By: Jennifer Tufano
Festivals are not new and I’m sure when you think back on past summers, you can recall your own favorite summer events whether here in the Adirondacks or at other beloved places. While taking a dip into the Northern New York Library Network’s historical papers, I came across a couple interesting festivals that took place in our area many, many years ago.
The first article comes from a paper dated April 8, 1949. How many of you remember this event?
“Since Ancient Roman times, people have come together for joyous festivals. In their earliest forms, the festivals probably developed out of the fairs. The two words are related in origin; and a festival is the natural conclusion of a fair.
Arena Circus Advertisement
At regular times, established by ancient custom or local law, in the various villages and market towns of Europe, buyers and sellers would gather to exchange produce and to purchase wares. After the business of each day was over, what was more natural than for the contented bargainers to seek relaxation and recreation?
In the United States, these market gatherings grew into the great county fairs and state fairs, with their contests in prize vegetables and live stock, their greased-pig chases, their entertainment booths and sideshows. And the festivals also – as likewise in Europe – began to specialize, with certain localities growing to be centers of annual activity in opera, or in concert music, or in drama.
The summer of 1949 will witness the first festival in the Adirondacks: the Lake Placid Summer Festival, Erwin Piscator, director. Here will be presented works in the field of drama, the Russian ballet, and the motion picture. The season is sponsored by Lake Placid Festival, Inc., a non-profit, educational organization, the Dramatic Workshop and the Dramatic Workshop players of New York.
The natural beauties of the Lake Placid region, its accessibility, its ideal summer climate, its large summer colony, make Lake Placid a happy choice as the site of such a festival. It is hoped that Lake Placid will develop as a true cultural center, where entertainment may be provided on such a level as to combine enjoyment, enlightenment, and stimulation.
The Lake Placid Festival hopes, among other results of its activity, to increase and widen understanding of the arts, to discover and encourage American talent, and through the powers of appreciation properly directed in the great arts of the theatre, to contribute to the building of good citizenship.
“See America First” has long been a sensible slogan; and among the beauty-spots of America, Lake Placid is deservedly famed. The Lake Placid Festival aims to enable the thousands that come there to see “America,” also to see the best that America can offer in the theatrical field.”
Likewise, I came across this gem from August 14, 1936. The title of the article is “Elephant Walks Tight Rope at Arena Circus.” Ok, now this caught my eye. The article goes on to read “Headlined by Toby the tight rope walking elephant and Jerry the bicycle riding bear the big arena circus is ready to move into Lake Placid August 21st and 22nd for four performances.
A score of clowns, 200 performers, acrobats, and serial thrillers, together with dancing dogs, horses, monkeys, will supplement the headline acts in a full two-hour show that will be seen in the comfort and safety of the large Olympic arena.
Representing a blend of all nations this circus booked by the Geo. Hamis Co. who also book the Ringing show is noted for its clean, spontaneous amusement and is individually and collectively one of the country’s finest sawdust shows.
Toby the wonder elephant who walks the tight rope is the only elephant that has ever mastered this trick and Jerry the big bear who rides and steers a nine-foot, two-wheel bicycle likewise is in a class by himself, but these two unusual animals are only a sample of the treats in store for circus lovers.”