A clown falls from the sky, buoyed by a parasol, and finds himself in a field of marigolds. A large key, as if from a music box, sticks out of the ground, and, unable to resist, he turns it. Behind him, the sun appears to rise, and a woman with gauzy monarch butterfly wings falls into a sprint, a giant metal horse galloping behind her, as dancers in elaborate hummingbird costumes flit around the stage. At this moment, every person under the Big Top is locked in and ready to be awed by Cirque du Soleil’s Luzia.

Luzia takes the audience on a journey through an imaginary version of Mexico, where color, light, and rain are more than just backdrops for the performers’ breathtaking feats of acrobatics and choreography. The name of the show is a mix of the Spanish words for light (luz) and rain (lluvia), and both are used to spectacular effect throughout.

The show’s recurrent characters are the clown, known as the Traveler, and the Running Woman, the one with butterfly wings who appears to command many of the show’s set pieces. But the true protagonist of Luzia is Mexico. The country’s cinema and music, varied landscapes, plants, and animals, as well as old and modern traditions, find a uniquely surreal expression in Cirque du Soleil’s expertly crafted production.

Each scene is sensory overload. Wherever your eye lands, something beautiful is happening: Acrobats dressed as birds flying through hoops on a giant treadmill stage that is also rotating. An agave field where two women in giant metallic hoops perform an elegant choreography, while above them a trapeze artist flies through a sheet of rain. A movie scene set on a beach where a strongman balances on flimsy beams as an overzealous director with a megaphone shouts in Spanish. A jungle where acrobats climb up and down vertical poles and criss-cross in the air while leaping from one pole to the other. An aerial strap performer who paints the air with water from a cenote (sinkhole) as a life-size jaguar stalks him. Speed juggling to the beat of a marimba, footballers showing off deft control of the soccer ball, a contortionist who bends in ways the human body shouldn’t, a beach ball competition with a clown.

The show culminates with a Russian swing act where performers are hurled over 30 feet into the air from one swing, spinning as they go, to land with gymnastic precision on another on the opposite side of the stage. For this production, the two swings are mounted on a turntable so that the audience can take in the performance from all angles.

The show packs stunning moment after stunning moment, tempering the pace with musical interludes and feats of technical wizardry. The most memorable is a giant waterfall where images of animals, plants, and elaborate patterns appear over the falling water, stenciled in light. Adding to the magical and dreamlike quality of the scenes are giant puppets that move with uncanny realism.

Cirque du Soleil may be most famous for gravity-defying visual spectacles, but what weaves the fabric of Luzia together is the music. Before the show even begins, as the audience is settling into their seats, a lone guitarist fills the gigantic space with melodic strumming from a Spanish guitar. Live musicians become characters in their own right, often dressed in eye-catching costumes that pay tribute to the Mexican surrealist movement (several of the costumes are on display in the Big Top lobby with information about the designs). The show’s composer, Simon Carpentier, drew from many Latin American music traditions when creating the score, including cumbia, norteña, huapango, and traditional brass and percussion bands. In a show that is almost oversaturated with color and movement, one of the most enthralling moments featured a lone singer in a white and red dress performing an operatic solo on a mostly dark stage.

Luzia is a truly unique show. It’s also family-friendly and overall a fun experience, whether you’re a Cirque du Soleil first-timer or a veteran of the Big Top.

Running Time: Two hours and 20 minutes, including a 25-minute intermission.

Luzia plays through October 18, 2015, presented by Cirque du Soleil, performing under the Big Top at Tyson II, 8025 Galleria Drive, Tysons, VA. Tickets can be purchased at cirquedusoleil.com/Luzia or through TodayTix.

The Luzia program is online here.

SEE ALSO:
Cirque du Soleil’s ‘Luzia’ to perform in DC in 2025 (news story, October 22, 2024)
‘Luzia’ at Cirque du Soleil in Tysons (review by John Stoltenberg, April 15, 2018)

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I was 12 when I first attended a Cirque du Soleil performance. This was their Alegria show in Miami, Florida. Before attending the show, a family member dismissed the production as another circus production, only to be begrudgingly impressed by the production afterward. At that age, I was, of course, blown away by the quality, the acrobatics, the music, and the spectacle of the production and their hopeful message for its audience.

That spectacle, magic, and joy remain with every production I’ve had the luck and privilege to attend. Every Cirque show means I’m witnessing the pinnacle of human ability and physicality. But along with the impressive artistry of Cirque du Soleil, the production team has an unmatched ability to tell stories that most theater-goers rarely see in traditional theater.

Last night, among an enrapt audience in Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theater for Cirque du Soleil’s production of ’Twas the Night Before…, a child was practically standing on her seat to catch every moment of an inspiring and gravity-defying performance. That was a child who, I suspect, would remember this performance for the rest of her life. The same could be said about the rest of the audience. Among the cheers, claps, and gasps, the audience would murmur, “That’s wild,” “I can’t believe it,” or “Oh wow, that was sexy.”

Cirque du Soleil is not just a circus, and it does not follow the storytelling conventions of theater. Acts are broken up by its high-flying performances. The story, as the case for ’Twas the Night Before… is simple: a daughter and her father navigate a fantastical journey through a snowy landscape, trying to find each other, both literally and metaphorically, in a way they could not in their modernized world.

The story for ’Twas the Night Before… has a bit more exposition than the usual Cirque performance. There is no dialogue. The story is told through clown work and physicality, as usual. There is some narration, inspired by lines from the classic poem “The Night Before Christmas,” to cleverly integrate the story into the performances. The Diabolo act juggles spinning top-like, brightly-lit devices on strings (to an adapted tune of “Do You See What I See”). The Strap Duo and Hotel Cart acts, performed 20 feet in the air, are introduced with verse sections to guide the daughter in her “heroine’s journey” of discovery. From the Acro Table act mirroring the excitement of children on Christmas Eve (think parkour pillow fight) to the Hoop Diving finale, each act contributes to the overarching theme of joy, love, and reunion.

All of these elements come together at the end as the daughter reconnects with her father in this magical world, surrounded by Santa and his hip-hop/TikTok dancing elves.

The stage design and props play a crucial role in creating the magical atmosphere of the show. The use of 12,200 linear feet of garland and recycled artificial snow transforms the stage into a snowy wonderland.

Jean-Phi Goncalves’ musical direction contributes to the show’s unique charm. The blend of original compositions with beloved holiday tunes, giving them a thoroughly modern take, creates a festive “dance in your seat” soundtrack.

In summary, Cirque du Soleil’s ’Twas the Night Before… is a visually stunning and emotionally resonant holiday extravaganza. With its breathtaking acrobatics, meticulous craftsmanship, and enchanting narrative, the show is a celebration of family, joy, and the spirit of the holidays.

Running Time: Two hours, with no intermission.

’Twas the Night Before… plays through December 3, 2023, presented by Cirque du Soleil performing at The Hippodrome Theater at 12 N Eutaw St, Baltimore, MD. Tickets range from $64 to $149 and can be purchased online.

An interactive program optimized for mobile can be found here.

COVID Safety: Masks are recommended. The full policy for the Hippodrome Theater can be found here.

