Co-founded in 1984
by former accordionist, stilt-walker and fire-eater Guy Laliberté
(whose personal wealth is now estimated at US $2.6 billion, according to Forbes Magazine), Cirque du Soleil is a globally successful entertainment brand, with an estimated annual income exceeding US $810 million thanks in part to popular touring productions such as OVO, which opened in Melbourne last night.
Based purely on the skill level of its participants, OVO – a fantastical, anthropomorphised view of the insect world; Microcosmos with
acrobats – is spectacular in the extreme. However it is also strangely
passionless, a garish spectacle over-produced to within an inch of its
life and almost entirely lacking in emotion and drama...
Read the full review over at artsHub.
Monday night was New Year's Eve, and I had the pleasure of doing something rather special that evening. Instead of rocking up to a house party or a bar, I was one of many Melburnians lucky enough to score themselves tickets to the opening night of War Horse:
Based on British author Michael Morpurgo’s 1982 children’s book, War Horse is
the story of Joey, half-thoroughbred and half-draft horse, and Albert
Narracott, the country boy who loves him. When Joey is sold to the army
by Albert’s drunkard father, becoming a cavalry horse amidst the horrors
of the Great War, 16 year old Albert goes to great lengths to bring
Joey home, struggling through trenches and gas attacks in a seemingly fruitless quest to be reunited with his steed.
Adapted for the stage by Nick Stafford in association with Handspring Puppet Company, the National Theatre of Great Britain’s War Horse is
a magnificent spectacle, featuring sophisticated and striking
stagecraft and remarkable life-size horse puppets made of steel, leather
and aircraft cables. Additional puppets, including an engaging comic
relief goose, also feature, alongside a sizeable human cast.
My full review of the production is online over at artsHub; I invite you to read it in its entirety.
