...click on the link below right now!
It's the 32nd annual Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain a Paris!
Online for a limited time only!
Go! Go! Go!
(Seriously, why haven't you gone yet?)
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Can't Wait for Number Three...
Something strange happened during the show tonight. Already, it was one of those nights where I wasn't all that into it (I know, I know) and the show was basically performed by rote. But then, during the scene known as "San Marino", I was so completely thrown off that I froze on stage for several seconds.
There was a scarf on stage.
And when I say scarf, I mean someone's every day, real life, going-out-to-buy-some-groceries-on a-blustery-winter's-day, scarf.
Just hanging out.
Right there in the middle of the stage.
To say it stuck out like a sore thumb would be an understatement. To say it had no place on stage would also be an understatement. The only way I can think to describe the moment is like if everything in the world was grey scale and then suddenly a rainbow appeared. It had no place in the Universe that is our show. I know that may seem melodramatic, but the whole point of a stage show is to create an entire Universe in all its colours and textures and to really believe and inhabit it, if only for a couple of hours. Can you imagine seeing a Cirque du Soleil show filled with strange and marvelous creatures in an exotic dream scape and then suddenly seeing empty water bottle roll out from behind god knows where? Of course not. Because it is careless, unprofessional and simply something that should never happen in high level artistic stage show.
I don't know if I can properly convey how inexcusable that kind of thing is. To me, anyway. You see, the person responsible happens to be one of the founding members of the troupe, so no one will say anything. Moreover, those who have been a part of the company since the beginning often succumb to a 'resting on their laurels' kind of attitude and would likely just shrug such a thing off. Had the director been present, I could see him being far more upset over the drawing of the branch not looking Japanese enough than the fact that a brown and orange wooly scarf was left on stage.
Perhaps you feel I'm overreacting. After all, it was just a scarf left on a piece of decor during rehearsal that later fell and remained on stage.
Well, what if I told you the same person responsible for forgetting their scarf has also forgotten to turn off their cell phone and then left it in their trunk back stage rather than leaving it in their dressing room? And that that same phone started ringing during the show? During a silent moment? While it's owner was onstage and therefore could not turn it off? And that that happened two shows ago?
Shit like that is frustrating. Shit like that being met with a shrug of the shoulders and a "That's so-and-so!" is frustrating. And a lot of the shrugging of the shoulders stems from the fact that you simply cannot criticize this person and nothing is ever their fault.
There's an expression in French that says there's never two without three. I wonder what the third on-stage surprise will be?
There was a scarf on stage.
And when I say scarf, I mean someone's every day, real life, going-out-to-buy-some-groceries-on a-blustery-winter's-day, scarf.
Just hanging out.
Right there in the middle of the stage.
To say it stuck out like a sore thumb would be an understatement. To say it had no place on stage would also be an understatement. The only way I can think to describe the moment is like if everything in the world was grey scale and then suddenly a rainbow appeared. It had no place in the Universe that is our show. I know that may seem melodramatic, but the whole point of a stage show is to create an entire Universe in all its colours and textures and to really believe and inhabit it, if only for a couple of hours. Can you imagine seeing a Cirque du Soleil show filled with strange and marvelous creatures in an exotic dream scape and then suddenly seeing empty water bottle roll out from behind god knows where? Of course not. Because it is careless, unprofessional and simply something that should never happen in high level artistic stage show.
I don't know if I can properly convey how inexcusable that kind of thing is. To me, anyway. You see, the person responsible happens to be one of the founding members of the troupe, so no one will say anything. Moreover, those who have been a part of the company since the beginning often succumb to a 'resting on their laurels' kind of attitude and would likely just shrug such a thing off. Had the director been present, I could see him being far more upset over the drawing of the branch not looking Japanese enough than the fact that a brown and orange wooly scarf was left on stage.
Perhaps you feel I'm overreacting. After all, it was just a scarf left on a piece of decor during rehearsal that later fell and remained on stage.
Well, what if I told you the same person responsible for forgetting their scarf has also forgotten to turn off their cell phone and then left it in their trunk back stage rather than leaving it in their dressing room? And that that same phone started ringing during the show? During a silent moment? While it's owner was onstage and therefore could not turn it off? And that that happened two shows ago?
Shit like that is frustrating. Shit like that being met with a shrug of the shoulders and a "That's so-and-so!" is frustrating. And a lot of the shrugging of the shoulders stems from the fact that you simply cannot criticize this person and nothing is ever their fault.
There's an expression in French that says there's never two without three. I wonder what the third on-stage surprise will be?
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Leg for Hire
Currently seeking replacement to fill in for my left leg.
Potential appendages should be short, extremely pale, and the dominant or 'good' leg.
Minimal flexibility required, strength a must.
Legs with weak ankles or bum knees need not apply.
Potential appendages should be short, extremely pale, and the dominant or 'good' leg.
Minimal flexibility required, strength a must.
Legs with weak ankles or bum knees need not apply.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
What He Said
The following is the current Facebook status of a friend of mine performing in Australia:
That being said... Amen, brother.
Which, of course, makes me think of this.
That being said... Amen, brother.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Reminder
"When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It's to enjoy each step along the way." - Wayne Dyer
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
To the Children That Were in the Audience Tonight
You may very well have saved my career.
Especially you, kid-who-played-air-guitar-during-my-number.
Thank you.
Especially you, kid-who-played-air-guitar-during-my-number.
Thank you.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Lost
There is a phenomenon in the acrobatic arts where abilities and skills suddenly disappear. This is typically referred to as 'losing a move'. There's no particular reason behind it and the lost skill can be one of the trickier moves in the repertoire or something as basic as a simple salto. Skills that were once performed without a second thought suddenly cause the acrobat to freeze, panic, bail, stumble like a rank amateur, or if you're me, all of these things plus crying in a corner.