’Twas the Night Before…
CAST
Alicia Beaudoin (Isabella), Benjamin Courtenay (Father), Eduardo de Jesus Garcia Garza (St. Nick)
Dancers: Jenna Beltran, Kateryna Cherniavska, Valeria Cruz-Colon, Carlo Darang, Maya Kehll Abrams, Samuel Moore,
Acrobatic Table/Hoop Diving: Sekou Camara, Phelipe da Silva Albuquerque, Lucas de Melo, Remi Girard, Quentin Greco, Adam Grondin, Evan Tomlinson
Diabolo: Shuo-Chin Chien, Yan Chuan-Shen, Yu-Ti Chung, Ho-Li Tsao
Duo Straps: Antonio Dos Santos, Yuliya Goryagina
Roller Skating: Jesse Ferreira, Melania Lester
Hair Suspension: Jessica Oscar,
Hotel Cart: Masha Terentieva

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Fans of Cirque du Soleil already know that whenever they go they will be enthralled by the company’s signature blend of thrilling circus acts with dazzling design, evocative themes, soaring music, and loose narratives about phantasmagoric characters in surreal worlds. First-timers will be blown away. Cirque’s artful spectacles leave audiences agog. That’s what happens. No one exits unawed. There’s always more to marvel at than one’s brain can contain.

Last year around this time, the Montreal-based entertainment juggernaut came to town with Kurios – Cabinet of Curiosities, and prior to that, Volta (summer 2019), Crystal (winter 2018), and Luzia (spring 2018). Echo, which just kicked off its North American tour in Tysons, is Cirque’s 20th Big Top tent show and its first production to premiere post-COVID.

Anyone wondering how Cirque can possibly top what it’s already done — anyone wondering what dimension Cirque can tap into to create a new and moving audience experience — will be not be disappointed. Quite simply and quite beautifully, Echo touches emotions way beyond awe.

The title is a charming pun on eco, short for ecology. The theme is the symbiotic bond between humans and the animal kingdom. The show begins with calming music, almost meditative. The central character is an inquisitive young woman named Future, who with her faithful companion Dog explores a wide world of wonder that theatrically plays our precious, precarious planet. Future (flame-red-haired Louana Seclet-Monchot) and Dog (Philippe Dupuis in a head mask) wear outfits the color of clouds and sky; his is a suit with lapels, hers is a scout’s overall shorts. They nuzzle and they romp. Together — like a live-action synecdoche for cross-species connection — they invite us into affinity with other sentient life.

The stage set centers on a colossal cube that pivots and hovers and transforms before our eyes into a dance wall, an animated video screen, a Rubik-like puzzle, and an acrobatic apparatus. A technological marvel designed by Es Devlin, who is also credited with the original idea for Echo, the cube can light up with images of the globe’s altered weather and imperiled creatures from sea, sky, and land.

As if dancing on the brink of an ecological delicate balance, there is a recurring ensemble of performers in animal head masks — a rhino, a deer, a lion, and more — who do a vertical ballet on the cube as it twirls. They are costumed all in white as if constructed out of crumpled paper, and when they fill the stage bopping and jiving, accompanied by black-clad and -antlered musicians, something transcendent transpires: a “Circle of Life” vibe, only with omens of nature that humans have made disposable.

As is characteristic of Cirque, the circus acts are breathtaking and jaw-dropping — equipment-less flinging and catching, triple teeterboard bounding, a duo flying in the air hung from their hair, another duo somersaulting on slackwires — the kinesthetic surprises go on and on. But this time the virtuoso acts seem to mean more: they become gentle reminders of how crucial to coexistence are trust, cooperation, and support. Says the genius author and director of the show, Mukhtar Omar Sharif: “Echo is about connecting everybody together, and working together to create the world we want to live in. It’s not just a concept. It’s something I truly believe in.”

Even the clowns are playful extensions of the theme. There are sight gags aplenty including one involving two bowler-hatted guys named Double Trouble (Clement Malin and Caio Sorana) trying to stack a tent-high pile of cardboard boxes without toppling. I could hear children squealing with delight (“Watch out!”). And the entire audience got into the act as clowns sent marshmallowy soft cubes surfing among them.

At first glance, the costume aesthetic seems toned down from previous Cirque shows, but its incremental significance is fascinating: Designer Nicolas Vaudelet has the animals all in white while the humans’ white togs are dipped in bright colors. And the cut of the costumes is derivative of outfits people wear every day, like suits, vests, long coats, and jackets —  which, atypical for Cirque, makes all the creatures readily relatable.

And that, after all, is the point of this astonishing immersion in empathy — an emotion that, as Echo enjoyably reminds us, we could use a little more of.

Running Time: Two hours and 5 minutes including a 25-minute intermission.

Echo plays through October 22, 2022, under the Big Top at Lerner Town Square at Tysons II, 8025 Galleria Drive, Tysons, VA. Tickets (starting at $35) are available online. For booking assistance call (877) 924-7783.

The program for Echo, optimized for mobile, is online here.

COVID Safety: Cirque du Soleil’s Commitment to Safety statement is here.

(Note: The flames shown in this preview are not used in the production at Tysons.)

Echo
Author-Director– Mukhtar Omar Sharif Mukhtar
Creation Director – Chantal Tremblay

THE CREATIVE TEAM
Original Idea – Es Devlin
Production Director – Serge Côté
Costume Designer – Nicolas Vaudelet
Set and Props Designer – Es Devlin
Co-Composers – Jade Pybus Et Andy Theakstone
Co-Composer and Music Arrangements – Hugo Montecristo Music Consultant And Music Arrangements – Thierry Angers
Sound Designer – Jacques Boucher
Lighting Designer – Martin Labrecque
Projection Designer – Jérôme Delapierre
Human Performance Designer – Daniel Cola
Acrobatic Equipment and Rigging Designer – Jaque Paquin
Acrobatic Choreographer – John Cartin
Movement Choreographer – Andrew Skeels
Make-Up Designer – Julio Cesar Da Silveira
Production Technical Director – Christian Laflamme

CAST AND PERFORMERS
Future, Character – Louana Seclet-Monchot (France)
The Dog, Character & Juggling – Philippe Dupuis (Canada)
The Cartographer, Character – Piotr Kopacz (Poland)
Double Trouble, Manipulation – Clement Malin (France) & Caio Sorana (Italy)
The Fossorial, Contortion & Dislocation – Shakirudeen Alade (UK)
Slackwire – Taras Hoi (Ukraine) & Antino Pansa (French Guiana)
Hair Suspension – Charlotte O’Sullivan (Canada) & Penelope Elena Scheidler (Austria)
Icarian Games – Robel Mezgebe Weldemikael & Meareg Hishe Mehari (Ethiopia)
Banquine/Human Cradle – Taye Gebeyehu Yemam (Leader), Sammy Mededu Mohammed, Yared Wolde Chraga, Asnake Shimelis Dinberu, Abel Matiyas Disasa, Teka Bacha Debele, Abeselom Demeke Kebede, Bruktawit Lijalem Wondiyfraw, Hayder Nuredin Badeg, Getaw Mamo Tekeda, Getnet Feleke Ayele (Ethiopia)
Flying Poles – Lucas Coelho Costa (Brazil), Neal Courter (USA), Ethan Lottman (USA),
Ivan Tushnov (Russia), Iana Lebedeva (Russia), Denis Degtyarev (Russia), Lucas Matias Suarez (Argentina)
Teeterboards – Aleksandr Zebrov (Russia), Thomas Leask (Australia), Campbell Clarke (Australia), Joseph Mcadam (UK), Cooper Ayton (Australia), Luan De Souza Vieira Pretko (Brazil), Daniel Alejandro Aguilar Briceno (Mexico), Alexey Ozerov (Kazakhstan), Sergey Ozerov (Kazakhstan), Fidel Lancaster-Cole (Australia)
Backup Future, Character – Evelyne Lamontagne (Canada)
Diablo – Peng Chan (Taiwan)
Band Leader – Michael Lieberman (USA)
Female Voice – Edyta Krzemien (Poland)
Male Voice + Keyboards – Jonathan Stombres (USA)
Cello + Vocals – Lizzy Munson (Canada)
Violin + Vocals – Anna Follia Jordan (Spain)
Percussion + Vocals – Agata Kruszewska (Poland)

