Cirque Du Soleil - A Feast for the Senses

There was an intriguing brightly-coloured poster on the road but I have not managed to read what was written.  And then there was another one.  It read:

C-I-R-Q-U-E--D-U--S-O-L-E-I-L.   

Cirque du Soleil is performing in Doha! :)

I could barely recall the Chinese circus that I have watched from the general patronage seats of Araneta Coliseum when I was about five years old.  My husband have always wanted to watch a circus since he was a kid but have not had any chance.  Fast forward to 6 July 2012, we found ourselves with some friends inside Qatar's Aspire Dome to watch Saltimbanco of Cirque Du Soleil.

The show was very impressive and fascinating.  It awakened the child and the dreamer in me.  Why?  As an adult, I wanted things to be easier most of the time.  I would choose to buy a powdered juice drink rather than labour to extract the juices from the fruit itself.  I would choose to buy instant noodles rather than cook from scratch.  I wanted things that are easier to grasp and uncomplicated to perform.  However, when I was (physically and literally) on the edge of my seat last night while watching the Cirque du Soleil performance, the child side of me was enlivened.  How?

The show featured characters who uttered made-up languages.  As a child, I laughed while watching cartoons and shows albeit the characters speaking of words that I did not understand.  Mere actions of the characters were fun and got my imagination working.

The show featured performers who communicated through their actions and wowed the audience through their calculated moves.  As a child, I acted to demonstrate what I could not implicitly say.

The show featured performers in colorful costumes and make-ups.  The stage and the lights were flashy.  All of these created magical effects as the artists moved.  It was like I was in a dreamland.

Lastly, I found myself uttering the word "wow" so many times.  I was like a curious child as I gazed at the band players, major stage performers, supporting characters, string pullers and safety harnesses.

My most favorite acts were the Chinese Poles from the multi-coloured worms, the Adagio, the Russian Swing, Boleadoras, the Hand to Hand act by the two very strong contortionist men and 'the lady who played the trapeze' (I gave the last act the name... =P).  Camera is strictly not allowed during the show so allow me to share some photos from the Cirque du Soleil website.

Adagio

Chinese Poles

Boleadoras

Russian swing

Hand to Hand

Hand to Hand

My most favorite character of the night was Eddie, who was in a red cap, striped shorts and suspenders.      He has this capability to draw everyone's attention into him.  He has this great talent to create a sound for his every action.  He 'forced' me to use my imagination and made me laugh my heart out.

Photo from Cirque du Soleil

I have to specifically mention that the live band's original music while the artists were performing was equally enamouring.  Kumbalawe is one of my most favorite songs from their soundtrack.  Check out the song from this link:

http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/saltimbanco/show/music.aspx?splash=http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/saltimbanco/media/cd/Track-1.aspx

Here are some of the photos I've taken from my camera phone during the breaktime:

The colorful stage

The crowd during the breaktime.  Notice the centre seats in white shade.  Those are for the VVIPs who were very privileged to seat on cushioned seats.

I took out my camera phone (just like most of the people did) as the performers bade farewell.

The show was indeed a feast for the senses.  The experience of watching the Saltimbanco Cirque du Soleil was well worth the price we paid for the tickets.   I also have to mention that I've only noticed that the plastic seats were uncomfortable during the breaktime, maybe because I was on the edge of my seat most of the time! =P

“Youth is happy because it has the capacity to see beauty. Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.” ― Franz Kafka