A 60-minute special streamed on the Cirque Du Soleil's YouTube channel, gave viewers the chance of seeing some of the best bits from their first two shows they presented on ice. It has been an age and a half since I last saw a show on ice - I was a child at the time, and it was in Blackpool! - and being a Cirque fan, this seemed like a brilliant idea and combination... contemporary circus, complete with all that the Cirque team are renowned for... live original music, fantastic costumes, surreal and fantasy-based storylines, death-defying acts, and incredible lighting designs... all on ice... seemed too good an opportunity to miss!
The first half hour was a precised version of 'Crystal', which seemed to me very much like a modernised reworking of the 'Alice In Wonderland' idea. The set was like Narnia at first but soon changed as we journeyed through Crystal's imagination. The whole was visually very satisying, and even though there seemed to be a lot more dancing / choreography than circus acts, I enjoyed it nonetheless. The routine with the business suits and workplace desks reminded me very much of the Musical, 'How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying'. In fact, much of it seemed much more based in Musical Theatre than other Cirque shows I have seen. The one act which really impressed in this 30 minute section was a balancing act on chairs. This would have been very impressive even if it weren't on ice, but add that element of jeopardy into the mix as well, and this was just jaw-droppingly amazing. This show also had a great soundtrack, which fitted the moods and themes perfectly.
The second half was a complete change of pace, mood and idea. 'Axel' is an evocation to the 1980s. Axel was born on a plane, he is an artist and musician, and he is trying to find his voice and fulfil his destiny. With everything that the 1980s represented in fashion, music, style, attitude, culture, film and TV, this was a super-heroes-cum-Flash-Gordon-cum-Rocky-Horror-cum- Ziggy-Stardust-cum-video-games-cum-electro-pop kind of experience. From the excerpts shown on this video, I have to say I was not particularly inspired - however some of the scating was phenomenal... a crazy pas-de-deux which if it had been mistimed or misjudged by even an 'nth, it would have resulted in some very serious injuries; whilst the end sequence with flames on the ice and flambeaux was quite spectacular.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 17/5/20
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