Review: Cirque du Ciel Shanghi at Liverpool Empire theatre

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In this Olympic year, many will marvel at the athleticism, agility, poise, balance and strength of many of those who will be competing in the Gymnastic events, and rightly so. However, for those assembled inside the Liverpool Empire Theatre this evening, both young and old, will feel somewhat let down by the spectacle unfolding before their eyes in London having witnessed this fabulously entertaining show.

Shanghai by Cirque Du Ciel is totally thrilling. A cornucopia of acrobatic treats that feasts the eyes, gets the heart thumping and forces so many gasps of pure amazement from the audience it should come with a warning that all oxygen may well be sucked from the auditorium during the performances.

And what performances. From the beautifully balletic duo who delight in twisting their bodies around each other until moving upwards first to stand on one toe upon their partner’s shoulder to moving on up to do exactly the same upon his head, to the male performers who use twenty foot long poles not only to climb by simply using their upper arm strength – that’s right, not a leg or body part to scale straight up, a feat that defies adequate description in mere words – but then to proceed to summersault between each pole with nothing but a flimsy mattress beneath them.

And then there of course the “break dancers”, who body pop, tumble, shift and shake to such lengths one wonders how it must have felt the very first time these feats were attempted. That is the true essence of this show, in truth. The sheer trust each performer has in his colleague or colleagues is mind boggling, as are the costumes, the videos that accompany each portion of the show and, also, the thumping music particularly the magnificent percussion that is delivered live on stage.

There is so much more to say about this show, which is non-stop from first to last. Indeed, I’ve not mentioned the Arial artistes who use elasticated ropes to swoop and dive across the stage, or a simple ribbon-like material in which to climb, twist, wrap themselves then plummet to the earth to stop just centimetres from the stage in a sudden halt. Oops. Sorry. I’ve mentioned it, because I couldn’t help myself.

A truly magical evening of jaw dropping, head-spinning perfection that truly defies the imagination.

10/10

Cirque du Ciel

ShangHi

Liverpool Empire Theatre

20th June, 2012

Director: Guy Caron

Producer: Cirque du Theatre & CPPA Productions

Cast: The Beijing Acrobatic Troupe

Running Time: 1 hr 50 mins

To book tickets for tonight's (21st June) performance visit: http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/cirque-du-ciel/liverpool-empire/