Enrico Rastelli (19 December 1896 – 13 December 1931) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

juggler Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object ...

acrobat Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro d ...

and performer.

Biography

Rastelli was born in Samara,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

into a circus family. Both his parents were performers and it did not take long before the young Rastelli decided to join the family business. He received rigorous training in a variety of circus disciplines including acrobatics, balancing and aerial skills. His performance debut was at the age of 13 as part of his parents' aerial act, however his passion and talent lay with juggling. He practiced his juggling skills tirelessly and by the age of 19 was performing a solo juggling routine. His earliest performances involved the manipulation of sticks and balls in a typical Japanese style; he even wore a

Kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

as his costume. Many jugglers of Rastelli's day were of the gentleman juggler style. Dressed in formal evening attire, they would juggle everyday objects that you might find at the dinner table, including plates, hat and cane, loaves of bread, bottles and even chairs. Rastelli instead chose to restrict himself to objects more suited to throwing and catching, typically plates, sticks and balls. In doing so, he was able to achieve levels of technical skill far beyond that of his contemporaries. Furthermore, his choice of three simple props is reflected in the props of choice of most modern jugglers, with balls, clubs (replacing sticks) and rings (replacing plates) being used by professional and amateur jugglers alike. In 1917 Rastelli married Harriet, a highwire artist. By the early 1920s he was becoming quite a star, touring

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and America, amazing audiences and commanding an ever-increasing salary. In this period he chose to perform in a silk costume adding static balance tricks to his energetic performances. During the later part of the 1920s he made the move from the circus ring to the more lucrative

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

theatres. His style changed again, performing in full soccer strip he would juggle up to five footballs. With his growing fortune, Rastelli, his wife and their three children purchased a large villa in Bergamo. While touring Europe in 1931 Rastelli's gums suddenly started bleeding and shortly afterwards he contracted

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

. He quickly returned home, however his condition worsened and he died in the early hours of the morning, 13 December 1931, as a result of

anemia Anemia or anaemia (British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, or a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin. When anemia comes on slowly, t ...

. His funeral took place in Bergamo, attended by thousands. A life-sized statue to Rastelli was erected within his

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

, depicting him in a familiar pose, spinning a ball on his raised finger. ''Vanity Fair'' magazine, in its February, 1932 issue, (page 49), ran a full-page photograph of Rastelli with the following caption: Rastelli's contribution to juggling is of great significance. His skill in being able to juggle multiple objects, sometimes while balancing objects on his head or body and his world record number juggling remained unparalleled until recently. He was also a master of 'combination' style tricks, being able to juggle 6 plates, while spinning a hoop around one foot and skipping a rope which was spun by an assistant. His influence is still felt today, with most jugglers restricting themselves to the use of clubs, rings and balls.

Sources

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External links

Videos of Rastelli
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rastelli, Enrico Rastelli, Enrico Rastelli, Enrico Rastelli, Enrico Rastelli Deaths from anemia People from Samara, Russia Italian performance artists Italian expatriates in the Russian Empire

Biography

See also

Sources

External links