Staff writer Cruz Glynka reviews Cirque du Soleil: Kurios – Cabinet of Curiosities.
The mesmerising world of Cirque du Soleil has come to the Royal Albert Hall. The Royal Albert Hall has been a place of wonder and inspiration for centuries. The world-renowned Cirque du Soleil revels in the iconic venue’s grandeur as it brings a unique blend of theatrical performance, acrobatics and daring stunts to the iconic venue. Since 1984, Cirque du Soleil has been doing astonishing performances, and their production of Kurios continues this long-lasting reputation they have garnered for themselves.
The Cirque du Soleil spectacular Kurios combines the performances under the whimsical steampunk theme. Kurios brings cohesion to the performance with a live band performing amazing swinging jazz and European folk that sets the mood for the acts. Alongside the musical charms of the show, there are beautiful set designs and costumes which genuinely bring alive the unique and magical steampunk world that the audience is brought into.
From beautiful synchronised aerial tricks to trampolinists springing to the ceilings of the Royal Albert Hall, the performance showcases the almost unnatural talent of what is humanly possible. There were several teeth-grinding moments where the audience eagerly awaited the outcome of astonishing tricks. The showmanship of James Gonzalez’s Rola Bola act, balancing on a wobbly stack of cylinders while on a moving swing, will have you on the edge of your seat. Other experiences that exemplify the talent of Cirque du Soleil is the difficult Russian Cradle, where Volodymyr Klavdich stands on a high platform, swinging Ekaterina Evdokimova between his legs and then catapults her upwards towards the ceiling where she does somersaults and returns to his hands.
The performances played to many emotions, awe, joy, beauty and more. The show provides creative performances that capsulise something magical within. Seeing Anne Weissbecker’s aerial acrobatics on a bike was magnificent as she soared through the sky. Another beautiful performance is Andrii Bondarenko’s hand-balancing act, Upside Down World, where he is a dinner-party guest climbing a stack of chairs to reach a levitating candle, only to confront a mirror image of the opposite happening from the Royal Albert Hall ceiling, creating a surreal experience of duality.
No great circus can forgo laughter, and Kurois gets the audience laughing with acts like the Invisible Circus or the Theatre of Hands which recreates a miniature world of hands. Expect bizarre and unique moments as performers interact with the audience to create hilarious moments.
Kurios truly has it all, choreography, flips, contortions, juggling, yo-yo-ing, and much more. Cirque du Soleil delivers everything the audience wants, receiving well-deserved applause.
At the Royal Albert Hall, London, until 5 March.
