Josefina Tanasa

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Josefina Tanasa (born February 4, 1940 in Jassy , Romania ; † February 10, 2020 in St. Gallen ) was a Romanian - Swiss circus artist .

life and work

Josefina Tanasa grew up in a working-class family in Jassy, ​​a city in north-eastern Romania. In the Romanian state circus she performed first with her brother, then with her husband, the clown Tandarica Veteranyi, who brought a daughter into the marriage.

Persecuted by the repression of the Ceausescu regime, the family managed to escape to Switzerland via Bratislava and Vienna with the help of Rolf Knie senior in 1966 .

She became known worldwide for her "plait hang". She had her hair pulled under the big top to juggle balls and fire torches at a dizzy height . After an engagement at Circus Knie , Tanasa and her family started a triumphal procession through the arenas of the world. She performed in various cities in Europe, Brazil, the USA and Argentina.

In 1962 their daughter Monica was born, who later became known as Aglaja Veteranyi with her novel "Why the child cooks in the polenta".

After an accident at work in Gran Canaria , Tanasa lived as a single mother for a short time from 1977 in Altenrhein and for many years in Rorschach . Josefina Tanasa found her final resting place in the communal grave at the central cemetery in Rorschach.

The author Richard Lehner published a biography about the life of Josefina Tanasa in 2018.

literature

  • Richard Lehner: Hair made of steel - The circus life of Josefine Tanasa and her family. Appenzeller Verlag, 2018 ISBN 978-3-03895-006-6

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rorschach: Official obituary notice for Iosephina Tanasa. Retrieved April 12, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Tanasa, Josefina
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Romanian-Swiss circus performer
DATE OF BIRTH 4th February 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Jassy, Romania
DATE OF DEATH February 10, 2020
Place of death St. Gallen