This circus act will take you for a loop
Empire
(out of 4) Directed by Wayne Harrison. Choreographed by John (Cha Cha) O’Connell. At the corner of Rees St. and Queens Quay W. Until Oct. 18. spiegelworld.ca Before a show begins, most theatres play a recording that asks audience members to turn off their phones and remain silent during the performance. In Empire, there’s a half-naked man in long johns, suspenders, rainbow-striped toe socks and pigtails taking suggestive selfies with them as he traverses the seats like an X-rated Roberto Benigni. Cellphones? A- OK. Drinks? There’s a bar in the courtyard outside and another in the theatre. Audience participation? Oh, you betcha. Everything about Empire, the worldtouring hit circus show by New York City’s Spiegelworld (named after their travelling venue, the Spiegeltent, a Belgian type of big top made of wood, canvas, glass and mirror), is meant to get the audience worked up.
To the testament of the whole conception of the show, from the courtyard to the live music from singer Tessa Alves (as Miss Purple) and guitarist Aurelien Budynek (as Moondog), the party atmosphere of Empire is palpable the moment you step into the Spiegeltent. Then it amps up when Azealia Banks’s “212” begins to kick off the show. And it stays high after the first routine by contortionist Lucia Carbines, suspended above the three-metre-wide circular stage in the centre of the tent in a clear plastic bubble.
There’s a semblance of a storyline here, but not much of one. Apparently, it tracks how Oscar, an impresario, and his wife Fanny (clowns Don Colliver and Jamie Franta) rebuild their New York City empire after the economic recession. But Oscar and Fanny never mention this; their bawdy skits mostly revolve around costume changes, invading the front row’s personal space and showing some good old-fashioned nudity.
At one point, the cast members parade Occupy Broadway signs around the stage, and three banquine performers wear gorilla and Guy Fawkes masks. Contemporary circus has the ability to tackle clear stories and messages while impressing the audience with its stunts, but Empire sometimes gets lost in its own grunge-meets-Moulin Rouge shock and awe.
That being said, the performers are stunning and the in-the-round style of the stage lets the audience get closer to the action than most other circus shows. That’s great for the spectacle but better for looking at the effort behind it all. The sweat, the focused eye contact, the gentle bounce before leaping into the next move; they all reveal the craft and training.
And obviously there are some stunning scenes, such as a high-energy roller-skating routine by Denis Petaov and Mariia Beseimbetova, a slow and romantic adagio with Vlad Ivashkin and Aiusha Khadzh Khamed, and a closing Sanddorn Balance routine by Andreis Jacobs that’s the evening’s quietest and slowest act, but easily the most intense.
The work within Empire is exhilarating to watch, especially within the context of its beautiful, temporary venue on Queens Quay, but it’s not quite as risqué or scintillating as it tries to be. The best reason to see Empire is to see contemporary circus in an intimate setting and appreciate the art form that the circus has become.
Empire sometimes gets lost in its own grunge-meets-Moulin Rouge shock and awe. But the show’s in-the-round stage lets the audience get closer to the action than most other circus shows