Duncan Wall: "The Ordinary Acrobat"

Beyond the clowns and acrobats, the lion tamers and dancing horses, Duncan Wall tells the history of the Circus and the Circus arts in The Ordinary Acrobat.

He wrote the book on a Fullbright scholarship to the École Nationale des arts du Cirque Rony-sur-Bois in France and learned how to do everything from juggling to the flying trapeze, which a couple of injuries along the way.  Through Duncan Wall's own journey through his circus education, he documents the origins of the circus: Philip Astley, known as the Father of the Circus, Jules Léotard, who developed the Flying Trapeeze and the storied past of jugglers.

Duncan Wall now teaches at the École National de Cirque in Montreal and spoke with Sonali Karnick this morning.