Cirque du Soleil presents ‘Corteo’
When it comes to the latest Cirque du Soleil show to play in South Florida, it helps to know that the human circus’ Italian title “Corteo” translates into English as “cortege” or a processional.
That is the visual cue you’ll need for the show’s narrative — a character named Mauro the Dreamer Clown imagining his own funeral as a queue of carnival acts, all overseen by angels hovering above the action.
Like all Cirque productions, “Corteo” is a series of derring-do performances by aerialists, dancers, acrobats, trapeze artists, balance acts, jugglers, puppeteers, mimes, musicians, singers and actors — in all, a cast of 52 entertainers.
“Corteo’s” performers hail from Argentina, Armenia, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Romania, Russia, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, the United States and Uzbekistan.
What do you actually see?
Acrobatic ladder: A balance act as one of the characters tries to reach an angel watching him from above.
Bouncing beds: Acrobats bounce back and forth on two 600-pound beds on a rotating platform.
Chandeliers: Four women, representing former lovers, perform aerial acrobatics hanging from three chandeliers.
Cyr Wheel: Five acrobatic artists recall Mauro’s carnival life with a gyroscope salute.
Golf: A comedy skit centered on the fairway.
Helium dance: A tender scene between Mauro and a little person clown who floats above the audience carried by helium balloons.
Juggling: Three artists juggle rings, hoops and clubs.
Suspended pole: A contortionist performs hanging onto a pole high above the ground. Teatro intimo: A small (quite literally) production of “Romeo and Juliet” played for laughs.
Tournik: The horizontal bar act closes the show.