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Mystere / Cirque du Soleil : 5 of 5
4.08.2009 12:22 PM \| Link 0 comments	The last show my parents and I saw in Las Vegas was Cirque du Soleil's Mystere at Treasure Island, which you may have already read about since I got to be in the show! Even though I've written about that experience, I still thought I should mention that this is a great production. Mystere is actually one of the oldest Cirque du Soleil shows, and the first one to have a permanent theater in Vegas, so at first I wasn't expecting it to be that amazing (since their style has become so much bigger with shows like O and Ka), but I was quickly proven wrong. All of the essential Cirque elements are here, from incredible live music to flawless acrobatic performances, along with the usual clowns and semi-comprehensible themes. Mystere seems to be about birth, since before the show starts there are two baby carriages on stage, and the audience is soon introduced to a baby boy and girl who kind of become guides for the rest of the show. There are amazing flying acts, which are breathtaking from the front row when the performers fly overhead, and some cool pole climbing and trampoline routines, but my favorite was the intense balancing feats performed by two men. Every move they made was slow and intentional, and even though it looked so smooth, we were sitting close enough to see the agony on their faces as they did things that would completely tear normal muscles apart! The stage had some nice moving pieces that could raise and lower, but nothing as incredible as some of the more recent Cirque productions. I really enjoyed the finale of the show which features a huge inflatable snail (which the girl baby gets to ride), and it was wonderful to applaud all of the artists from the front row. Regardless of its age, Mystere is a fantastic show that no Cirque du Soleil fan should miss! Labels: arts, cirque du soleil
Mystere madness!
3.30.2009 5:50 PM \| Link 5 comments	I'm back from my Las Vegas vacation with Mom & Dad, which was memorable in many ways, but the craziest time of all happened when we saw the Cirque du Soleil production of Mystere at Treasure Island! We had front row center seats for the show, but I had no idea there's a special "role" for each performance - which turned out to be me. Mystere's theme is birth, so one of the comedy aspects of the show is a big baby, who begins by bouncing a huge ball. He bounced the ball right at my parents and me, but it got stuck at the end of the stage, so when he started to cry, I got up and rolled the ball back to him (with the theater spotlights right on me). He seemed to like that, so he bounced it back to me, and I rolled it back again. Then suddenly he started laughing and called me "Papa", holding his arms out for a big hug! He gestured for me to come up on stage to hug him - I was totally nervous, but just decided to go with it, and as soon as I stepped on stage, he squirted me with his giant baby bottle! I thought that was the end of the joke, but it was just the beginning! Later on in the show, the big baby crawled out on a high platform with a big flashlight, and pretty soon, he was shining it right on me, calling me Papa and giggling. I just held my arms up and smiled, and now it was pretty much established that the guy in the front row (me!) was definitely Papa. Now I kind of expected something else would happen later, but I had no idea I was totally going to be in the show! A little later, the baby came out riding a golf cart in the aisle that separates the top and bottom seat sections - as soon as I saw that the cart had two seats, I thought to myself, "He's coming for me!" Sure enough, he stopped and started calling for Papa and the spotlight went on me, so I had to run up the stairs and get in the cart. He immediately took off at full speed, so I just held on with one hand and waved to the audience with the other! Suddenly, we went through a huge cloud of smoke and then we were backstage. It was so surreal to come out of that fog and be surrounded by performers in their bright costumes, stretching and getting ready for their next act - it was like a weird dream! Right away I was led to a spot with a huge diaper on the floor with two yellow feet for me to stand on, and in two-seconds I had been dressed like a baby, complete with bonnet and bottle. I got back in the cart and the big baby drove me around the stage in front of everyone. There were other performers everywhere, the music was pounding, there was smoke and lights, and through it all I could see Mom & Dad laughing and waving at me while I sucked on my nipple! Next we drove off-stage and the big baby (in his adult voice) called out "Part two!" I got out of the cart and they told me to pretend to push it (while it was being driven slowly) like we had been in a wreck. So I got behind the cart and exaggerated my leg movements as we went around the stage again, with smoke pouring out of the cart (to show we had "crashed") around me. Finally we were backstage again, and another person helped me out of my costume, and then an usher directed me back to my seat, where I could breathe again and enjoy the rest of the show! About 10 minutes later, the usher ran back and handed me a photo that had been secretly snapped from a camera on the golf cart! At about 1:16 in this video trailer, you can see the big baby in the cart, just to get an idea of what the show was like! The whole experience was totally amazing - everyone was really nice to me and made sure I knew what was going to happen, and it was a complete rush to actually be on stage at a sold-out Cirque du Soleil performance, even in a giant diaper! When we were leaving Treasure Island, a bunch of girls (who were in Vegas celebrating a birthday) recognized me and yelled, "There's Papa!" and even wanted their picture taken with me, so I guess I had a fan club for one night. If anyone would like their Pampers signed, just let me know! Labels: cirque du soleil, family, trips
