Varekai!

Thanks to JBSegal, last night I went to my first Cirque du Soleil show, Varekai. Wow. Just, wow.

There's no way a description I would write could do the show justice, unfortunately. Here's my rather disjointed impressions¹ instead. (Insert many 'wow's at appropriate junctures, and I will try not to type 'wow' again.)

All of the performances were outstanding. (In no particular order) There was a man (Icarus? an angel?) doing gymnastic moves in a net high above the stage, which later became a rope, for other moves and balancing points. There were four trapeze artists not only hanging down off the trapeze (sometimes from one another), but climbing up as well, or moving out the sides. A character brought out an odd contraption, and proceeded to use sound effects to show what (wasn't) there, before feeding the sounds into the contraption; I couldn't help but think of the Soundkeeper and the Valley of Sound, in The Phantom Tollbooth. A man on crutches used them as balance points as he swung his legs around (Thomas flair, anyone), or whirled the crutches as he stood. A contortionist curled her body around in so many different ways that seemed far beyond probable, and made me wonder how she breathed through it. A juggler not only juggled five balls, but also juggled three smaller balls with his mouth. Three men spun ropes with balances at the end, tumbling and keeping them spinning. Other men spun head over heels, over and over again, with all sorts of variations, additional force being given by the other men balancing them from underneath. There were whirling 'Cossacks', in bright red. A whole troupe of men used two long flat swings to provide lift for some amazing aerial feats. The tent darkened and there were groups of points of green lights, moving around the entire arena. Humorous moments came from the singer who had to follow a fickle spotlight, and a magician (the same actor) trying hard to perform any magic at all. [And there's more, I know it.]

There were beautiful costumes, for the variety of 'creatures' and for the acrobats. Lots of wild colors and shapes (when performers didn't need to be too aerodynamic), and much use of headpieces.

The stage is circular, with a number of circular trap doors, and smaller circles that could revolve. Instead of a curtain behind stage, there were many poles of 'bamboo', which swayed when people climbed them. There were walkways high above stage that were also in the same theme.

I could tell there was a story arc, but it wasn't clear how all the different pieces fit together, and I spent more time ooh-ing and ah-ing over impressive performances than figuring out how the different acts flowed one to the next.

Even the tents were beautiful, swirls of bright yellow and blue, with shapes that made me think of the Denver airport and medieval jousting. I was also impressed with the people-moving managed, with so many different entrances clearly marked. It was amazing how quickly the tent emptied after the show (not the parking lots, though...).

¹ Rather like trying to describe fireworks. They're too ephemeral for me to manage much. (Though if I saw it a number of times, I'd probably do better. Hmmm...)

edit, 0650, 9/3/04
For a complete list of acts, see JB's post.

Other recent things

I got my first paycheck today! It's strange seeing a paycheck not done by Ceridian (which is the company my mom works for; I've critiqued check layout to her before).

I helped with Hrafn's move yesterday, and it went pretty smoothly. It helped that the new place was close to the old. Still, my impression was that it went very quickly. The new place is an interesting space; I hope it's a successful apartment for everyone living there. (Note to self: it's really past time to get the boxes from the old job out of the car now.)

I painted a tile at one of those paint-your-own-pottery places, and I'm pleased with how it came out (I got it back on Sunday). Even now when I look at it I get satisfaction from having created it. Must remember to do this again soon.

I've run through the Jasper Fforde books and most of Lois McMaster Bujold books as well. Suggestions for other authors I can overdose on? (Or a book.)

This morning I saw a T employee putting a patch on a T map, showing that the end of the green line is switching to bus service. I hadn't realized that they changed the maps that way (nor had I been paying attention to how long those last green line stops will be out of commission).
Other T note: they're going to be busing to Charles (red line) during the long weekend.

I really need to have more finished food around the house; I've been eating weird food too much.

I went to a concert in Copley this noon, a performance by a family quartet (mom on flute, dad on piano, daughter on violin, son on cello). As Queue noted, the fountain water level was lowered, uncovering a space used for the performance, which was very cool. I hadn't realized the fountain was designed to do that. I liked the music, none of which was familiar, though I can't remember what the program was other than a selection from Dvorak' Dumky Trio (likely because Queue mentioned it...).
(Thursdays at noon, all through September, there are free concerts of classical at Copley, sponsored by WCRB. There are two Thursdays left this month I could go. JHT (Jewish Holiday Time) fast approacheth.)

edit, 1740
I used my T pass for the first time yesterday. Somehow I feel more like a wage slave.