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“Exhilarating. Heart-stopping. Old-timey curious.”

Those were the words from my companion last evening, Pete, a rising sixth-grader, and this was his first time experiencing the indomitable global phenomenon that is Cirque du Soleil. As something of a die-hard groupie, I was also curious how the show, Kurios, first brought to the area in 2016, would hit me since the world had inarguably changed. I concur with Pete.

If anything the premise and the marvelous, extended unfolding number that opens the show are even more delicious and tender viewed today. Structurally, it introduces the recurring characters in the evening’s entertainment: The Seeker (Anton Valen), a white-haired irrepressible scientist; a “Mentalist” (Andrey Nikitin) with an oversized turbaned frontal lobe that lights up revealing gears for brains; a hugely rotund gentleman (Microcosmos) whose bathysphere-like stomach houses a little lady not three feet tall; the lady herself (Rina Hadchiti), who elegantly parades swathed in a fur stole and who has a special power and symbiotic relationship with Microcosmos; a hoop-skirted Klara (Kazuha Ikeda), who snakes across the stage and uses her hoops and wire-like arms to channel invisible waves; an accordion-pleated giant (Nico Baixas), who folds and unfolds himself gloriously; a Saint-Exupéry–styled pilot (James Gonzales Correa), who shares his delight about early flight by sending paper airplanes out into the audience from high aloft inside the circus tent. Periodically, a chorus appears as a group of assistants of odd sorts; they include three clownish mad scientists, a set of the quirkiest and most adorable leather-and-metal clad robots anyone would ever want to see, and a quartet of male swim-hunks dressed à la mode (early 1900s) and sporting sassy wiggling fishtails.

The director/writer of the production, Michel Laprise, created the show to preserve and celebrate the delights of human scale and man and woman’s propensity for curiosity. The show is like looking into the insides of a watch or through the wrong end of a telescope. The stage represents a fantastical, alternate futuristic world, littered with bell jars, manual typewriters, and phonographs with elaborate horns, through the golden glow of the gaslit world of the past. It is indeed a “cabinet of curiosities,” all about the richness of the human imagination in a once-upon-a-time age where science meets art.

With the exquisite set and props designed by Stéphane Roy and the highly imaginative, steampunk-inspired costumes designed by Philippe Guillotel, the effect is exhilarating. Kurios carries the audience into the co-creation of a world where discoveries are meant to delight us in this playground of man. And boy, how we need this today!

I love most that it remains mostly human scale, while some of Cirque du Soleil’s other recent projects as featured in Las Vegas seem over-the-top, tech-driven. Although there is an enormous mouth of a train tunnel, which dominates the set upstage, when the train comes snaking through the space powered by our cast, it is more scaled as toy-train technology. It’s a world born in nostalgia, a time when the world seemed manageable, and yes, to eyes full of wonder, hopeful.

There are only occasional signs of how rampant technology will come to dominate us and threaten the world. I found especially creepy the giant hand that was built like a cross between a riveted-metal robot and a piece of arsenal, which served later in one of the acts as a platform for three hyper-mobile female acrobats. I also am less of a fan of the full-volume, over-amped blaring of the vocalist and band that seems a signature of the company’s production values. This show, in particular, might have benefitted from more balance and nuance.

The acts themselves in some cases have changed since Kurios last came to town, and there’s been some re-ordering. If anything, the acrobatics are even more heart-stopping.

A man does a solo act on a pole. One used to associate such acts with feminine pulchritude and lightly sleazy venues (but I’m showing my age, I realize). The acrobat here takes working with a pole to new levels of astonishment, lifting his body parallel to the ground and perpendicular to the pole, then sliding down at top speed head first and stopping inches from collision.

There are still the young female contortionists, always a favorite, but these defy anatomical integrity of the human skeleton. Dressed in neon body suits with rippling fringy bits, they seem like a pile of eels or a fantastic single cephalopod.

A favorite act is where a man balances on top of chairs while a dinner with some of our favorite characters gets disassembled. The act is so fantastic that I won’t give it away, but let me give you a hint. Look up. Impossible!

But when a girl-next-door (Anne Weissbecker) enters as the vélo aérien act, riding an aerial bicycle, and suddenly the bicycle takes off and flies, and she’s doing stunt tricks in the air like a rodeo-rider, I suddenly believe I just might try. Anything is possible.

Our fearless “aviator” returns to balance on top of cylinders and balls atop his most original winged plane, which has become a kind of trapeze and rises into the air mid-act. How does he do this? Mirrors? Magnets? Impossible!

It’s hard to choose a favorite in this feast, but my heart leaped when a team of men, some dressed with those fish tails, presented what was billed as an Aquatic Extravaganza. The acrobats bound up and down on a special Acro Net — and so high I am surprised they didn’t need oxygen. (The team works closely together to hold the tension in the net so that it accentuates the trampoline effect.) Magnifique!

The invisible circus was one of Pete’s favorites (mine too). Facundo Gimenez, a clown who serves as ringmaster, manages a miniaturized, old-time, single-ring circus announced with fanfare and spotlight. The curtain parts, trapezes swing, bouncing board bounces, ring of fire is lit, and lion roars, but no “artists” do you see. It’s a world, to paraphrase Shakespeare, “signifying nothing” — nothing that is except everyone’s imagination. In the second act, Gimenez returns with an even more hilarious act, as a male-on-the-make who tries to seduce a tall, willowy woman plucked from the audience, first with sound and movement impersonating a parrot or the famed dancing cockatoo, then as a cat, and finally as the most feral and ridiculous of them all, a man on the prowl. Gimenez presents physical theater at its best.

Exhilarating too are moments “small” and child-friendly in scale. An act starring fingers, projected on a giant balloon as a screen, mimics a kids’ game with finger puppets and is perfectly silly.

I missed some of the glue that the storyline provided as I remember from the show in 2016. The Siamese Twins (Brothers Roman and Vitali Tomanov) are not given a comprehensible arc in the story. Their aerial act with long straps is as beautiful as ever, but I didn’t follow the metaphysical journey of the two men released to become independent creatures who could suddenly soar on their own. Some of the other excising that has occurred puts more emphasis on the acrobatic acts than the world these creatures inhabit. Occasionally, I longed for more of the curious, Kurios’ world.

