MAPACA

Mid-Atlantic Popular &
American Culture Association

When Al and John Ringling chose Joan of Arc as the theme for their 45-minute circus spectacle in 1912, they initiated a medievalism advertising campaign in the form of posters, couriers, heralds, and press releases across hundreds of cities in the United States and Canada. Trains rode ahead of the approaching circus with materials to hang and distribute throughout the city and neighboring towns. The press releases for the Ringling Bros. Joan of Arc Spectacle are the most revealing, as publicists sought the “careful exploitation” of Joan’s life to generate interest in the show. These varied and morphed over time especially into the 1913 season, and they ultimately came into direct conflict with the spectacle’s plot. Particularly, after initial debate between the Ringling brothers, they settled on ending the spectacle with the coronation of King Charles VII and a ballet, foregoing Joan’s execution. Yet, press releases often hinted or outright detailed her burning at the stake, sometimes introducing her story as “the poetic and tragic tale of the heroine of Orleans” or as a story that “should be told to every child,” which included her execution. Pictorial advertisements all emphasized Joan victorious, but textual press releases provided the gruesome details, appealing to a more intellectual spectator. George Bernard Shaw hauntingly reflected on his play Saint Joan (1924) that “it does not matter in the least why a woman is burnt provided she is burnt and people can pay to see it done.” But in 1912 and 1913, the Ringling Bros. found that Joan of Arc’s martyrdom was only fit for print, not spectacle.