The human cannonball act is a performance in which a person who acts as the "cannonball" is ejected from a cylinder that has been specially designed to resemble a cannon. The human cannonball lands on a horizontal net or inflated bag placed at the landing point, as predicted by physics. Outdoor performances may aim at a body of water.
Stephanie Smith, human cannonball at the Royal Melbourne Show, 2005
Rossa Matilda Richter ("Zazel") with her cannon in 1877.
Leo Garcia is about to enter his cannon to be shot out
Instant after the performer, Leo Garcia, left his cannon
The Royal Aquarium and Winter Garden was a place of amusement in Westminster, London. It opened in 1876, and the building was demolished in 1903. The attraction was located northwest of Westminster Abbey on Tothill Street. The building was designed by Alfred Bedborough in an ornamental style faced with Portland stone. The Aquarium Theatre was located in the west end of the building and was renamed the Imperial Theatre in 1879. Methodist Central Hall now occupies the site.
Sheet music cover for Lounging in the Aq. (1880), illustrated by A. Concanen
Score of The Rink Gallop as performed inside the Aquarium, c. 1876
Drawing of the Imperial Theatre
