This photo is from the Atlanta media preview on Oct. 26 for Cavalia. The tripped-out horsey Cirque Du Soleil opens tonight at the white tent (yeah that one) at Atlantic Station.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
Flouber Sanchez from Armenia, Colombia practices this afternoon for this evening’s Cirque du Soleil performance at Atlantic Station.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
1) Join local feminist groups Georgia WAND and Charis Circle at Kavarna for Celebrating Change: A Feminist Inauguration Day Gathering.
2) Carolyn Jessop discusses Escape at the Decatur Library.
3) Historic Sweet Auburn celebrates Inauguration Day with live music and entertainment.
4) The Thrashers play Montreal Canadiens at Philips Arena.
5) Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza continues at Atlantic Station.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
SEAT'S TAKEN: Kooza's unicycle duo
Some of the best parts of Cirque du Soleil are the things that go wrong.
It’s not that I have a sadistic impulse to see injuries or mishaps under the blue-and-yellow stripes of the Grand Chapiteau. The performers’ reactions to accidents or slip-ups simply add an additional charge to the show. I caught two apparent mistakes on the opening night of Cirque du Soleil’s latest show, Kooza.
First, during the tightrope performance near the end of Act One, one man came up behind another and jumped over him, leap-frog style. His feet landed on the wire but he lost his balance and had to grab hold to keep from falling. Then, during the gravity-defying teeterboard stunts near the finale, one acrobat perched on a single metal stilt, hopped onto the low end of the board and was launched into the air. He did multiple flips in the air with the stilt deliberately still attached. He landed upright on the stilt, but stumbled.
Such moments can make a greater impression than the same circus acts performed without a hitch. In its nearly 25-year history, the Montreal-based Cirque du Soleil has made the wildest feats look easy, but sometimes you appreciate the routines’ demands when they look more difficult. Plus, you can’t help but share in the performers’ espirit de corps after an error. They always do the same routine again, immediately, to get it right, in an almost macho show of bravado and professionalism.
It’s possible that such mistakes are actually deliberate and intended to build suspense. If so, they succeed brilliantly. That may not be likely, but I love the idea. (more…)
1) Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza opens at Atlantic Station.
2) The Cineprov! crew makes a mockery of Andy Warhol’s Flesh for Frankenstein at Relapse Theatre.
3) Robinella plays Eddie’s Attic.
4) Comedian Ken Rogerson performs at the Punchline.
5) Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy continues at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre.
(Photo © Cirque du Soleil)
