"Alegria" by Cirque du Soleil a paradox, story of contrasts, plays Arco Arena in Sacramento to 6/6

Alegria/Cirque du Soleil/The White Singer/Costumes: Dominque Lemieux

The White Singer sings the title song, Cirque's award winning Alegria.

Alegria, Cirque du Soleil’s arena show playing at Arco Arena in Sacramento through Monday, June 6, 2010, is a baroque show and about contrasts. The paradoxical show, said Sheryl-Lynne Valensky the assistant creative director over the phone on Friday evening, is about the beautiful and the ugly; the old and the new.

Alegria is one of the oldest Cirque shows and began she said when the internet was exploding. It was a time when traditions were altered. So Alegria is about keeping an open mind and embracing changes. Cirque shows remain universal and usually have vague story lines. Cirque tells the stories through visuals while featuring performers of certain athletic specialties in each show, such as power track, synchronized trapeze, contortion, Russian bars, aerial high bars.

Slideshow below reflecting the lineup of acts along with the gorgeous and fascinating costumes by Dominique Lemieux. All photos by Al Seib or by Camirand.

A joyful and macabre baroque cabaret dream and a word about those clowns

To get an idea of what the show looks like I watched the DVD from NetFlix. It’s elegant and decadent, baroque and primitive, the contrasts making the show look like some macabre cabaret dream. There are traditional clowns reminding us of what a circus used to look like, bookending acts. They clown around in imitation of the awe inspiring or death defying feats of the young challengers. The young take to the air in a display of energy and vitality to say the least, in contrast to the old and disenfranchised such as the nostalgic old birds. All the while the clowns quietly notice and highlight how different the new circus acts are in contrast to their hoboesque selves. The new order seems to be over their heads. The pace gets very slow and pedestrian and indeed the clowns remain down to earth. Clowns basically watch and provide social commentary in contrast to the fluid and seductive to manic or frenetic pace of the athletes. Why does that feel so familiar to me?

As Cirque aims to be universal and cross over the centuries, there are no specific references to the mortgage crisis or student loans being the next predatory crisis, ruining lives and rarely dischargeable even in bankruptcy. No BP oil spill . . . leave all this to Beach Blanket Babylon. Alegria is an escape, like running away to join the circus.

A humbler and quieter reflection on changing times

Alegria is a quieter show compared to the astounding and breathtaking and wryly funny Varekai . . . Varekai with it's volcanic explosive finale to it's French lounge lizard searching for the illusive spotlight, which I also watched on DVD from NetFlix. Video clips of Alegria are also on YouTube.com. Alegria is not a big Vegas extravaganza like the new Viva ELVIS. It's quainter like Ovo. For more click below.

Cirque du Soleil's new Viva ELVIS at new ARIA resort and casino in Las Vegas, via Virgin America (part two)

Cirque du Soleil's new Viva ELVIS (part one)

Ovo's microcosmic world backstageg with Spiderwoman and LadyBug

Ovo promises world of ladybug love and biodiversity.

Ovo evokes color, sound, audaciousness of Brazil

Moroever Sheryl says what’s different about the new arena adaptations is the reach. Arenas typically stand hundreds of miles outside the cities where Cirque erects le grand chapiteau or offers permanent shows in theaters such as Las Vegas. The audiences for an arena show are likely to have seen music acts but nothing like Cirque. Sheryl talks of that “Wow” factor, where the audience has no idea what to expect. Alegria remains a family show that you can get depth from if you wish or you can just watch.

There isn’t a lot of technology as the show as a product of Cirque is about the human body. Alegria being an arena show that crosses state lines means no child performers, everybody is over eighteen. There’s too much moving with eight shows a week, being in a different city each week, ten weeks on and two weeks off. Alegria features fifty five artists, traveling to eighteen countries, ninety six individuals on tour. The tour includes 400 costumes and travels with it’s own washing machines.