Meet you at the tent.

Running Time: Two hours 30 minutes, with a 25-minute intermission.

Kurios – Cabinet of Curiosities plays through September 25, 2022, under the Big Top at Lerner Town Square at Tysons II, 8025 Galleria Drive, Tysons, VA. Tickets (starting at $40) are available online. For booking assistance call (877) 924-7783.

COVID Safety: Cirque du Soleil’s Commitment to Safety statement is here.

https://youtu.be/w8gq1VRb6iU

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There’s not a hard line between what we call “nightlife” and what we call “theater” — the one is centered on going out socially, typically where there’s drink and live entertainment; the other is centered on going to a live performance that usually involves storytelling. COVID quashed both, of course, and local nightlife and theater are still recovering from that catastrophe; but this present time of great transition and hopeful restoration prompts a fresh look at the intersection between the two. For although nightlife and theater are different, they are not divided; they are related like two circles of a Venn diagram. And where they overlap is a hybrid of artform and night out that doesn’t really have a name and is hard to define. Except you’ll know it when you see it at the captivatingly attractive AirOtic Soirée.

Billed as “a sexy acrobatic circus show,” AirOtic was conceived and developed by husbands Stephane Haffner and Kyle Kier. Borrowing from both circus and burlesque and committed to LGBTQIA+ representation, the production debuted in 2016 on a gay cruise and has since toured the EU, appeared on several cruise lines, and is now touring the U.S. as AirOtic Soirée in various venues and iterations. A version featuring four topflight aerialists and acrobats is playing in town through June 12 at Hook Hall, an industrial-style event space that could pass for a cavernous black box — except it contains a fully stocked bar.

The night I was there, the nightlife vibe was in the air. Surrounding a thrust playing area was a semicircle of seating, VIP sofas up front, folding chairs further back, with unobstructed sightlines all around. A very diverse young crowd — predominately straight and on dates, near as I could tell — packed the place. They were abuzz, there to socialize and have a good time. Hand-crafted drink specials from the nightclubby bar were everywhere being imbibed. It was the sort of eager DC-is-in-the-house audience that is coveted by just about every local theater I know.

There was a pre-show teaser as cast members paraded solo in ostentatious costume — one swaggered around runway style in glittery jacket, see-through skirt, thigh-high boots; another swung on a trapeze in a billowing puff of pink boa; another stalked the space on stilts outfitted in big blue petals (Stephane Haffner and Florante Boyer designed the costumes). All that gorgeous gaudy garb and up-close posing was not only fun to look at; it foreshadowed that the artists would likely be wearing much less later. Their thongs were the tipoff.

Heightened stage lighting and the driving sound system started to sync as the show kicked off (the entire production was directed and choreographed by the couple Kyle Kier and Stephane Haffner; Kyle Kier designed the sound and lighting): Three aerialist-acrobats, two men and a woman, climbed one of the three red silks suspended from the ceiling. There they executed in choreographed triplicate a stunning routine of spins and splits, dangles and drops, and other anti-gravity acts of grace. By now, the costuming was minimalist, and a new narrative had begun: stories told in visual beats by very visible bodies.

I began to notice this narrative dimension during the first of several numbers performed by two men (Kyle Kier and Miguel Angel). This one involved a long pole hung by a chain that functioned between them as apparatus for a transfixing air duet, combining sheer strength and great tenderness, musculature and sensation. I became aware that I was watching two acrobats — choreographed by two partners in a real-life marriage — working together near-naked before an audience and exhibiting a kind of reciprocal trust that could not exist in public if it did not arise in private.

This was turning into theater-like personal storytelling in a way I had not foreseen.

In a subsequent act, the two men spun and leveraged each other’s body weight suspended on a shared hoop. Another time they reveled, balanced, and simulated stimulation upon a metal gym bed covered by some kind of white fluff, which, wearing mere thongs, they delighted in flinging into the air along with themselves. Throughout their erotic antics, there seemed a powerful choreographed communion in motion between them, the kind of connection poetry speaks of and the body dreams of. At the end, in a perfect finish, one blew a sexy-tender plume of fluff at us as if metaphorically coming.

There were other narrative subplots wonderfully performed by a woman (Rochelle Berwick) and a third man (Santi Pouchan). They were equally erotic together as when, gyrating suspended from straps, they caught each other from falling, snuggled while twirling, and culminated in a sweet embrace. The aesthetics of their athleticism and affection were in equilibrium. Their bodies were literally high on each other, with mercifully not a trace of even feigned coercion.

As well, they had solo numbers that showed off independent virtuosity. She for instance did a Martha Graham-ish table dance wherein her contortions sent her legs where limbs seem not meant to go. She was awesome in her effortless self-possession. But there was always a sense that the show’s cohesion happened most intensely when performers performed together. As such, there were multiple threesome acts, one an acrobatic strip episode with two men and a woman lit vividly in black light, which made their skimpy removable wardrobes glow bright fluorescent yellow.

Given that each of the four cast members changed costume for every act, there had to have been some intricate and intimate coordination in the tiny curtained-off backstage area. Additionally, during blackouts between acts, the artists all doubled as stagehands, moving set pieces on and off for each other. The show was as steeped in trust and cooperation as it was bathed in sensuality.

The last act was both hot and hilarious. A four-legged bathtub was brought on stage full of water in which Kier and Angel were soon splashing and cavorting. Handstanding on the rim, then diving back in and handstanding again, they were having a grand time. And it was an amazing scene to see: two men playing grown lovers having adult-rated bathtime with the exhilaration and glee of giddy kids. No porny force or fear or pain in sight. Just true trust and pure play.

I can’t think of a story about sex more worth telling than the one you get at AirOtic.

Running Time: One hour 30 minutes, which includes cocktail soirée and show (doors open 30 minutes before).

AirOtic Soirée: A Circus-Style Cabaret (promoted locally by Fever) plays through June 12, 2022, at Hook Hall, 3400 Georgia Ave. NW (entrance on Georgia Ave., between Park Rd. and Morton St.), Washington, DC. Shows are at 7 p.m., 8 p.m., 9 p.m., or 10 p.m., depending on the date selected. Tickets (starting at $45) and the performance schedule are available online. Age 21+ only.

Fever’s FAQs for AirOtic Soirée are here, and the AirOtic website (including performer bios) is here.  

COVID Safety: Masks are required within the experience for everyone.

AirOtic Soirée Creative Credits
Cast: Kyle Kier (Team Lead), Santi Pouchan, Rochelle Berwick, and Miguel Angel
Directed and choreographed by Kyle Kier and Stephane Haffner
Costumes designed by Stephane Haffner and Florante Boyer
Lighting and sound designed by Kyle Kier
Technical assistants: Ian Poquet and Chris Hernandez

Bubbles and Burlesque — a special weekly show combining the acrobats of AirOtic Soirée and DC drag queens, kings, and other entertainers — performs Sundays at Hook Hall at 1 pm from April 17 to June 11, 2022. Tickets (starting at $55) are available online. Age 21+ only.