Cirque du Soleil / Delirium : 3 of 5
9.10.2008 11:09 PM \| Link 0 comments	I saw this movie several weeks ago, so please bear with me as I try to review it from memory! Over the years I've become a pretty big fan of Cirque du Soleil, since I've seen most of the permanent shows in Las Vegas and Walt Disney World, as well as a few traveling shows, but all I knew about Delirium was that it focused on music. Somehow I discovered this movie of the Delirium performance was being shown in Austin as a one-show-only limited run, so I decided to see it with my pal Melinda (who is also a Cirque fan). I wasn't sure what it would be like watching a movie of a Cirque performance, but once the show began it was amazing how easy it was to forget it wasn't live. Delirium features non-stop music sung by several talented performers who are visible onstage, along with lots of dancing and some smaller-scale acrobatics. The songs are knit together with Cirque's usual concept of regular characters - there is a guy hanging on a balloon to travels from "song to song", plus a bizarre devilish character who is tormented by another loud clown character. The singing was fantastic (I really enjoyed hearing some songs from Alegria), and there were some awesome physical performances, such as a beautiful hula hoop girl and a group of incredible balancing bald guys! Of course, I think it would be more fun to see Delirium live, but this movie experience was really nice and I'm glad I had the opportunity to see it. Labels: cirque du soleil, movies
The Beatles: Love / Cirque de Soleil : 5 of 5
4.25.2008 12:15 PM \| Link 0 comments	For our last show in Vegas, my parents and I continued our tradition of going to a Cirque du Soleil production by seeing The Beatles: Love at the Mirage. I somehow expected this to be a simple show filled with more dancing than acrobatics, but it turned out to be a huge production with all of the beauty and spectacle of a typical Cirque experience! Of course, the music consists of fabulous remixes of popular Beatles songs (all sounding incredible in the custom theater with speakers embedded into each individual seat!), and roughly follows a kind of timeline of the band, beginning in Liverpool. The opening number is really unexpected, since after watching all the performers partying to Get Back, the Liverpool set is suddenly destroyed (down to individual bricks) in World War II. This leads nicely into some sadder songs like Eleanor Rigby, which also introduces other characters (like Father McKenzie, for example), who show up throughout the rest of the show. The plot seems to follow The Beatles through several stages of their career (and ages of the performers), but includes typical Cirque touches like a persistent character representing "love" (in my opinion), forever offering a bouquet of flowers to the world. Acrobatically, there are some great flying routines and trampoline jumping, and theatrically, the stage itself is really unique, featuring huge translucent screens that are used to extend the set with projections, display silhouettes of the band, or even as a slide show of Beatles images for the wonderful finale. The Beatles: Love is an incredible production, combining drama, artistry and fantastic music that everyone knows and loves into one of Cirque du Soleil's best shows ever. It was a great show to finish our Vegas vacation! Labels: arts, cirque du soleil
Cirque du Soleil / Ka : 5 of 5
3.31.2006 5:41 PM \| Link 0 comments	The first show my parents and I saw in Las Vegas was the latest Cirque du Soleil production called Ka, since we've seen several other productions together and loved them all. I can easily say that Ka is my new favorite (and Mom agreed)! Seeing Ka is like watching a movie that happens all around you - even though all of the Cirque productions have some sort of deeper meaning, only Ka tells a complete story with a defined plot. The story is about two Imperial twins who are separated in a shipwreck (after their parents are killed in a dramatic archer attack), and follows their separate journeys until they finally unite to fight the evil ones who caused their tragedy. All of the show's acrobatics work into the story - there are exciting battles, daring escapes, and tender moments, too, all right before your eyes. The stage is a complete miracle - it's a huge platform that can be lifted and twisted in almost any direction so it seems to be floating, and it can even stand completely upright so performers can climb up it! There are lots of great special effects, too, featuring live fire and plenty of cool projections, many of which follow the performers. I can't even begin to describe all the fantastic scenes! The costumes and make-up have a strong Asian influence in their design, and the performers are all great actors as well (especially the boy and girl twins!). We had third row seats, so it was amazing to see all of their expressions (and also cool to have performers flying above our heads at times!). I could easily see Ka again and again - it's simply magnificent. Labels: arts, cirque du soleil
