Hanlon, William, Edward Hanlon, & George Hanlon | Perhaps the most influential acrobatic troupe of the nineteenth century

Hanlon, William, Edward Hanlon, & George Hanlon

The Hanlons. Le Voyage en Suisse. Elmer & Thall Owners and Managers. The Railroad Disaster Where No One is Hurt——It's Only Done for Fun. Cincinnati & New York: The Strobridge Litho Co, 1900 (N.Y. No. 9049)

Color lithograph poster (27 7/8 x 38 1/8 in.; 708 x 970 mm). Three tears at left margin, two into image, tiny restoration to two lower corners. Laid down on linen. 

A striking tableau from the Hanlon brothers' signature theatrical piece, Le Voyage en Suisse. Born in Manchester, England, the Hanlons were trained by their father in tumbling, juggling, acrobatics, and trapeze. (The Hanlons are credited with the invention of the aerial safety net, but, unfortunately, not until after the oldest of the brothers, Thomas, had suffered a devastating fall.)

The brothers began to transition their act to narrative pantomimes that reached their height with Le Voyage en Suisse, which premiered in Paris in 1879 and subsequently toured the world. The plot was simply a vehicle to allow the Hanlons to display their extraordinary gymnastic and juggling abilities, as well as their pioneering stage effects, which included the explosion of a full-size train, as depicted in the present poster.

The comedic, knockabout style of the Hanlons influenced nearly all twentieth-century popular entertainments—vaudeville, circus, musical theater, and film—and is clearly recognizable in the work of Georges Méliès, Buster Keaton, and the Marx Brothers.