Tickets to shows by AirOtic Soirée companies in other cities — currently Puerto Vallarta (led by Stephane Haffner) and Mexico City — are available here.

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In November 2021, Omnium Circus — the innovative circus dedicated to inclusivity and diversity — was all set to open a seven-week run under a big top in Tysons, Virginia. A bill of circus acts was announced, to be performed by an unprecedented multi-abled, multi-ethnic cast. Then came omicron, and Omnium had to cancel.

But for one special public performance, a matinee on February 26, 2022, the show did go on. It wasn’t under a tent but in the grand-new Main Theater at Capital One Hall — a fully inclusive, fully accessible show called I’Mpossible. DC Theater Arts writers Sophia Howes and John Stoltenberg were there and are still talking about what they saw.

John: Being a circus lover since I was five, I was thrilled by I’Mpossible. I found it more feel-good than I ever imagined a circus could be. I went wondering/worrying how well a tent show could work mounted on a proscenium stage, but my doubts vanished as soon as the performance began. The production values were worthy of the best big stage shows: a spectacular lighting design, a vibrant music track tightly cued to the action, and often enhanced with a bass beat for the hearing-impaired. (For the sight-impaired, audio-description devices were available). As a theatrical spectacle with heart-stopping scenes and an unforgettable emotional arc, Omnium Circus utterly surpassed my expectations.

And I had a lump in my throat from the very beginning when the Ringmaster sang the National Anthem a cappella in a gorgeous baritone while the lyrics were simultaneously and sublimely signed. Then he introduced us to the story of Johnny (coincidentally my childhood nickname). I was enthralled.

Sophia: The story of Johnny, a boy who ran away with the circus to follow his dream, is a story everyone can relate to. Those who have been told you can’t live from your heart are being told “It’s impossible.” Omnium Circus is all about I’m possible. The sheer talent, joy, and celebration on the stage reminded me that we can always be our best selves. Omnium’s founder and executive director, Lisa B. Lewis, quotes the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which are inspiring to anyone who faces obstacles in life: “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.” The bright costumes, beautiful smiles, and incredible skills of the performers were so uplifting, I felt a glorious sense of possibility.

John: There were performers with evident disabilities (they used a chair, for instance), and there were others whose disability could not be discerned from the stage (they were Deaf, for instance). Yet what was always foremost and overwhelmingly apparent was the performers’ skill and versatility and joy.

“Disability visibility” took on a whole new meaning. We learned to see completely past the performers’ deficiency. We learned to see always their excellence. In that sense, Omnium Circus was much more than a thrilling entertainment; it became a profoundly personal transformational experience. Even as the show was happening, it was changing how we perceived the people in it.

This was particularly poignant in the solo acts where performers were literally out there on their own. The aerialist spinning silver hula hoops in the air, the artist whirling around the stage on the big Cyr wheel, the contortionist upside-down hitting a target with bow and arrow, the acrobat balancing on a ladder — one could not watch without admiration and without thereby exercising and flexing one’s own capacity for identification with another’s humanity. 

Sophia: The King Charles Troupe’s high-energy basketball-on-unicycles group act was an intense and fun experience. Later, I was surprised to learn that they are now in the fifth generation! They made history as the first all-Black group to perform with Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey. Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson made a similar breakthrough: at 22 he was the first Black Ringmaster of Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey. He remained as Ringmaster until the circus closed in 2017. Lisa B. Lewis is a graduate of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College. The group juggling act artists were multi-ethnic and multi-abled, with Johnny in the middle. It was a beautiful example of how Omnium makes everyone part of the fun.

Among the stars are the latest generation of the legendary circus family the Españas. Noe  España and Marcus Ponce perform on the breathtaking Wheel of Destiny. Vivien  España amazes us with her head-balancing trapeze–and–aerial-hoop, or lyra, act. In the next generation are Noemi Lee España with her hula hoops,  and her brother, Elan, with his astounding Diabolos. Noe España is also the artistic director. As Lisa B. Lewis says, “Omnium is leading the world into a new era of fabulous family entertainment — thrillingly joyful, seamlessly inclusive, and completely accessible.”

John: The kids in the audience looked and sounded like they were having a great time, some waving rainbow-lit wands their grownups bought them from the merch booth. This was definitely a show for the whole family. There was even a cute dog act. But I can attest there were also high points that might have significant emotional meaning for adults.

The act that absolutely blew me away, for instance, was the acrobat and aerialist Jen Bricker-Bauer. Born without legs, she performed breathtaking feats of stunning beauty and strength suspended from silks.  Several moments into her athletically balletic act, a man walked on stage playing a trombone. A curious juxtaposition, I thought. Then he set down his horn and joined Bricker in mid-air, where together they did an astonishingly muscular and tender pas de deux that moved me to tears. Never has a circus or dance performance so dissolved me. As I learned later, that man was Dominik Bauer, Bricker-Bauer’s partner in art and life. After the show, when several Omnium cast members came out into the lobby to meet and mingle with the audience, I quite by chance was face to face with Bricker-Bauer in her chair and Bauer beside her, both humbly smiling, graciously greeting people, and evidently in love.  I meanwhile was weeping and speechless. Except I got out the words “Thank you.” 

Sophia:  There is an old saying, “Nothing is impossible when you work with the circus.” The emotional roller-coaster ride that is Omnium was in many ways unique. The performers weren’t in the Big Top. The only animals were Gail Mirabella’s adorable Disc Doggers, who seemed happy and well-treated, and were applauded wildly whether they caught the frisbee or not. On Omnium’s website, you will find the following words: “Sharing in the joy and excitement of the performing arts is an experience that should be available to everyone, regardless of background, race, gender, or ability.”  This is truly the circus of the future, full of limit-defying and life-affirming feats, boundless entertainment, and empathy for all.

Omnium Circus performed I’Mpossible February 26, 2022, in the Main Theater at Capital One Hall, 7750 Capital One Tower Rd, Tysons, VA. For information about future performances in other cities, visit omniumcircus.org. For more about the amazing artists, visit omniumcircus.org/#performers.

SEE ALSO:
Diverse, multi-abled Omnium Circus to play one special matinee

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Last year, Omnium Circus — the innovative, bold circus dedicated to inclusivity and diversity — had to cancel its plans for a local live show under a big top. But now, transformed for the stage, the circus brings its world-class, fully inclusive, fully accessible show I’Mpossible to Capital One Hall in Tysons for one special public performance on Saturday, February 26, 2022, at 2:00 pm. Tickets are on sale now for the circus The New York Times calls, “genuinely extraordinary.”

Led by Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson, the talented and diverse cast of circus superstars presents a death-defying, awe-inspiring, and hilarious circus adventure. I’Mpossible is a show where there are no limits, no boundaries, and no barriers. Prepare to be amazed by the extraordinary multi-abled company. Featuring gravity-defying aerial acts, mind-blowing contortion, unbelievable balance, hysterical high-skilled comedy, and much more, Omnium Circus is fun for the entire family.

This is the only circus in the world to be presented bilingually in English and American Sign Language. Unprecedented accessibility including live audio description, relaxed seating for neurodiverse and sensory sensitive audience members, and other accommodations truly make Omnium a live experience that is accessible for all.

