沒動物、小丑不化妝 老馬戲團迎新風貌

There are no tigers and elephants; in fact, the only “animal” is an electric dog named Bailey. The clowns are still there, but hardly wear any makeup.

這裡沒有老虎和大象，事實上現場唯一的「動物」是隻名叫貝利的機器狗。小丑還在，但幾乎沒化妝。

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, that self-proclaimed greatest show on Earth, is back seven years after folding up its big top for what was feared to be the last time. The circus, which had toured with scant interruption since Ulysses S. Grant’s presidency, shuttered indefinitely in 2017 as it faced lagging ticket sales in the wake of its decision to stop featuring animals.

自詡是地球上最偉大表演的美國玲玲馬戲團，在人們憂心可能是最後一次收起其大帳篷的七年後，又回來了。玲玲馬戲團自格蘭特總統在任時就在各地巡演，幾乎沒有中斷，但在決定取消動物表演後面臨門票銷售低迷，而於2017年無限期停業。

Now as the show hits the road again for an initial run of 50 cities, audiences are encountering a human-focused spectacle that might leave it unrecognizable.

現在，隨著玲玲馬戲團又開始在50個城市演出，觀眾將看見一場以人為主的奇觀，變化之大或許會讓人認不出來。

It’s something of an unlikely comeback for the institution that has faced pop culture shifts, dwindling attendance and accusations of animal mistreatment. The pandemic hit a few years after the pachyderms packed up in 2016, making the return of the one-time touring staple even more of a question.

對於面臨流行文化轉變、觀眾逐漸減少和虐待動物指控的玲玲馬戲團而言，這是一次不太可能的捲土重來。2016年該團取消厚皮動物表演的數年後，疫情來襲，使這類一次性巡演回歸更成問題。

Performers such as high-wire walker Maria Pontigo worried the circus had packed up for good. “It’s not just a show,” she said, adding, “It’s an iconic institution of art.”

走鋼索特技演員瑪麗亞．龐蒂戈等表演者曾憂心，玲玲馬戲團已永遠停擺。她說：「這不僅是個表演，這是個代表性的藝術機構。」

As a child growing up in Chile, Pontigo watched her father perform his high-wire act.

龐蒂戈在智利長大，小時候看著自己的父親走鋼索表演。

She told herself that she’d be high up one day. Pontigo, 40, became part of the third generation of her family to perform with Ringling when she joined in 2008.

她告訴自己，總有一天也會在高處走鋼索。40歲的龐蒂戈2008年加入時，成為家族中第三代參與玲玲馬戲團的表演者。

Touring as part of the Lopez Troupe, Pontigo was back to her high-wire moves some 25 feet in the air.

作為洛佩茲劇團的一員，龐蒂戈回到25英尺的高處走鋼索。

The focus on performers — human cannonballs, acrobats and now BMX riders — was central to Juliette Feld Grossman’s reimagining of the circus, which began in 2019, three years after she took over as chief operating officer for Feld Entertainment, the family company that runs the circus. Irvin Feld, her grandfather, purchased it from the Ringling Bros. nearly 60 years ago and Feld Grossman, 40, has been immersed in the circus for as long as she can remember.

重心放在人體砲彈、特技演員和現今的BMX單車表演等真人表演者，是茱麗葉．費爾德．格羅斯曼2019年開始重新構思玲玲馬戲團的核心，當時她已接任營運該馬戲團的家族企業「費爾德娛樂」營運長達三年。她的爺爺費爾德近60年前向「玲玲兄弟」買下這個馬戲團，而40歲的費爾德．格羅斯曼自有記憶以來就一直沉浸在馬戲團。

She knew the show needed an update but had a responsibility to keep “delivering those experiences that turned into those lifelong memories,” Feld Grossman said. “Out of all that soul-searching, the answer really was that the performers are the heart of our show. They’re the people and people come to Ringling to connect with others.”

費爾德．格羅斯曼表示，她知道表演需要更新，但她有責任繼續「提供那些會成為終生回憶的體驗」，「經過自我反省，答案確實是表演者是我們演出的核心。他們就是人民，而人們來到玲玲馬戲團與其他人產生連結」。

川普壞事做盡 為何卻不用負責

Those of us in the anti-Trump camp love to play the Horribleness Game.

