The century-old Dongchoon Circus Troupe is the last circus in South Korea.
Such entertainments peaked before most South Korean homes had televisions. They had animal acts, magic shows, acrobatic performances and singing and acting on stage. Then the audiences faded, and the performers left the circuses to work in TV and film.
Now there is just Dongchoon and its acrobats, who are all Chinese.
Park Sae-hwan, the head of the circus, said in a recent Associated Press interview, that he feels a heavy responsibility “because if Dongchoon stops, our country’s circus, one genre in our performing arts, will disappear. That’s the problem.”
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