Founder and Executive Director Lisa B. Lewis said, “After the challenges of 2021, we are excited to finally be able to move forward with Omnium as we kick things off with our show at Capital One Hall. But this is not a one-off performance. Rather, it is the first step in an exciting journey we look forward to sharing with you this year.”

Omnium Circus presents I’Mpossible comes to Capital One Hall at 7750 Capital One Tower Road, Tysons, VA, on Saturday, February 26 at 2:00 PM. Tickets start at $32 plus applicable fees and are on sale now at Ticketmaster.

COVID Safety: All Capital One Hall event attendees over the age of 12 must provide proof of full vaccination, the last dose of which was administered at least 14 days prior to entering Capital One Hall, or an approved COVID-19 negative test taken no more than 48 hours before entering Capital One Hall. Proof of vaccination can be your physical vaccine card or a photo of your card. The name on the card or negative test must match the name on your photo ID. All attendees, including those under the age of 12, must wear protective masks regardless of vaccination status while inside Capital One Hall except when actively eating or drinking. Entry requirements subject to change.

Omnium: A Bold New Circus is a leader in the global movement toward diversity, equity, and inclusion. A unique, visionary not-for-profit breaking new ground in the world of circus arts as the first fully inclusive circus performing arts company. Through shared positive experiences among those who enjoy the circus, we enrich empathy among people of all races, colors, ethnicities, and abilities and build aligned and supportive communities. Omnium believes that a circus experience with a full spectrum of people representative of all people and our global culture as artists, staff, and audiences leads the way to a truly diverse, equitable, and inclusive society. For more information about Omnium, visit omniumcircus.org.

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The not-for-profit Omnium Circus, presented in partnership with Lerner Enterprises, initially launched during the pandemic as a critically acclaimed virtual spectacle. Now Omnium Circus is part of the long-awaited return of live entertainment.

Tickets are on sale now for the live show as well as for the virtual show, which The New York Times proclaimed “genuinely extraordinary.”

Led by the powerful presence of Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson, Omnium Circus brings together an awe-inspiring, unforgettable cast of circus superstars who invite audiences into a world where all things are possible. In the intimate setting of a climate-controlled big top tent, no seat is more than 50 feet from the ring. Audiences will be wowed by incredible performers who have each overcome their own challenges in life to make their dreams come true.

Omnium Circus stars the latest generation of the legendary España family featuring Noe España and Marcos Ponce exhibiting strength and balance with the breathtaking Wheel of Destiny, along with Vivien España wowing from above with her one-of-a-kind head-balancing trapeze and aerial hoop, or lyra, performance. The next generation joins with Noemi Lee España, who will dazzle with her hula hoops as her brother, Elan España, astounds with his “how’d he do that?” Diabolos act. Navy veteran Jason Span will display his impressive award-winning strength and grace atop the high pole while aerialist Jen Bricker Bauer, who was born without legs, soars above the ring defying gravity with her musician/husband Dominik Bauer accompanying her in an awe-inspiring presentation.  World champion acrobatic gymnast Shenea Stiletto’s strength and dexterity are certain to inspire Olympic hopefuls. Mr. & Mrs. G’s exacting crossbow skills will have audiences holding their breath while America’s Got Talent semifinalists The Chicago Boyz bring their incredible jump rope acrobatics to the Omnium big top. Rob & Miss Jane’s comedy variety act and the incredible comedy of the Muttville Comix will have the crowd laughing out loud. Brandon Kazen-Maddox, Omnium’s poet and a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults), communicates through American Sign Language (ASL), teaming with Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson to guide audiences through the show.

Omnium employs a cast of extraordinary multi-ethnic, multi-racial, and multi-abled talent to create a brand-new reimagined “Circus for All.” Founder and Executive Director Lisa B. Lewis, Artistic Director Noe España, and their team of the industry’s best creative minds and artists have conceived a truly transformative live experience that is accessible for all, at all times. Aligned with the company’s mission, Omnium is the first live circus to feature comprehensive accommodations including an innovative relaxed seating area allowing people to enjoy the circus however they choose. Lisa Lewis proclaims, “Go ahead and laugh, squeal with delight and move however you like. You are welcome here! Easy access to the ‘chill zone’ and specially trained staff will make sure whole families can share the circus experience together.” Thoughtfully extensive accessibility accommodations include ASL; Audio Description; ADA seating for service animals and mobility challenges; Assisted Listening Devices; designated Calming Areas; Braille programs, Social Story, and STEAM Study Guides at every performance.

Omnium is also leading the way in inclusivity with its employees and vendors as it partners with organizations such as the Down Syndrome Association of Northern Virginia, Best Buddies, the National Federation for the Blind, and many others.

Omnium’s Lisa B. Lewis said, “Omnium is leading the world into a new era of fabulous family entertainment- thrillingly joyful, seamlessly inclusive, and completely accessible. The nation’s capital will host the world premiere of a positive, unifying force for change in our global community. Celebrate the season with us, make new memories, and bring families back together through exciting live entertainment.”

Omnium Circus debuts at Lerner’s Tysons III, 8025 Galleria Drive, Tysons, VA, from November 18, 2021, through January 9, 2022. Tickets are $35, $65, and $95. VIP packages and group sales are also available.

For showtimes and other information, visit omniumcircus.org/tickets. Follow Omnium Circus on social media to meet the performers and watch exclusive behind-the-scenes sneak peeks of this brand-new show. To bring the virtual production to your school or group, visit omniumcircus.org/groups.

https://youtu.be/WOu2Bbfr5r0

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It always sparks joy when Cirque du Soleil comes to town, and its latest Big Top production, Volta, is a crazy-wondrous delight. The show is inspired by amateur street sports, and its theme is the importance of honoring your own true self. But of particular pleasure is how the formal vision of Volta honors Cirque’s own true beginnings as a ragtag street theater troupe.

Back in the early 1980s—long before Cirque became internationally renowned for its opulently imagined syntheses of music, design, dance, and circus arts—it was simply “a band of colourful characters [who] roamed the streets, striding on stilts, juggling, dancing, breathing fire, and playing music.” So says the official history of this world’s largest theatrical producer. As origin stories go, that’s like saying young Walt Disney liked to draw.

Volta does not lack for breathtaking thrills and stupendous skills, which no Cirque fan would want to miss. But for theater buffs, what’s especially captivating is how this particular work of art reflects a particularity of life: how Volta captures the athletic artistry and boundless energy one sees on the streets in big cities, such as locally among the dance crews who give impromptu shows on sidewalks or in the Metro.

One can read in the faces of Volta’s multinational cast exactly the same ebullience in excellence, the same joy in triumph at a move or stunt well done. Even as they beam at the audience, soaking in the spontaneous applause, their inner satisfaction at their joint achievement is unmistakeable.

This is partly because the makeup design in Volta keeps features human-looking, not phantasmagorical as in many another Cirque production. The result is that emotional recognition is immediate and unmediated, because the performers so freely embody the unadorned spirit of the street.

And unadorned speaks to Volta’s stripped-down scenic esthetic as well. At the beginning the stage is but an empty black box with orange scaffolding above—it’s one of the most inauspicious sets I’ve seen from Cirque. Nothing prettified, nothing otherworldly. The usual preshow clowns are gone as well. Simple street lamps will appear, along with various apparatuses without ostentation, but except for the colorful and sparkly costumes and curious hairstyles, there’s an appealingly approachable down-to-earthness throughout.

