By Ash Cottrell
It was quite the razzle-dazzle gala at the historic, Melbourne Athenaeum Theatre at the Paris end of Collins Street last Thursday night as we all rolled up, rolled up, to see what this contemporary circus act had in store for its wearied-by-the-cold, Melbourne crowd. It was opening night of Cirque Bon Bon and the question on my lips was…could they turn up the heat?
Once upon a time, indeed up until the advent of television in Australia, the travelling circus occupied a large portion of what we historically came to know as entertainment. While it would be fair to say it is much more fringe nowadays, I’ve always been partial to the death-defying component of circus performance and try to see as many shows as I can, that fall under its broad banner throughout the year. A common element that seems to permeate many of these performances is a sense of fun and frivolity and that was certainly the case here.
Cirque Bon Bon only ran for a hot second (three nights) but packed some impressive punches in key, hero acts that stole the show. Brought to us by former Cirque Du Soleil Assistant Creative Director, Ash Jacks and choreographer, Julieann Nugent, Cirque Bon Bon has evidently been having an impressive run on the domestic circuit with sold out shows in Queensland, most recently. The standout performances for me were undoubtedly the extraordinarily impressive contortionist and foot archery performer, Shannen Michaela whom I was interested to learn later, held a Guinness World Record for foot archery speed. Niche indeed! I was also particularly taken with the aerial hoop contortion artist, Ashleigh Roper who dazzled us at a height in a stunning bejewelled leotard and against the backdrop of an incredibly romantic and expertly chosen cover of, Can’t Help Falling in Love. The saying, not all that glitters is gold has never really meant much to me so anything that dazzles, twirls, sparkles and/or delights, I’m on the hook.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the wonderfully synchronistic duo, Emma Goh and Scott Lazarevich who also lit up the stage on more than one occasion bringing athleticism, precision and the added element of surprise to the fold.
While I felt that the imposed audience interaction in this production dragged somewhat and moments of the choreographed dancing appeared less polished, elements such as costume design and lighting were on point and really worked beautifully together to enhance the overall production value of the performance.
Ultimately and without question, circus performers always blow me away. Their physicality, appetite for the unusual and commitment to (in many cases), the farthest corners of the imagination delight and amaze. I always come away from a circus performance feeling remorseful for whatever undercooked gym appearance I’ve made that week. Something Mario, Queen of the Circus, our emcee for the evening said at the commencement of the show really stuck with me on this occasion. In an attempt to get the audience on board early on, he implored us to clap and cheer if we saw something that we couldn’t do ourselves. To me, this is often the lasting substance of a show of this genre. I take my notional hat off to the creativity, commitment to craft and imagination that makes for circus. I also thank the talented artists for their entertainment and for providing an otherwise quiet school night with just enough razzle-dazzle for this cold Melbournian.
