Reviews: 4
Internationally acclaimed contemporary circus company Circa comes all the way from Australia to make its debut as The Wallis’ first foray into contemporary circus with Humans. In a thrilling and heart-stopping performance, Circa pushes the boundaries of circus to take us on a stirring journey of what it means to be human and of how our bodies, our connections, and our aspirations all form part of who we are.
“. . . poetry in motion” -The Times (London)
They bring a combination of energy, elegance, and passion to the art of dance. Their dynamic and fluid moves continue to dazzle throughout. From flying above the ground…to immaculate posture onstage, with ballet grace to athletic prowess, the performers bounce, tumble, and build human towers, bringing the world of circus art and dance to new heights.
Because it’s so off-the-beaten-track Humans is hard to describe, but I’ll take a stab at it. 10 young male/female acrobats clad in form-fitting skimpy outfits combine tumbling with aerial derring-do, Olympic-caliber acrobatics and choreography often set to recorded music in various genres, ranging from James Brown to Global. There are lots of feats involving feet, with a performer walking across the skulls formed by a human bridge of sort by the other athletes. Or, defying gravity (and common sense!), they very powerfully lift one another or form human pyramids and the like.
The Australian-based Circa Contemporary Circus' artistic director Yaron Lifschitz has championed Cirque du Soleil's glorious animal-free concept and taken it one step further, boldly eliminating the dazzling jaw-dropping design of the Cirque productions while pushing the extreme physicality—and sensuality—of his company members as they perform extraordinarily hyperphysical stunts on a basically bare stage. To say they push the boundaries of what members of our fragile and most breakable species can accomplish is an understatement as this award-winning 10-member ensemble blurs the lines between movement, dance, and theatricality, immediately raising the stakes of what the term “circus” can encompass.
A thrilling and heart-stopping performance by ten acrobats from this award-winning contemporary circus ensemble who push the boundaries of physical possibilities during an extraordinary 70 minutes of exquisitely choreographed athletic artistry. Exploring the physical limits of their bodies, which appear to be non-existent given how remarkably limber and strong each member appears to be, the group's movements reflected not only life's burdens, but the redemptive power in the physical and emotional strength it takes to overcome them. Human towers were created involving several combinations of members, with each one morphing into a new creation as bodies intertwined like rubber bands rather than beings with bones!
They bring a combination of energy, elegance, and passion to the art of dance. Their dynamic and fluid moves continue to dazzle throughout. From flying above the ground…to immaculate posture onstage, with ballet grace to athletic prowess, the performers bounce, tumble, and build human towers, bringing the world of circus art and dance to new heights.
Because it’s so off-the-beaten-track Humans is hard to describe, but I’ll take a stab at it. 10 young male/female acrobats clad in form-fitting skimpy outfits combine tumbling with aerial derring-do, Olympic-caliber acrobatics and choreography often set to recorded music in various genres, ranging from James Brown to Global. There are lots of feats involving feet, with a performer walking across the skulls formed by a human bridge of sort by the other athletes. Or, defying gravity (and common sense!), they very powerfully lift one another or form human pyramids and the like.
The Australian-based Circa Contemporary Circus' artistic director Yaron Lifschitz has championed Cirque du Soleil's glorious animal-free concept and taken it one step further, boldly eliminating the dazzling jaw-dropping design of the Cirque productions while pushing the extreme physicality—and sensuality—of his company members as they perform extraordinarily hyperphysical stunts on a basically bare stage. To say they push the boundaries of what members of our fragile and most breakable species can accomplish is an understatement as this award-winning 10-member ensemble blurs the lines between movement, dance, and theatricality, immediately raising the stakes of what the term “circus” can encompass.
A thrilling and heart-stopping performance by ten acrobats from this award-winning contemporary circus ensemble who push the boundaries of physical possibilities during an extraordinary 70 minutes of exquisitely choreographed athletic artistry. Exploring the physical limits of their bodies, which appear to be non-existent given how remarkably limber and strong each member appears to be, the group's movements reflected not only life's burdens, but the redemptive power in the physical and emotional strength it takes to overcome them. Human towers were created involving several combinations of members, with each one morphing into a new creation as bodies intertwined like rubber bands rather than beings with bones!