You either love it or you hate it says Sheryl about life on the road, there’s no it’s okay.

What’s different about an arena presentation?

It’s high, tight to the stage, says Sheryl. Audiences have a good sense of the aerial acts when sitting higher. Sheryl, being Canadian, attempts to convey the size of the backstage necessary by talking hockey stadiums and the blue line. Sheryl says May 27 marked one year with the arena show. She also mentioned it would be four hours loading out of Fresno. They would be busing to Sacramento because the trip would be under four hours, otherwise they would fly. Tuesday, June first would be eight hours set up, then training and the show. Typically it’s 3200 to 7000 people in an arena. Sacramento holds 4200. Toronto holds 7300.

Toronto is Sheryl’s hometown. “ It’s a concrete jungle”. The first thing she said to me on the phone was she went to Yosemite during the Fresno show and she saw bears. Then she went to the mall, she said delightedly.
She’s been with Alegria for five years and has worked with three shows including Saltimbanco and Corteo. She’s stage manager. That means she’s cheerleader, den mother, warden and troubleshooter. She’s been in musical theater and worked with Disney, Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, the Stratford Shakespeare troupe in Ontario; television, film, comedy, opera. Note Stratford just came to ACT in San Francisco and performed Phaedre.

She said Canada has a smaller population though so there are fewer shows. She talks of the diversity of Cirque though and how it’s a mini United Nations. She mentions learning how Russians have a different Christmas and Easter is Sacred. Europe has a different Mothers and Fathers Day.

The performers go out to eat together and don’t even speak each other’s language.

What are the differences in responses of Cirque’s Alegria audiences in different cities?

Some are familiar with the fire act. Other cities are more gymnastics. Salt Lake City had the Olympics so the gymnasts got huge applause, said Sheryl. Two cities loved the clowns. Philadelphia loves comedy to the clowns were popular. In South America it’s the juggling and fire dance, traditional circus acts. Brazil and Chile have circus schools.

Is Slava of Slava’s Snow Show actually in Alegria? Slava created the act and selected the artists but he’s not in the Cirque show himself.

The Strong Man who appears in the DVD has been retired. Sheryl explains while the show has been updated since the DVD was taped, with new tricks and new jumps and new performers, a strong man has a short life span and not many exist. That act was changed before the arena show.

Alegria's Nostalgic Old Birds represent tradition and stability; the Bronx are gold, they are tough; the angels in blue represent constant change and they challenge the old order. Alegria takes the traditional and incorporates change. The show is about accepting differences, being judgment free. Change isn’t good or bad. Alegria is about compromise, the youth get along with the old birds for modernization.

The fire dancer represent youth and perform a warrior dance, a real ritual. Alegria has the number one and two competitors in the world. The dance comes from the South Pacific.

The oldest performer would be Yuri, the 67 year old clown.

The clown on the Russian bar just changed.

Tamir, the real performer after which the character is named, just left Alegria and went to Totem. Tamir is an emperor and oversees all like a big kid. She’s female. In the show she appeases the blackbird by feeding it. "It needs to be wooed to compromise" says Sheryl. The performer is a power tracker.

Alegria musicians/Cirque du Soleil/Costumes: Dominique Lemieux

The musicians also interact on stage with the performers, as when the drummer in white interacts with a fire dancer; The accordion player interacts with the contortionists for balance and each wear white.

Alegria has won awards for it's title song, performed by the White Singer with dignity, reverence and a ringing clarity as if she's making a royal declaration to the people of this joyous state.

Full price tickets run forty to ninety dollars for an adult.

Childrens' tickets thirty two to seventy two dollars.

Senior/Student/Military thirty six to eighty one dollars.

Family packages start at $32.50 to $70.00 each person for a family of four.

Ticketmaster charges a facility fee of $2.50 per ticket plus a convenience fee of $11.00 per ticket.

For more info: www.cirquedusoleil.com

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