The curious life of French circus performer Aurélia Thierrée
She performs in her mother’s latest show Bells and Spells at the Hong Kong Arts Festival – and here talks about being part of Charlie Chaplin’s sprawling family
My parents were touring with a show in the south of France when I was born in 1971. It was the early days of their attempt at creating a new kind of circus. They still had some animals in the show and were living in a caravan. My mother Victoria Chaplin-Thierrée’s water broke just before the show and I was born two months premature. I was three the first time I participated in the show. They placed me in a box during the intermission and told me all I had to do was jump out and run backstage. But I fell asleep in the box.
Walking suitcases
My younger brother and I had very small parts in the shows – we appeared in magic tricks or jumped out of boxes – I think as a way of keeping an eye on us. If we were on stage, they knew where we were. In our first real number we were in a suitcase with only our legs showing and we were walking suitcases. It taught us discipline, but it wasn’t demanding.
Children of the circus
In the early days we worked in circuses and travelled most of the year, living in a caravan, and we were home-schooled. We were in a town or a city for a week to a month and my parents would contact a teacher to teach us for two hours a day. Sometimes we’d run into other circuses and meet other kids. That was our reality and normality. It was exciting to wake up and open my window in the little trailer and see a different landscape and discover a new city. We got to learn about the history of that city, so our education happened in many ways.
Meet the Chaplins
