Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show On Earth Stravinsky Balanchine Ballet

Rare original vintage circus advertising poster for The Greatest Show On Earth – Presents Its 50 Famous Elephants With Beautiful Girls In An Original Ballet Composed By Igor Stravinsky Staged By George Balanchine – Ringling Bros And Barnum & Bailey. Great artwork by one of the most renowned poster artists of the 20th century Edward McKnight Kauffer (1890-1954) featuring two elephants in pink ballet tutu skirts dancing next to a lady in a blue outfit ballet dancing on an American blue, red and white styled circus drum reading Buy Defense Bonds on it, set against a black background lit up by a yellow spotlight with white stars and a blue shade behind the elephant dancers on a white platform, the stylised lettering above and below. The Greatest Show On Earth travelling circus show was created by the merger of the Ringling Brothers (founded 1884) and Barnum & Bailey Circus (founded 1871) in 1919, closing in 2017. This 1942 Holidays circus performance featuring elephant dancers in tutus and ballet dancers was choreographed by George Balanchine (1904-1983; founder of the American School of Ballet) to music composed by Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) under the management of John Ringling North (1903-1985). Horizontal. Good condition, tape marks on corners, light staining on margins, Property Of ink stamps in the image, backed on linen.