Jewish acrobat named Irene Danner—were saved by circuses during the Holocaust.   

Join the Museum for a program exploring the lives and legacies of Jewish circus artists between 1860 and 1945 with Stav Meishar, a multidisciplinary performance maker, stage artist, academic researcher, and educator who has created and performed “The Escape Act,” a one-woman show based on Danner’s story which also incorporates her personal experiences as the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors; and Dr. Marline Otte, Associate Professor of History at Tulane University and author of Jewish Identities in German Popular Entertainment, 1890–1933.