Cirque du Soleil / Varekai : 5 of 5
3.05.2005 7:52 AM \| Link 0 comments	My pals Matt & Kumiko had great timing with their recent visit to Austin, since they were here during the opening week of Varekai! We went to the show along with Eliza, Kristin & Carlos, and we all had a fantastic time. This was my fourth Cirque du Soleil experience, so I knew what to expect in general, but of course, I was totally blown away by what I saw. The theme of the show seemed to be jungle or rain forest creatures, with lots of lizard, frog, and bird costumes, and the basic plot involves a fallen angel trying to regain flight (and it takes a beautiful acrobat to help him reach his goal). The various acrobatics are amazing, with lots of flying routines, including the "cloud jumping" finale, where guys are launched from giant swings to be caught by huge sheets. There was also lots of amazing balancing (more than usual), and a trio of Asian children swinging weights from ropes with incredible precision. The live music was wonderful, and the lighting of this production was definitely spectacular - I loved the firefly effects that flew around the audience! The clown routines were much different than I was expecting - much more "low brow" for a Cirque show, but hilarious. I think Varekai is my second favorite Cirque now, with La Nouba still holding the top spot! Labels: arts, cirque du soleil
WDW 2004: Day 4
9.26.2004 1:33 PM \| Link 0 comments	I couldn't wait for this day, because we spent most of it at the Magic Kingdom riding the classic Disney rides! We ate at the Plaza Restaurant on Main Street, then got to ride in the cockpit of the Monorail back to the Grand Floridian for our break. That evening we went to Downtown Disney and ate at Wolfgang Puck's, then saw Cirque du Soleil La Nouba, which was completely amazing - definitely my favorite Cirque show so far! View photos: WDW 2004 Day 4 Labels: cirque du soleil, disney, family, photos, trips
Cirque du Soleil "O" : 5 of 5
4.24.2004 5:52 PM \| Link 0 comments	After seeing Alegria here in Austin, I knew that I should see any Cirque du Soleil show when I have the chance, so I made sure my parents and I saw this show in Las Vegas (I also heard wonderful reviews from my pals Matt & Kumiko!). The centerpiece of the show is a huge circular pool, with acrobatics taking place above and in the water. What fascinated me the most was the pool is filled with moveable, perforated platforms that can raise and lower very quickly, so the "ocean" can almost instantly become a dry stage! There's a loose plot to the show, where a guy from the audience is whisked into the world of "O", and appears throughout the various acts trying to fit in, but mostly attempting to give a red scarf to a beautiful performer (who descends from the ceiling as the opening act). There's so much to describe that I can't possibly mention it all - there is water ballet, tumblers on swings jumping high into the air and diving into the pool, fantastic music and lighting effects, and some hilarious clowns floating around on the roof of their flooded house. From the moment the giant red curtain billows into the air like a living creature, you know this is going to be an incredible show! Labels: arts, cirque du soleil
Alegria / Cirque du Soleil : 3 of 5
6.11.2003 10:48 PM \| Link 0 comments	After experiencing the spectacle of Cirque du Soleil, there's just no way to leave the tent without something to commemorate the show. Since I was so impressed with the live music, I decided to get the CD, and it's just as good as hearing it live (in fact, I believe most of the tracks are live cuts from various performances). The use of percussion is fantastic, with tons of cool toys being used sparsely for just the right sound at the right moment. The accordion and saxophone are a wonderful, melancholy duet, and the singer (the same one I saw in Austin) is really talented - she has a scratchy voice in places, but uses it to great effect. Labels: cds, cirque du soleil
Cirque du Soleil / Alegria : 5 of 5
5.17.2003 9:03 PM \| Link 0 comments	I had never seen a Cirque du Soleil performance before, but I knew I was in for something amazing! They set up their circus "tent" (which is a completely custom stage designed for this show) in the old Austin airport parking lot, which was a great use for that space. I can't even begin to describe the show - of course, there are plenty of circus acrobats, such as trapeze artists, balancers, tumblers, and even a fire dancer. The elements that set apart Cirque du Soleil are costumes, music, and symbolism. Every performer is decked out in elaborate costumes, all involving make-up and wigs, making the whole visual experience surreal. The music is all live - there's a huge band with tons of great percussion and energy, plus an amazing live singer wandering about the stage. The "light and dark" symbolism is very apparent - as if each beautiful performer has a grotesque or dark counterpart. The show kept me completely on edge and screaming - it was truly spectacular! Labels: arts, cirque du soleil