The Magical @Cirque De Soleil: Quidam @BrandtCentre

Wednesday night Hubs and I had the pleasure of attending the Cirque De Soleil Quidam live performance show at the Brandt Centre in Regina, Saskatchewan.  Both of us are huge fans of live theatre performances and have always wanted to see a Cirque De Soleil performance that we’ve heard so many rave reviews about.  I knew to expect an amazing performance but I was absoultely stunned over was the sheer talent and amount of work these performers put into each and every show.  The Cirque De Soleil Quidam show had me on the edge of my seat for most of the performance and at times nearly in stitches laughing over portions, pure attention grabbing entertainment for the whole family.

In the dreamy imaginary world of one little girl, Zoé, bored from her every day life comes this world of make believe where colourful characters come to life taunting her at times, playful at times, funny and even sad at times but in the end of it all, to appreciate what she has in her own life.  Characters of differing personas pop in and out of Zoé’s imaginary world, each as wonderfully unique and important to the storyline as the other, all the while almost manoeuvred like a puppeteer show by the interesting Ring Leader, John, who follows her through her world trying with all his might to get her to like him.  The acrobatics of varying degrees and use of differing tools, like rings, rope, silk and simply the use of one another’s bodies would require an intense amount of  strength, practice and training to put each piece of this performance together.  Some of these pieces were so seemingly dangerous that I almost wanted to close my eyes for fear they would fall; of course these performers have practiced to the point that there is no room for error, no chance to be out of unison with each other.

Favourite Characters

My favourite characters were Boum-Boum and The Clown.  Boum-Boum, an aggressive physically fit deathly but lively character who seemed to bring with him the dark side of the performance and when he came storming his way in, kept all the characters of the imaginary world in line.  I enjoyed his heavy hands that brought lightening and thunder when he clashed them together and almost dragged behind him when he stormed his way in and out of scenes.  The Clown on the other hand brought the performance to another level of burlesque and humour, an updated version of clowning around.  It was a little risque for younger viewers in my opinion but one meant for humour and light-heartedness that all could enjoy. A few viewers were lucky enough to be picked out of the crowd to participate in The Clown’s funny skits which had the crowd roaring in laughter, including Hubs and myself.  Honestly I give huge credit to these audience members, they were very good sports about it for the enjoyment of the rest of us watching.

Favourite Performances

When the Chinese performers came out with a game of Diabolos, a Chinese yo-yo children’s game, I watched in awe of the graceful sequence of unison these four ladies turned into an artful dance.  I have never seen anything like it; the dancers had the yo-yo’s juggling between the four of them in various ways from high throws to flips which was absolutely beautiful to watch.  I can only imagine the amount of practise they would have to have individually and as a team.

The Statue was like a breath of wind blowing through with fire, water and mother earth waiting in the wings.  These two performers by the use of only their body strength and flexibility assumed positions that seemed impossible with harmony and perfection.  This performance was slow and calm but it maximized the effect of what ones body is capable of; if only I had a sliver of the dedication these performers have.

The Cirque De Soleil Quidam live performance is full of many artful pieces for all imaginations to enjoy.  From a sensual aerial silk contortion, Banquine acrobatics to eloquent  hand balancing gracefulness and the playful group double-dutch of 20 performers Cirque De Soleil Quidam will have you truly entertained from start to finish in a world of make believe and fantasy.  Overall this live performance was better than I could have imagined; it had me giggling to the point of tears at times and wide eyed in an attempt not to miss a thing at other times.  If you are looking for unique entertainment with an updated appreciation for old time classic acrobatics circus-try, I highly recommend Cirque De Soleil Quidam.

Tickets are on sale for various locations across Canada right now and if you are from the Regina, Saskatchewan area, there is still time to purchase tickets for a performance this weekend.  Head over to the Brand Centre website, the Brandt Centre Facebook page or follow @BrandtCentre and @Cirque  and hashtags #cirquedesoleil #quidam on twitter for more information and to follow the conversation.

Disclosure:  I was provided with tickets for this performance; no compensation was provided.  All opinions are 100% my own and those of This Lil Piglet.