Cirque du Soleil visits Santa Monica
Campus Times
November 8, 1996
Acts that defy gravity, bodies that bend and twirl like plastic, bright
mysterious costumes and lights under a big top sum up the crème de
la crème of circus acts. The United States premiere engagement of
the Montreal-based Cirque du Soleil's "Quidam" is gracing the
skies of Santa Monica.
"This show highlights our frailties and our anguish in the face of
the new millennium that lies before us. It also underlines differences conveying
positive feeling and resentment and confronting our dreams with our nightmares,"
said Franco Dragone, director of "Quidam."
The show consists of two acts. The complete show lasts about three hours,
including a 20 minute intermission.
The performers hail from various countries and range in age from 11 to 35.
There are five main acts in the first segment of the show. The first act
is the German Wheel, two meters in circumference, consisting of two metal
hoops joined at six points. Performer Chris Lashua rolls, turns and spins
the wheel.
Diabolo, better known as a Chinese yo-yo, is a child's game. Four young
Chinese girls, each holding two sticks linked by a string, slide, juggle
and toss a musical wooden spool.
Many of the acts take place in the air above the audience's heads, The first
of these is known as the aerial contortion. According to Cirque du Soleil,
this award-winning act requires strength, flexibility and agility. Performer
Isabelle Vaudelle is entwined amongst a column of red fabric as she contorts
her body and the fabric together while hanging high in the air.
The largest act, which involves 20 performers, is the skipping ropes. Dragone's
creation from a seemingly simple task of skipping rope has turned the task
into an act of solo, duo and group jumps, all performed with amazing timing,
rhythm, coordination and dance.
One of the most amazing things about the acts in the Cirque du Soleil is
the ability of the performers to twist and turn their bodies unlike other
contortionists.
The aerial hoops are another example of that. Three women either on separate
hoops or all on a single hoop, pivot and twirl in the air. Each hoop hangs
high above the stage as the performers, fly through the air in an aerial
ballet
The Spanish Web is based on seven artists who hang over the stage attached
on a trolley on an overhead track. The acrobats suddenly in turn, or as
a group, drop in, stopped only by the ropes around their waists and ankles,
before they hit the stage.
The idea of gravity comes into question when it comes to the duo's performance
of Vise Versa. Yves Deconste and Marie-Laure Mesnage are called upon their
sensitivity and powers of concentration by assuming position such as balancing
on each other's shoulders. The duo truly defies the idea of gravity when
Mesnage stands with her feet planted on the floor while her knees and the
rest of her body form a 90 degree angle while balancing Deconste's upper
shoulders on her knees as he is laying straight using his arms to support
himself on her waist.
Unfortunately, words will never do this act justice. One should really see
the act performed in person to understand and experience the magic and the
sensuality of a performer's testimony to the natural beauty and strength
of the human body.
The performers of Banquine, an Italian acrobatic tradition dating back to
the Middle Ages, is truly astounding. Fourteen acrobats amaze audiences
with perfectly synchronized movements, pyramids and acrobatics, including
a four-person stack, without a trampoline and springs.
Along with all the visual effects, Cirque du Soleil also offers musical
stimulation. Seven musicians, with the aid of violins, cellos, percussion
instruments, saxophones, synthesizers, samplers, electric and classic guitars,
as well as various other string instruments render the passion of "Quidam's"
music live while the acts are being performed.
Also included on the list of performers are the singers that accompany the
musicians. There are two principle roles; a child, Audrey Brisson Jutras
(age 11), and a man, Mathieu Lavoie. The combination of the innocence and
fragility of a child's voice is combined with the strength of a man's voice
to create an aura of sensitivity and intensity.
Cirque du Soleil's "Quidam" is performing at the Santa Monica
Pier until Nov. 24. Tickets range from $16.50-$45.50 for adults and $8.25-$31.75
for children. For information and ticket sales, call 1-800-678-5440.