How long does a skill remain lost? Could be a day, could be a week. Could be longer... Seeing as there isn't usually a clear or even a good reason for the skill to suddenly be unperformable, why would there be a tidy end to the embarrassment and frustration of losing a move?
If you haven't already guessed, I'm currently suffering from a lost move. And if you're particularly clever, you'll even know which one it is as I've mentioned struggling with fear and that move before. Only now, I can't seem to overcome it. In every other city I hem and haw and get all anxious about performing it, but I always manage to do it in the end. But this time...
I spent hours training the day of the run through. I did wheel at three different times in the day in my attempts to do the move. During the run through, I cried for the duration of my act and absolutely gave up mid-way on the way into the move.
The following day, the day of the premiere in this city, I spent an hour and a half training that one single move. The atmosphere started out quite jolly. Then, as I went through each preparatory figure I got more and more nervous. When it came time to do the move, I couldn't even make it past the stomach drop.
By the end, what I felt didn't even really feel like fear. It felt more like there was a very real and tangible wall that I just could not get passed. I would get in position to do the move and give up before the wheel even had a chance to start rolling. At one point, I was in position to do the move and drew a complete blank on how to actually execute it. When you've performed a move literally hundreds of times, suddenly forgetting how to do it is like suddenly forgetting how to walk!
In the end, I had a choice to make. And for the sake of the show, my act and my sanity, there was really only one option. As frustrating and embarrassing as it is, I had to cut the move from my act. I've put in a similar, though simpler, figure.
In order to work through this, I am taking some space from the offending move. I've written to the Wheel God for advice as well as a friend on the Dutch national team. I've been working moves that have nothing to do with the show in order to rekindle the love I know I have for the wheel, but haven't really felt lately. Truthfully, the loss of this move is rooted in something much deeper than fear. And I have some serious digging to do in order to get back up to scratch.
But that's an entirely different post.
How long does a skill remain lost? Could be a day, could be a week. Could be longer... Seeing as there isn't usually a clear or even a good reason for the skill to suddenly be unperformable, why would there be a tidy end to the embarrassment and frustration of losing a move?
If you haven't already guessed, I'm currently suffering from a lost move. And if you're particularly clever, you'll even know which one it is as I've mentioned struggling with fear and that move before. Only now, I can't seem to overcome it. In every other city I hem and haw and get all anxious about performing it, but I always manage to do it in the end. But this time...
I spent hours training the day of the run through. I did wheel at three different times in the day in my attempts to do the move. During the run through, I cried for the duration of my act and absolutely gave up mid-way on the way into the move.
The following day, the day of the premiere in this city, I spent an hour and a half training that one single move. The atmosphere started out quite jolly. Then, as I went through each preparatory figure I got more and more nervous. When it came time to do the move, I couldn't even make it past the stomach drop.
By the end, what I felt didn't even really feel like fear. It felt more like there was a very real and tangible wall that I just could not get passed. I would get in position to do the move and give up before the wheel even had a chance to start rolling. At one point, I was in position to do the move and drew a complete blank on how to actually execute it. When you've performed a move literally hundreds of times, suddenly forgetting how to do it is like suddenly forgetting how to walk!
In the end, I had a choice to make. And for the sake of the show, my act and my sanity, there was really only one option. As frustrating and embarrassing as it is, I had to cut the move from my act. I've put in a similar, though simpler, figure.
In order to work through this, I am taking some space from the offending move. I've written to the Wheel God for advice as well as a friend on the Dutch national team. I've been working moves that have nothing to do with the show in order to rekindle the love I know I have for the wheel, but haven't really felt lately. Truthfully, the loss of this move is rooted in something much deeper than fear. And I have some serious digging to do in order to get back up to scratch.
But that's an entirely different post.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Two Days
That is how long I've been back at work, and already, my legs look like this.
Looking at this picture, I can't help but think of summer contracts and the girls on the show all in skirts and all lamenting the fact that no matter how hard they try to look nice, their legs make them look like they've playing beach volleyball in a gravel pit.
Of course their legs were tanned. I always look like I'm two shades darker than chalk.
I have more bruises than appear in the photo. My legs are just so white that the resulting glare has made them difficult to photograph.
Looking at this picture, I can't help but think of summer contracts and the girls on the show all in skirts and all lamenting the fact that no matter how hard they try to look nice, their legs make them look like they've playing beach volleyball in a gravel pit.
Of course their legs were tanned. I always look like I'm two shades darker than chalk.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Do You Like Horses?
Are you connected to the internet somewhere in Canada?
If so, do I have a treat for you!
The CBC is currently showing a video of renowned equestrian show Cavalia!
The horse has always played a hugely important role in the circus. In fact, the foundation of modern circus has nothing to do with the acrobatic feats we associate with circus today, but with horses and trick riding! It's because of this that a circus ring is 13m in diameter. If you'd like to know more about the origins of modern circus, and it's father Philip Astley, go here.
If you'd like to stop learning about circus history and watch a circus show, go here!
If so, do I have a treat for you!
The CBC is currently showing a video of renowned equestrian show Cavalia!
The horse has always played a hugely important role in the circus. In fact, the foundation of modern circus has nothing to do with the acrobatic feats we associate with circus today, but with horses and trick riding! It's because of this that a circus ring is 13m in diameter. If you'd like to know more about the origins of modern circus, and it's father Philip Astley, go here.
If you'd like to stop learning about circus history and watch a circus show, go here!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
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