5 REASONS ...

... you won’t want to miss this “genrebending blend of circus and physical theatre,” writes Shawn Conner.

1. The original poem

The Dust Palace’s Goblin Market is a circus/performance art piece based on Christina Rossetti’s famous 19th-century poem. The poem is about two sisters, one of whom is talked into trading a lock of her hair for fruits sold by goblin merchants. Critics have variously credited the poem with being about sexuality, sexual politics, capitalism, Victorian customs, and addiction.

2. The Dust Palace

Two circus performers, Eve Gordon and Mike Edward, founded New Zealand performance troupe/production company The Dust Palace in 2009. Since then, the group has moved from early cabaret-style works to what the founders call “a more sophisticated, genre-bending blend of circus and physical theatre.” Writer/director Gordon is an aerial circus performer who also stars in The Goblin Market.

3. “Spectacular”

One reviewer called the show “spectacular, magnificent and breathtaking.” The New Zealand Herald noted the “superbly choreographed acrobatics featuring the finely muscled bodies and disciplined athleticism of highly trained performers.” The cast includes Rochelle Mangan, a pole dance champ who also knows her way around a trapeze.

4. It’s sexy

This ain’t no Little Mermaid — The Goblin Market contains nudity and sex scenes, and is recommended for those 16 years of age and older.

5. No one-trick-pony

Besides The Goblin Market, The Dust Palace has created a family-friendly show, Top of the Heap, as well as a large-cast cirque science fiction version of Homer’s Odyssey.