When it comes to the world of circus, what would you expect? Colourful costumes, daring tricks and variety acts perhaps?
For one artistic organisation, this concept means so much more than just performance. Montreal-based Cirque Kalabanté is bringing their show Afrique en Cirque to the London stage for the first time, and what audiences have the pleasure of witnessing during this strictly limited run, can only be described as spectacle after spectacle.
In an unusual fashion, the show opens with an introduction directly addressed to the audience from Artistic Director and Choreographer Yamoussa Bangoura, setting the ritual-like scene of traditional African life. The Queen Elizabeth Hall stage comes to life in the presence of a live band of Afro-jazz instrumentalists as a variety of acrobatic acts, guised in a story that feels like a daily routine unfolds one by one, with each performer taking to the stage in their own spotlight moments. Over the course of 90 minutes, instruments are manipulated across the sound spectrum; every melody is produced live, be that vocal or instrumental, reverberating across the Hall as if in an odyssey.
The most distinguishing aspect of the show from any other traditional circus is certainly its one-of-a-kind infusion of not only movement, but also live rhythm and vocal music synchronised to the act onstage. Whether that involves solo or group acrobats, each act achieves the same degree of beauty, with nuances at their very best as audiences hold their breaths at one moment and triumphantly erupts into applause at the next, a testament to the admirable trust between performers and audiences - a unique multidirectional relationship only seen in live entertainment.
Storytelling is crucial to the performance, as the prominent audience interaction throughout evidently demonstrates; the troupe fully embraces the element of unpredictability as audiences are asked, in rather engaging segments, to clap and cheer on some eye-popping stunts, or to imitate spoken word - foreign language, that is - the increasingly complex call and response leaving many in hysterics while serving as a powerful reminder that movement and meaning can always be universally communicated without language barriers.
In true theatrical style, the most climactic acts are saved until last - normally one would take notes of outstanding aspects in a performance as a reviewer, but rarely is a scene so breathtaking that eyes are simply transfixed to the stage. It is therefore fair to say, a work of art like Afrique en Cirque combining elaborate skill, fearlessness and gracefulness joyfully celebrated through a marriage of cultures - one spectacle that has to be seen to be believed.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (5*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review | photography by Wendell Tedoro and Peter Graham
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