Beyond

Beyond
Circa. Directed by Yaron Lifschitz. Canberra Theatre 25–28 February 2015 and touring N.S.W., Tas., and Vic. till September 2015

Circus has changed so utterly in the past 30 years that the animal and clown acts that once were its staple have become dim memories overtaken by the modern tendency toward juggling, vertical acrobatics, energetic tumbling, and choreographed slapstick.

Circa’s production Beyond nominally falls within this constellation.  But its acts convey nonverbal narratives of attempts on goals, of identity and relationship, and of simple indulgence in play, and it mounts challenge upon challenge, as in an acrobat solving a Rubik’s cube while engaging in catching and lifting other performers, or acrobats dancing together while launching other acrobats.  Burlesque blends seamlessly with gymnastics, and fantasy with combat.

The effect is surprising: playful, funny, occasionally tense, often dramatic, sometimes emotional, it keeps you not only entertained but fully engaged, all senses on high alert.  And that engagement is all the more complete because the performers, if extraordinarily athletic, seem still to be common Australians, right there with us.

There is no overarching tale evident here, no one message or moral that I could say binds the work together; but it maintained consistency through the gymnasts’ prodigious strength and continuous energy, the seamlessness with which stunts by humans and human rabbits followed one another, the awesome athleticism of it all.  An overpowering performance, it can’t fail to leave you impressed and inspired.

John P. Harvey

 

Image: Circa, in Beyond.  Photographer: John P. Harvey.

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