In 1954 I was a pickup musician, performing for three months with the
Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus Band.  The conductor at the
time was Merle Evans.  We played "Entry of the Gladiators" by Julius
Fucik at a tempo of MM=180.

The music was marked "Entry of the Gladiators" but the band members
called it "Thunder and Blazes".  We played quite a few other marches,
galops and waltzes that had "circus names" that were different from
the actual name.

I think it's just a circus thing.  They have their own language.  It's
a kind of shorthand that communicates quickly and identifies the speaker
as one of the group.  It's just what circus folk do.

I doubt that Fucik ever used the name "Thunder and Blazes".

Bill Finch