CIRQUE DU SOLEIL'S `QUIDAM' SWINGS BACK INTO TOWN.Byline: Evan Henerson Theater Critic The history of modern human invention has coughed up an item of such uselessness that it's a marvel it can be given away, much less sold at $29 a pop. Consider the Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (French for "Circus of the Sun") is an entertainment empire based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and founded in Baie-Saint-Paul in 1984 by two former street performers, Guy Laliberté and Daniel Gauthier. DVD DVD: see digital versatile disc. DVD in full digital video disc or digital versatile disc Type of optical disc. The DVD represents the second generation of compact-disc (CD) technology. . The filmed version of a performance by the Montreal-based performance company. Never mind whether you go for the Cirque style of performance (or, as one of my colleagues so aptly put it, whether you "swing that way"). Does anybody really believe this kind of experience can be replicated (or even approximated) on a TV set? Who out there boasts a home-entertainment system that can bring this kind of big top into your living room? Doubters - or people with extremely big speakers - should get a look at "Quidam," which is playing outside Long Beach's Queen Mary Queen Mary, Queen Marie, or Queen Maria may refer to: Queens Britain England
Now, it's true that "Quidam" has visited our shores before, and that Cirque's last new show, "Varekai," came to L.A. more than two years ago, meaning we're long overdue for something new. It's also a sad fact that to witness some of Cirque du Soleil's not-to-be-believed performances, a theatergoer will have to brave the lunacy lunacy: see insanity. (and cost-prohibitive ticket prices) of Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. . All the same, "Quidam" is here now. And, even after 10 years, its wow factor is off the charts. Director Franco Dragone doesn't helm all of Cirque's shows, but his imprint is on the best of them. "Quidam," like so many Cirque shows, is effectively the product of some character's dream. In this case, it's a bored little girl named Zoe (played by Letitia Forbes) whose mundane little household - Dad and Mom sit listlessly list·less adj. Lacking energy or disinclined to exert effort; lethargic: reacted to the latest crisis with listless resignation. in armchairs while the girl looks out the window - is thrown into a kind of phantasmagoric phan·tas·ma·go·ri·a also phan·tas·ma·go·ry n. pl. phan·tas·ma·go·ri·as also phan·tas·ma·go·ries 1. a. A fantastic sequence of haphazardly associative imagery, as seen in dreams or fever. b. wonderland. This happens with the arrival of Quidam, a ghostly figure with a long coat, an umbrella, a bowler hat - which he gives to Zoe - and no head. Soon any trace of narrative slips blissfully away as the various performers emerge: acrobats and aerialists, gymnasts and trapeze artists, each with a skill and a costume (designed by Dominique Lemieux) more adventurous than the last. Four young ladies from China - Tong Sun, Xin Sun, Anna Li and Mingxin Gu - fling and spin their wooden Diabolos (Chinese yo-yo The Chinese yo-yo is a toy from China consisting of two equally-sized discs connected with a long axle. The Chinese yo-yo is kept spinning on a string tied to two sticks at its ends. Each stick is held in one hand. ) with dizzying precision. There's a mass display of ensemble rope skipping (featuring soloists Kata Banhegyi and Norihisa Taguchi) that should delight not just any child, but any person, young or old, who has ever picked up a jump rope jump rope or skip rope Children's game in which players hold a rope (jump rope) at each end and twirl it in a circle, while one or more players jump over it each time it reaches its lowest point. . Fittingly, Zoe is on hand for the rope skipping and for anything involving balls or balloons; we are, after all, planted in a child's fantasy. Via the impressive overhead conveyor system - a 120-foot arc-shape track - suspended performers and props glide out over the stage. That conveyor, and its effect, would be another device that would not translate to a TV screen. Human statues Jerome Le Baut and Asa Kubiak, a pair of amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. physical specimens, balance on top of each other at impossible angles, all accomplished at a sultry, slow-motion pace. Certain elements of "Quidam," as well as the booms and crashes of loud sound effects sound effects Noun, pl sounds artificially produced to make a play, esp. a radio play, more realistic sound effects npl → efectos mpl sonoros , are a bit on the scary side. And lest things ever get too moody, clowns Guillermo Toto Castineiras and Ambrose Martos each have an interlude designed to leave the masses quite amused while simultaneously embarrassing the trousers off any hapless participant from the audience. In segment one, clown goes on a date. In segment two, clown is filmmaker. The experience - parts and whole alike - are unmatchable. Evan Henerson, (818) 713-3651 evan.henerson(at)dailynews.com CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: QUIDAM - Four stars Our rating: Where: Grand Chapiteau, next to the Queen Mary, 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach. When: 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 4 and 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 1 and 5 p.m. Sunday; through April 16. Tickets: $45 to $85. Call (800) 678-5440 or visit www.cirquedusoleil.com. In a nutshell: Nobody flies, contorts or juggles better. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Cirque du Soleil performer Shayne Courtright balances atop the German Wheel in ``Quidam,'' now in Long Beach. Stephen Carr/Press-Telegram |
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