Tag: circus

Circus, Events, Festivals, Performances, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Circus Horrificus for MICF

Running away to join the circus just got dangerous – and hilarious

By Myron My

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival is upon us and it is preview night for Circus Horrificus – It’s A Western. There is a sense of excitement and nerves as I take my seat: extreme physical circus acts is what has been promised, and boy, do these guys deliver.

Circus Horrificus

Unfortunately, the beginning of the show where we are introduced to Samora Squid and Bridget Bridge overstayed its welcome. Too much slapstick and I found the screeching and growling at each other rather irritating. I wasn’t amazed by anything and my interest was not piqued. It seemed that just when you thought it was going to go somewhere – it didn’t. Even the music in the background was distracting.

Once these two performers got over this initial hurdle however, they not only took it to the next level but smashed through it. Their energy heightened, their interaction got stronger and even the music was more harmonious with the action. There were many moments where the audience was equally mesmerised, horrified, cringing and cheering. It’s been a while since I have felt all these emotions at the same time and it really wreaks havoc with the your body – but this was nothing compared to what Squid and Bridge were enduring physically.

There were numerous times I wanted to clap but all I could do was watch in disbelief in the various acts they performed. I would love to be specific about what these two artists do but I really think half the fun is watching without foreknowledge the crazy antics they get up to – although I will note that fireworks get up close and personal in places they should never be near…

The way Squid and Bridge present themselves, the costumes and the props they use all give off the authentic flavour of a real circus sideshow act. It’s no surprise that they would choose to perform at the newly relocated Butterfly Club, itself being eponymous with the kitsch and carnivale.

Despite its rocky opening, Circus Horrificus’ Squid and Bridge do win the audience over with their crazy cheekiness and it’s always great to see something that definitely isn’t your standard stand-up comedian in this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 256 Collins St(entry via Carson Place), Melbourne

Season: Until 21 March | Tues-Wed, Sun 9:30pm

Tickets: $23 Full | $20 Concession

Bookings: www.butterflyclub.com or 9690 2000

Circus, Events, Performances, Review, Theatre, Whats On

REVIEW: Cirque Du Soleil’s OVO

An exotic and mesmerising world of wonder and whimsy

By Tania Herbert

As a cheesy American accented voiceover runs through the sponsors, I begin to wonder whether my Cirque du Soleil experience will be all it’s cracked up to be. But I have little to fear. As the lights go down we get a strobe flash of a giant globe of light and impossibly iridescent costumed inserts perched in impossible positions around and above us, and then the show begins.

Photo by OSA Images

To describe Cirque du Soleil’s Ovo is a little like trying to describe a particularly gravity-defying dream. In some ways, Ovo is classic circus. The colourful ringmaster guides us through acts of clowning, acrobatics, tumbling, aerials and jugglers. However, with Cirque du Soleil, everything is turned on its head – often literally. Not only is there juggling, but its foot juggling (while balanced on someone else’s feet). The tight rope is, instead, a slack rope- on which the performer rides a unicycle, on his face (yes, his face).

However there is so much more to the story. The enigmatic “Ovo”, or egg in Portuguese, is the centerpiece of the insect world we are invited into, linking the performances and performers in both overt and subtle ways.  The Brazillian-themed piece weaves in multiple elements- the samba and bossa nova-inspired soundtrack (by composer and musical director Berna Ceppas) is played live on stage by cockroach-costumed performers (the beautiful Marie-Claude Marchand a particular highlight) with lyrics in Portuguese and insect-inspired sound effects. The insects chatter to us and each other throughout, with the lack of words adding to the sense of mystique. The rich three-dimensional sets and phenomenal costuming (by costume designer Liz Vandal) finish off this psychedelic Alice-in-Wonderland-type dreamscape.

And then there are the performances. The aerial silk is a butterfly emerging from a cocoon, the comical worker ants juggle giant pieces of fruit, and the spider contortionist leaves us really wondering how many legs she actually has. The mastery of their art in effortless acrobats and gymnastics are thrown at the audience without breaking pace, and the show moves flawlessly from act to act, with even set changes being integrated into the performance and beautiful to watch. The finale is the definite highlight, where we see crickets and spiders leaping and crawling up an eight-metre rock wall while giant mechanical flowers and showers of petals appear magically from the roof.

There were some small opening night “jitterbugs” – a dropped diabolo cup, a missed rope – and the premiere atmosphere was lacking by the relatively small number of children in the audience for whom some of the slapstick clowning was clearly targeted.

However, the circus magic was in full force, and it wasn’t only the kids who were literally screaming with excitement. Gluttony for the imagination, Cirque du Soleil’s Ovo is the absolute elite of international performing.

Venue: “The Grand Chapiteau” and Cirque du Soleil’s mobile village in New Quay, Docklands

Season: Jan 17th – March 24th

Tickets: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/ovo/tickets/melbourne.aspx

Circus, Events, Performances, Review, Whats On

REVIEW: Daniel Oldaker is DANDYMAN

Fine physical comedy from humble beginnings

By Myron My

Daniel Oldaker is physical theatre. Having seen him perform previously, I was quite excited to see what his new comedy show Dandyman would entail.

Dandyman

After what was probably the most captivating and engaging entrance for a show I have seen in a while, Oldaker takes to the stage in his bright blue and pink suit and accessories. The very loose story revolves around Dandyman waiting at the airport to board his flight and having to combat the boredom of plane delays and a very stubborn suitcase.

There is a simplicity in Dandyman that takes you back to being a child and that ability we once had to create so much out of nothing. Oldaker whips out two pages from a newspaper and ten bright pink straws and begins to dazzle us with all of his creations.

From paper babies, to flying birds of various sizes to up-close and personal facial features, Oldaker covers pretty much everything.

There is a touch of Dr. Brown’s mannerisms and character in Oldaker’s comedy but it is far less confronting and so allows the audience to be more at ease with what he is doing and to just enjoy it.

The disappointing thing about the show would have to be the length. At 35 minutes I did not feel like I had been on a full journey with the character. As much as I enjoyed the straw and paper moments and the bit of juggling, knowing what Oldaker is capable of I did not leave feeling fulfilled by what I had seen.

Oldaker informed us at the end of the show that this was the beginning of Dandyman and that it would eventually turn into a “totally different beast” than what we saw. There is great potential to develop this character and that is something to look forward to.

Venue: The Butterfly Club, 204 Bank Street, South Melbourne

Season: Until 9 December | 9:00pm, Sun 8:00pm

Tickets: $23 Full | $15 Concession

Bookings: www.thebutterflyclub.com