Cirque du Soleil’s “Alegria” Amazes

Feb 26, 2010 by Cynthia    3 Comments    Posted under: Austin-tatious Events

Cirque du Soleil’s touring “Alegría” show wrapped the local leg of their tour last weekend at the Cedar Park Center. Originally created in 1994, “Alegría,” whose name derives from the Spanish word for “joy”, is one of the Canadian company’s most popular shows to date. It was my first trip out to the new amphitheater opening back in September 2009 and currently home to the Texas Stars hockey team. The sold out show filled the 6,800 seats to capacity so there wasn’t much elbowroom and with my knees bumping against the seat in front of me, I felt a little like a sardine. Parking also was a bit of a pain, with an additional $10 fee on top of the ticket price. However, once the lights dimmed, the show itself was magical.

While I have experienced a taste of the ethereal Cirque du Soleil entertainment before, only hazy memories remain of the cabaret-style “Zumanity” show I attended in Vegas a few years ago. This might be due to the fact that staying at the Circus Circus Casino had nearly oversaturated my fascination with circus arts or maybe simply because a week in Vegas is somewhat like riding a Tilt-A-Whirl several times in a row, with the way the bright lights make the nights bleed into days. I do vividly recall a mesmerizing contortionist/tumbling/synchronized swimming bit performed by two enchanting ladies in a giant glass fishbowl that was truly unforgettable.

This less risqué but no less satisfying version did not disappoint, maintaining the same fantastic, otherworldly quality with elaborate costumes, the incredible new age musical score of René Dupéré performed live onstage and amazing feats of strength and grace that serve as trademarks of any Cirque show. Even with the clowns, fire dancing, juggling, Russian bars (don’t think vodka, think bendable bars perched across the shoulders of two men like an impossible balance beam that fearless acrobats do back flips on) and effortless looking tumbling (there was a point when half the floor converted into trampolines), one of my favorite performances involved a dancer perched inside a metal ring like an oversize hula hoop, where he took a cartwheel stance and twirled endlessly just like a spinning quarter. Still, if I had to choose, the male and female paired synchronized flying trapeze act would have to be my ultimate favorite, with the gravity defying bungee dancer a close second, followed finally by the identical twin and seemingly boneless female contortionists (I particularly coveted their feathery capes).

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