![Analoy Durov holding a cat, 1913, a hand-signed photography from the “театр в карикатурах” [Theatre in Caricature] periodical. The caption reads: I enjoy entertaining morose people and this is the job I have. But I also enjoy reading “Theatre in Caricature”. Anatoly Durov](/uploads/repository/kalendarium/anatoliy_durov_1913.jpg)
The caption reads:
I enjoy entertaining morose people
and this is the job I have.
But I also enjoy reading
“Theatre in Caricature”.
Anatoly Durov
The evening of 29 January 1909 in the Makowski theatre was a medley of attractions typical of the entertainment of the day. The attractions included short films, a presentation of “electric swings from the Merry Widow operetta”, and the amazing circus acts of Anatoly Durov, a member of the world-famous dynasty of circus entertainers.
Anatoly Durov was regarded as an innovator of circus arts. He performed as a travelling clown, accompanied by a group of small animals (pigs, rats, geese, turkeys); steering clear of a typical clown image, he went on stage with minimal makeup. His star turns included satirical and philosophical monologues and commentaries on tricks performed by the animals, which satirised and parodied interpersonal relationships. The pelican in the Lublin playbill “read” a book (turning the pages with the beak, looking for a fish tucked between them) and danced a waltz. Durov’s on-stage assistant in Lublin was his daughter Maria.
