Paula Busch

Paula Busch (born December 6, 1886 in Odense , † June 26, 1973 in Berlin ) was a circus director of the Circus Busch and author of books about life in the circus.

Early years

Paula Busch, daughter of the founders of Circus Busch , Constance and Paul Busch , was not supposed to become an artist at the father's request. The girl received riding and ballet lessons , but had little direct contact with the circus .

Paula insisted on graduating from high school and studying. She did her Abitur in Cologne . During her studies of literary history , art history and philosophy in Cologne, Heidelberg and Berlin, she wrote her first novels and arena pieces.

In 1911 Paula Busch and Alois Uhl married. After getting married, she dropped out of college. The marriage comes from the daughter Constanze, called Micaela (* May 7, 1913, † September 24, 1969).

Career

Shortly after the birth of her daughter, Paula Busch began working in her father's circus. In 1917 she became co-owner and co-director of the circus empire Circus Busch , which had four permanent venues in Berlin, Hamburg ( CIVA-Varieté ), Breslau and Vienna. After her father's death in 1927, she was the sole owner of the circus. The pantomimes and arena pieces that she wrote and staged became public hits in the 1920s and 30s. B. The play Vicky wets around the world, premiered in 1927 . In addition, she published 23 novels, wrote a number of lectures and radio reports , appeared as a tamer and actress in pantomimes and mane pieces in the Circus Busch .

After her divorce from Alois Uhl in 1924, she began a relationship with Eleonore Cador, with whom she lived until her death. Paula Busch adopted the friend from Wroclaw to secure her inheritance claim and Eleonore will also be buried in the Berlin family grave. Paula Busch campaigned for the recognition of the circus in lectures and publications to the end and died in Berlin in 1973. Her grave is in the Dorotheenstrasse II churchyard in Liesenstrasse in Berlin-Mitte .

Services

Alongside Margarete Kreiser-Barum and Ida Krone , Paula Busch was one of the most famous circus directors of the German circus. In addition, she was the author of several novels, stories and children's books that tell of life in the circus and in particular depict the life of women in the circus, the artists, extras, etc. The "grande dame" of the German circus did not shy away from criticizing the circus' structures of exploitation.

On the other hand, she fought all her life for the social recognition of circus people and circus art. In essays such as “The woman in the circus” or “The woman as a circus artist” , she dealt critically and knowledgeably with the living and working conditions of women in the circus. Her best-known works include “Wasserminna” , the novel-like biography of the famous Berlin extra of the Circus Busch Minna Schulze (December 25, 1883 - March 14, 1959), “Die Hohe Schule” and “Nina vom Zirkus” .

Works

• The misunderstood. A circus novel . Berlin, Leipzig 1912
• The high school, circus novel . R.Mosse, Berlin 1919
• Circus stories for the youth . Berlin 1923
• Lion tamer Daphné . Berlin 1924
• Waterminna . Berlin 1933
• Wasserminna (2nd part) Berlin 1952
• Nina from the circus . Berlin 1957
• The game of my life . Berlin 1992

literature

• Reichs Handbuch der Deutschen Gesellschaft - The handbook of personalities in words and pictures . First volume, Deutscher Wirtschaftsverlag, Berlin 1930, ISBN 3-598-30664-4
• Gisela Winkler: Circus Busch. History of a ring in Berlin. be.bra Verlag, Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-930863-36-7
• Stephanie Haerdle: Don't be afraid, that's our job! Artistic riders, trainers and other circus performers . AvivA Verlag, Berlin 2007. ISBN 978-3-932338-29-8

Web links

• Literature by and about Paula Busch in the catalog of the German National Library
• Works by and about Paula Busch  in the German Digital Library