One of the early acts, for instance, is a double-dutch routine performed by insanely versatile dancer-athletes who do dizzying flips and tumbles through two spinning jump ropes. Midway, the lighting gets arty; illuminated jump ropes are swapped in and the stage goes nighttime blue. But what’s always in the spotlight is the urban, hip hop street cred of the talent.

Another group number has acrobats diving and leaping through hexagonal shapes every which way. It seems like a competition among them, to see who can outdo whom, but whenever one misaims and topples the hoop, there’s a marvelous rally-the-team moment when all root for the do-over and all exult when the feat is aced.

Two of the big group acts involve major structures. One has a two-story urban building construction with trampolines on either side from which fearless acrobats bound to and fro, over and through the wall between. The other, in the heavy metal finale, has three massive scooped ramps on which daredevil BMX riders swoop, flip, and fly through the air. Among them all there is a cohesion and alertness to one another’s trajectory that would score a best-ensemble nom in a heartbeat.

There are also extraordinary acts featuring solos and duos. A muscular man on a unicycle, for example, balances a limber woman in a handstand above him as he wheels virilely round the stage, both of them smiling effortlessly. Two men do a vigorous arial pas de deux on straps. A woman does a beatific ballet in midair suspended by her hair. Such acts are not technically street sports, but as performed they are imbued with an authentic street-arts ethos, a spirit of victory not in dominance but in virtuosity.

Like many Cirque shows, Volta has a thread of a storyline that strings together the scenes of spectacle and comedy. A character named WAZ competes in a talent show hosted by Mr. Wow and is disgraced and mocked when he is revealed to have blue feathers for hair—which here stands in for every misfit’s secret shame. WAZ withdraws to a humdrum world inhabited by gray automatons glued to their cell phones, but he is rescued by a free-spirited comely woman named Ela who introduces him to a colorful band of street freaks. (Think Hair without the war.)

There are flashbacks to WAZ’s blue-haired childhood incorporating an emulation of 8-millimeter film. A wonderful scene in his boyhood bedroom has a red ceiling fixture that suddenly reappears lit carrying aloft an aerialist (Pawel Walczewski) in heart-stopping contortions.

[READ Chris Griffin’s interview with Pawel Walczewski.]

Along the way there are incidental clown-like sequences featuring a solo performer, who in one scene wrangles hilariously with recalcitrant washing machines in a laundromat. It’s all everyday urban just amped up. And the music by Anthony Gonzalez, of the French electronic music project M83, is absolutely gorgeous, whether sung by magnificent soloists  or played by a powerhouse backstage band (see Spotify link below).

Eventually WAZ realizes that what made him different is what makes him unique, and he comes to accept himself and find himself among a similarly enlightened tribe. The message is hinted at in the show’s tagline, “Find your free”—meaning: find your true self to be yourself and you’ll find others who’ll see who you be.

At the end the cast comes out into the audience and high-fives everyone within reach. It’s so cool and so fitting, because dramatically and spectacularly, Volta is unadulterated vicarious liberation.

Running Time: Two hours 15 minutes, including one 25-minute intermission.

Volta plays through September 29, 2019, under the white-and-gray Big Top at Tysons II, 8025 Galleria Drive, Tysons, VA 22102. Tickets are available online or by calling (877) 924-7783.

VIDEO PREVIEW:

MUSIC PREVIEW:

The creative team
VOLTA’s creative team consists of 13 creators under the artistic guidance of Jean-François Bouchard:

Bastien Alexandre – Writer and Director
Jean Guibert – Director of Creation
Bruce Rodgers – Set Designer
Zaldy Goco – Costume Designer
Julie Perron – Choreographer
Martin Labrecque – Lighting Designer
Thibaut Duverneix – Video Content Designer
Jean-Michel Caron – Sound Designer
Anne Séguin Poirier – Props Designer
Philippe Aubertin – Acrobatic Performance Designer
Rob Bollinger – Acrobatic Performance Designer
Jaque Paquin – Acrobatic Equipment and Rigging Designer
Eleni Uranis – Makeup Designer
Manon Beaudoin – Character’s guide

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Cirque du Soleil’s Volta features an inspirational message about loving the weirdo within. Volta centers around the character Waz who has allowed the dust of inertia and conformity to gather on him and turn him into a “Grey.” Waz meets Ela, a Free Spirit who reminds him that he too used to be, and could be again, a Free Spirit. I saw the show last month during its Chicago run where I chatted with Pawel Walczewski, one of the aerial artists in the show who plays Waz.  

Chris Griffin: What story is being told in Volta?

Pawel Walczewski: Volta is a story about self-acceptance. We follow the character Waz, who is different than other people because, instead of having normal hair like everyone, he has blue feathers. He is not happy about this and feels ashamed. His story is about realizing that it’s okay to be yourself, however different you are and that’s what makes you more beautiful and special. Everyone has some secrets but it’s most important to be yourself and accept who you are.

How does that resonate with you personally?

I feel like everyone has something they didn’t like in the past or don’t like now. When I was young I was not happy as I could not hang out with my friends outside of school. Instead, I was spending a lot of time in the gym doing gymnastics. I accepted that and now I am where I am. All that time in the gym paid off and now I am an artist with Cirque du Soleil.  

How did you develop the Acro Lamp Act (see the photo above)?  And was that an apparatus you were already working with?

Acro Lamp is a new apparatus for me. I developed the act during the creation process in Montreal. I came with my aerial straps skills, which are similar to what I do now, but the apparatus is more complicated than people think. Working with this apparatus is a bit like a relationship – you have to listen to the lamp and work together to present a beautiful act.  

It feels like the lamp scene is the point in the show where Waz decides to break free from being a “Grey.”

For sure – this is the first moment when Waz’s memory comes back. There are a few other moments like the Daydreaming act when he watches his mom dancing around him while he’s riding a bicycle, and the straps act, performed by Darren Trull and me, where he sees himself as a Grey and as a Free Spirit.

What goes through your mind when you’re soaring around up there? Do you have time to take it in, or are you always concentrating on what’s coming up next in the act?

You have to always concentrate especially when you do aerial acts out of lines, but after doing this act so many times I can find a moment of connection with the audience and grow my character even more. Everyone has a dream that they want to fly. Being up there and doing this act is my way of flying.  

What’s a typical day for you?

I spend most of my time in the tent. Usually, I come to the tent at noon, lunchtime, then get a little rest and get ready for training. Every day we have different trainings, and because I do Acro Lamp, straps duo, and am a back-up for ladders, I have quite a lot of them. I do an hour of conditioning three times a week before the show, and then one or two shows depending on the day.  

What’s your favorite part of the show?

Of course the lamp and straps acts! Also the hair hanging and breakthrough when Waz decides to be free. (Cirque artist Danila Bim does an astounding aerial act suspended by her hair).  

The hair act was crazy! 

Yes, it’s very unique.

You’ve been with the show since its creation in 2017, yeah?

Yes, I started with the creation of the show in October 2016 in Montreal. We had a six-month creation process and have played thirteen cities so far!