我們這些反川普陣營的人熱愛玩「可怕遊戲」。

Donald Trump does something horrible. We are righteously appalled. We send emails to our friends saying, “Did you hear about this horrible thing Trump said?” We click on articles that fulminate against the horrible thing. We watch TV shows in which the pundits emote shock and dismay at the horrible thing. We feel very morally superior about ourselves and very morally appalled by that horrible man. It’s very satisfying. In fact, it’s addictive.

川普做了一些可怕的事情。我們正義凜然地感到震驚。我們發電子郵件給我們的朋友說，「你聽到川普講了這個恐怖的事嗎？」我們點選針對這恐怖的事大聲斥責的文章。我們收看電視節目，專家在螢幕上對這恐怖的事誇張地表達震驚跟沮喪。我們在道德上覺得自己非常優越，並在道德上對這個可怕的男人感到非常震驚。這令人非常滿意。事實上，讓人上癮。

But somehow the horrible thing — or even the sum total of all the horrible things — never seems to end Trump’s career. He’s still leading in the polls, especially in swing states. So then we switch to the Wait Until They Know Game. Wait until voters know the latest thing Trump said about immigrants. Wait until voters know what’s really in the indictments.

但不知何故，這個恐怖的事，甚至所有恐怖事情的總和，似乎永遠不會終結川普的事業。他仍在民調領先，特別是在搖擺州。於是我們切換到「坐等他們知道的遊戲」。坐等選民知道川普針對移民說的最新言論。坐等選民知道起訴書裡面的真實內容。

The ultimate dream of these games is that the Trump era will end with some massive moral disqualification. We’ll be morally vindicated. They will be morally disgraced. The people who play these games dream of that killer conviction. They dreamed that 14th Amendment clause would disqualify Trump from even being on the ballot.

這些遊戲的終極夢想，就是川普時代將會以一些大規模的道德失格結束。我們將在道德上證明有理。他們則將在道德上蒙受恥辱。玩這些遊戲的人都夢見這個殺手級判決。他們夢想憲法第14修正案的條款會讓川普失格，甚至讓他無法出現在選票上。

The problem with these games is they don’t work. Trump is in his strongest political position ever. According to the latest New York Times/Siena poll, 97% of the people who voted for Trump would do so again, while only 83% of Joe Biden supporters say the same. Biden is losing ground among his most loyal constituency groups. In 2020, Biden won young adults by 24 points; now his lead is 12 points. He won Hispanics by 21 points but now trails by 6. There used to be a lot more Democrats in this country than Republicans, but now the two parties are tied.

這些遊戲的問題是它們不管用。川普正處於他有史以來最強的政治地位。根據最新的紐約時報／錫耶納民調，曾投票支持川普的人有97%會再投給他，而拜登的支持者只有83%說了同樣的話。拜登在他最忠誠的選民群體中正在失去支持。2020年，拜登在年輕人群體贏了24個百分點，現在他只領先12個百分點。他在西語裔群體曾贏了21個百分點，但現在卻落後6個百分點。這個國家的民主黨人曾比共和黨人多很多，但現在兩黨打成平手。

That’s because many voters don’t see politics as a place to go for moral affirmation. They want to know who will create a good environment in which they can lead their lives, and right now they trust Republicans more than Democrats to handle the economy, to handle immigration, to be generally competent. It’s about policies.

這是因為許多選民不把政治視為爭取道德肯定的地方。他們想要知道誰會創造一個良好環境，讓他們可以生活，而現在比起民主黨，他們更信任共和黨處理經濟、處理移民以及整體能力。這關乎政策。

There was a lot to like about Biden’s State of the Union address, but the most important thing was this: He understands that if you want to beat Trump, you have to show you have better policies that will improve people’s lives. It’s less emotionally satisfying, but it’s what people actually vote on.

關於拜登的國情咨文演講，有許多地方值得喜歡，但最重要之處在此：他明白如果你要打敗川普，你必須表明你有更好的政策來改善人民生活。這在感情上不那麼令人滿意，卻是民眾真正投票支持的對象。