He dreamed with his eyes open

Between 1979 and 1987, the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain took place under the big top of the Cirque à l'Ancienne, depending on its locations in Paris. There was a notable exception, in 1981, but it was also the year that Martine Grüss won a Gold medal with her exceptional Nine Horse Post.

During these eight editions, essential because they are almost constitutive of the history of the Festival, the Grüss family supported us as closely as possible to our needs, providing barrier service to ease the anxieties of the competitors and smooth the rhythm of the shows. Alexis Grüss, the sole master on board, ensured the perfect execution of each gesture, the fair and precise accomplishment of each performance.

He was a circus man, but he was also an immense artist. For half a century, he never stopped creating new shows, drawing on the strengths of his family, drawing inspiration from a forgotten equestrian heritage to restore its strength and brilliance. Several of his children participated in the Festival, regularly winning beautiful medals. He had a taste for spectacle and he loved beauty. Its track was one of the most fertile crucibles, combining the power of horses with the presence of acrobats. He has also always known how to surround himself with artists from other worlds to support him in his quest for renewal. Alexis Grüss wanted to restore the circus to its rightful place as a cultural form in its own right and it will undoubtedly be his greatest victory to have achieved this with the finest weapons there are: creativity and elegance.