Miswanderlust
Ann 1Love Love Love
May 10th 2009 03:13
Considering the whole slightly-out-of-synch-with-re ality vibe of Cirque du Soleil performance troupe, it is no surprise that it is staged in the Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas Nevada. For folks unaware of Cirque, this troupe blends acrobatics, interpretive dance, outlandish costumes, and theatrical orchestration with a European flair.
Shunning their tradition of building their performances around music written specifically for the show, Cirque du Soleil based music from the Beatles' catalogue, for their newest show, Love. Twenty-six tracks mixed together under George Martin's supervision combining various elements from more than one hundred thirty Beatles songs, blended seamlessly into recordings from the band's different eras. The results are at once immediately familiar and surprisingly new due to some very innovative edits and layering of songs.
The show opens with a cast of familiar characters marchng around the stage in a stylized, slow-motion parade. Sergeant Pepper, the Fool on the Hill, Lady Madonna, Mr. Kite, Father Mckenzie, the Walrus, Her Majesty, the Nowhere Man, Mean Mr. Mustard, Lovely Rita, Dr. Robert, the Sun King. None of them are ever addressed by name, considering that there's no dialogue at all from any of the performers, but between the highly detailed costumes and the fact that the song lyrics have become a solid part of our collective consciousness over the years, the characters are all instantly recognizable.
A handful of the songs are staged as historical interpretations of the forties, fifties, and sixties from the bombing of London in World War Two to the rise of rock 'n roll to the peace-and-love hippie movements - but these scenes are few and far between, scattered throughout the show. The show comes across as a tribute dedicated to John, Paul, George, and Ringo themselves, with video footage of the fab four projected on curtains flown in from above and archived recordings of in-studio banter, but there's no mention of the band itself, focusing instead on the choreography.
The acrobats and dancers put on a top-notch show. Although I was a little put off by the cheesiness of the main character meandering around the set holding a bouquet of flowers “looking for love” and being turned down during every act, you don't have to be a die-hard Beatles fan to appreciate the show. The performers’ artistry and athleticism were second-to-none.
Octopus' Garden
Shunning their tradition of building their performances around music written specifically for the show, Cirque du Soleil based music from the Beatles' catalogue, for their newest show, Love. Twenty-six tracks mixed together under George Martin's supervision combining various elements from more than one hundred thirty Beatles songs, blended seamlessly into recordings from the band's different eras. The results are at once immediately familiar and surprisingly new due to some very innovative edits and layering of songs.
The show opens with a cast of familiar characters marchng around the stage in a stylized, slow-motion parade. Sergeant Pepper, the Fool on the Hill, Lady Madonna, Mr. Kite, Father Mckenzie, the Walrus, Her Majesty, the Nowhere Man, Mean Mr. Mustard, Lovely Rita, Dr. Robert, the Sun King. None of them are ever addressed by name, considering that there's no dialogue at all from any of the performers, but between the highly detailed costumes and the fact that the song lyrics have become a solid part of our collective consciousness over the years, the characters are all instantly recognizable.
A handful of the songs are staged as historical interpretations of the forties, fifties, and sixties from the bombing of London in World War Two to the rise of rock 'n roll to the peace-and-love hippie movements - but these scenes are few and far between, scattered throughout the show. The show comes across as a tribute dedicated to John, Paul, George, and Ringo themselves, with video footage of the fab four projected on curtains flown in from above and archived recordings of in-studio banter, but there's no mention of the band itself, focusing instead on the choreography.
The acrobats and dancers put on a top-notch show. Although I was a little put off by the cheesiness of the main character meandering around the set holding a bouquet of flowers “looking for love” and being turned down during every act, you don't have to be a die-hard Beatles fan to appreciate the show. The performers’ artistry and athleticism were second-to-none.
Octopus' Garden
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