 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
Art and Soul
By JOHN FLEMING, Times Performing Arts Critic
ST. PETERSBURG -- Quidam is all about emotion. Sure, there are fabulous daredevil acts and physical feats in the Cirque du Soleil production that opened Thursday night under the company's whimsical blue-and-yellow Grand Chapiteau in the parking lot of Tropicana Field.
Cirque is legendary for bringing the aesthetics of theater to the circus (but without animals). Other shows by the Quebec troupe may be more fast-paced with more eye-popping acrobatics, but Quidam has soul. For one thing, the individual numbers are loosely held together by a narrative about a girl named Zoe who, in revolt against her parents, goes on a journey of discovery not unlike that of the heroines of Alice in Wonderland, The Nutcracker or The Wizard of Oz. Quidam, a Latin word pronounced key-dahm, is meant to suggest a modern-day everyman, an anonymous passer-by in the crowd, in director Franco Dragone's millennium-themed scenario. The actual Quidam, a headless figure with an umbrella, gives a lavender bowler to Zoe (Denise Gonzalez) to get the adventure under way. Comic relief is supplied by the bizarre MC John, playfully acted and danced by Mark Ward, and a French clown trio. At times, the clowns overstay their welcome, but such is the nature of clowning. They occupy their own weird, somewhat malevolent universe, always entering from beneath the circular stage. Quidam gets off to a slow start, taking care to establish its surrealistic mood and introduce a variety of commedia dell'arte-style characters before exploding into one of Cirque's greatest acts. The diabolo, or Chinese yo-yo, is featured in several of the company's productions -- and for good reason. When the four little girls -- Han Bing, Li Qiangian, Xue Huijuan and Ge Yi -- toss their spools around while doing flips and other somersaults, it is a gorgeous sight. Other highlights included several numbers done while performers dangled from overhead tracks. Isabelle Chasse's aerial contortionist act had an operatic quality in its passion. Marie-Eve Bisson, Holly Rollins and Olesya Shulga beautifully soared on hoops to a haunting song. For all the dexterity and derring-do in Quidam, some of the simpler numbers are most memorable. For example, a rope-skipping chorus line creates an arresting tableau, and Christine Cadeau, with vivid henna hair, has an exuberant solo. The slow-motion body sculpting of Yves Decoste and Marie-Laure Mesnage was awesome, as they leveraged their muscular, scantily clad frames against one another to create a statuelike effect. The stillness of their performance carved out a touching space of vulnerability amid the wildness of the circus. A key element in the impact of the show is the pulsating score by Benoit Jutras. The nonsense lyrics work strangely well, and there is strong singing by Gonzalez and Craig Jennings, the vocalist with the band. Dominique Lemieux's costumes are inspired, with delightful attention to detail, as in the hand-painted design of Zoe's yellow shoes. Taken at its most basic, Quidam is a great circus, but it's also much more. Its cast of brilliant athlete-artists make a new kind of theater for our sports-minded age. Under the big top, they create a world of mysterious visual poetry that is unlike anything else you've ever seen. REVIEW: Quidam runs through Dec. 8 under the big top in the parking lot of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. Tickets: $45-$65 adults, discounts available for children, students and seniors. Box office hours at the Trop site are noon to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday. Tickets may also be purchased at www.cirquedusoleil.com or by calling toll-free 1-800-678-5440.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
From the wire |