How has the show changed since you first started?

The show has changed a lot but that’s normal. When you create a show you have to get public feedback. We see what works and what doesn’t – that’s why the show is always growing. I improve a lot and grow as an artist and as a person.  

How are you looking forward to being in DC?

Every time we come to a new city, I like to explore and see what the city has to offer. I really like the tourist spots and to meet new people. I have to get a magnet and a postcard from each city.  

Is there anything else you want DC audiences to know about Volta? We look forward to having you and the show here!

I think the best way to know more is to come and see the show in Tysons and see how the story of Waz resonates with them personally.  

Thanks, Pawel! Enjoy flying!

I will!

[READ John Stoltenberg’s review of Volta.]

Cirque du Soleil Volta performs July 25 – September 29, 2019, Under the Big Top at Tysons II, 8025 Galleria Dr., Tysons, VA. For tickets, go online.  

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Big Teeth Performance Collective’s exploration of monsters without and within, Ordinary Creatures, is coming to Baltimore for one night only Saturday, July 13. Earlier in the day, the members of Big Teeth will be teaching workshops in conjunction with In the Dark Circus Arts, the resident company at Mobtown Ballroom. I had a chance to chat with Jess Hill, who with Molly Graves, Naomi Ullian and Catherine Jett comprise Big Teeth, about myths, monsters and stretching.

Chris Griffin: How and when did Big Teeth come together, and why “Big Teeth”?

Jess Hill: Company members had been working together in a variety of pairings for a good while. In the fall of 2017, we coalesced to build a show around the idea of monstrosities. We wanted to see more women and queer folks on stage making resonant acrobatic work. “Big Teeth” comes from the line in the story of Little Red Riding Hood: “My, what big teeth you have!” We chose the name because it connects to our research around creatures we often define as monsters.

What’s the story behind Ordinary Creatures?  

Ordinary Creatures is a show all about monsters and monstrosity. We explore the so-called monsters in the world around us, and the monsters we hold within ourselves. We ask questions on the nature of beauty and the grotesque.

How do you devise a show? 

In a variety of ways! We ask questions, we improvise, we conduct research, we impetuously try things out and on, and we edit edit edit. We also do a lot of pull-ups and stretching.

Does modern circus have a responsibility to address social issues?

We think so! The body is a primary site of conflict and healing, and it is also the primary artistic tool of acrobatic performers. We hope to bring as much realness to the stage as possible, the entirety of our days and months as well as the transient beauty of a single moment. We also hope to see more and more folks take the stage making explicitly feminist, anti-capitalist, transformative performance.

How did you come to circus?  

We came to circus from a variety of backgrounds. Some of us used to be gymnasts, and some studied ballet or other dance. All of us have experience in other careers besides circus, including anthropology, birth work, farming, herbalism, social work, writing, and public health research.

You’ll also be teaching workshops beforehand – what apparatus do you teach?  What level are the workshops?  

We each have different specialties! We’ll be offering four workshops with In the Dark:

1. Fission & Fusion: Split Fabric Techniques, for intermediate and advanced aerial fabric students, led by Molly Graves and Jess Hill
2. Handstands & Inversion Technique, for all levels, led by Megan Gendell
3. Collaborative Creation & Partner Acrobatics, for all levels, led by Naomi Ullian and Catherine Jett
4. Exploration of Dance Trapeze, for aerialists with some trapeze experience, led by Naomi Ullian and Catherine Jett

If someone’s never tried circus before they should try it because…

Circus can be incredibly empowering and can offer so many opportunities for connection and trust-building with yourself and others. It’s a great way to have intentional play, and it has the potential to be both theatrical and athletic.

What makes a good circus act?  

Opinions certainly vary here, but to me, a good circus act is engrossing. It makes me interested in what’s happening and what might happen next. It evokes emotion in the audience. Virtuosity is certainly one pathway to a good act, but alone, it doesn’t cut it…I almost don’t care what “tricks” you are doing if you keep me interested and emotionally invested.

What’s the greatest gift circus has given you? 

It’s an art form that is at once intensely collaborative, creative, and physical. I’d found all those things separately before, but circus hits them all. And I love that as a teacher, I can share that gift with others!

Ordinary Creatures, presented by Big Teeth Performance Collective, performs July 13, 2019, at In the Dark Circus Arts/Mobtown Ballroom, 861 Washington Boulevard, Baltimore, MD. Tickets are available at the door or online. Intended for a teen and adult audience. Wanna give circus a try? Find Big Teeth’s aerial and acro workshops here.

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Glory days of diminutive touring tent circuses visiting small towns return with David Dimitri and his L’homme Cirque: The One-Man Circus, currently at Strathmore. In a cozy tent set up on the Strathmore Music Center lawn, Dimitri brings an intimate performance full of some big risks and small genial moments–with no animals in sight, but for a cute fabricated horse.

If you are of a certain age, you likely remember the joy of smaller touring circus companies coming to town. If you are now a parent or grandparent, you can relive that joy with your children and grandchildren. And for anyone, L’homme Cirque is a golden opportunity to take in “slowed down” entertainment that is far from the hustle and bustle of our current times.

In his 60-minute solo routine, Dimitri starts small and builds his performance into a crescendo of physical feats. With his pantomime ways, he is able to communicate easily with the audience, especially the large number of younger children who were a major part of the 225-member audience the night I took in his performance.

I will not spoil the evening with a detailed list of his routines. But I would be remiss if I did not highlight a few. Dimitri’s inside-the-tent wire acts, one with a wire about 6 feet or so off the ground and another perhaps 15 feet or so from the ground, are both done without a net and are stunning. There is also a cannon act that was pure magic. You will just have to see it. I found myself watching each of his performances as if I was a little kid again, looking with absolute marvel at what someone would try and could do.

The finale took my breath away–both the adult me and the kid me. Dimitri did a very high wire routine crossing from outside from the small tent, in the early evening light. With about 450 eyes fixated on him, he was 50 feet in the air. And then appreciative applause came from 450 hands in unison, from the young children, the Gen Xers, and the Boomers who all had their necks craned upwards in disbelief.

Dimitri does his entire act full-bore for 60 minutes, showing incredible stamina to do what he did with no real break. He had one or two quick moments to go backstage for a quick sip of water.

True to his earlier interview with DCMTA, Dimitri delivers on his goal. “L’homme Cirque is not at all about flash and crash. It’s about a guy who travels the world with his own little circus and wants to bring his art to the people. My story is about showing people that anything is possible. I want each person who watches me to think about their own dreams, then go home afterward and start fulfilling those dreams.”

Bravo to Strathmore for this programming. You made the Strathmore lawn into a small-town community of happy folk out for a unique live evening of entertainment.

L’homme Cirque: The One-Man Circus is simple bliss, especially for the younger set (if those at the performance I attended are a good measure of enthusiasm). It’s pure time-machine theater. I did miss some cotton candy, but so what. I think I did see some fireflies.

Running Time: About 60 minutes, with no intermission.

L’homme Cirque: The One-Man Circus plays through July 7, 2019, at the Bernard Family Foundation Pavilion at The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD. For tickets, call (301) 581-5100 or go online.

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