...of the weekend that flew by far too quickly, leaving me with the disconcerting realization that I accomplished nearly nothing of what I wanted in terms of writing (both thesis and creative) and that I have been completely over-socialized. Granted, in compensation, I saw an absolutely gorgeous Cirque du Soleil show which I shall squee about below, and spent time with very many people whom I enjoy. On the other hand, I am now exceptionally grumpy and stressed.



Also, I must now start looking for a new ballroom dance partner, since I affirmed about an hour ago that I cannot make the final competion available for me and my current partner before he goes off to graduate school. Therefore, quite reasonably, he wants to find another partner in the interim that will be able to compete with him. So...I am without partner. Arg. Moo.





So, Cirque du Soleil's Delirium.

The protagonists: jalenstrix, treyvadi, bkleber, noblessa, jesse, and neopanda

Having semi-successfully fought our way through the hideous rampaging hordes of baseball traffic in Baltimore, we arrived (unintentionally) fashionably late. Luckily, the show had a nice 20 minute intermission after the very first song, possibly because of the evil interfering baseball traffic. Thus, we caught the majority of the show.

And ah, what a show! - an amazing spectacle of visual imagery, haunting melodies, pounding drums, arcing bodies, fluid motion, and rich, vibrant color. Rather than being focused around the different standard circus type acts (silk ropes, trapeze, etc.), Delirium was unabashedly centered around the music and the dancers. (Of course, the circus acts that were present were gorgeous, particularly the silk rope artists.) The vocalists and instrumentalists were often near center stage, surrounded by a cadre of other performers moving in either perfect synchrony or harmonious asynchrony.

Of course, because it was Cirque du Soleil, the costumery was breath-taking, a beautiful meld of high-fashion quirkiness and excess. And, ah, the lighting effects! Sheer screens moved across and had images projected along them to give the illusion of a three-dimensional stage constantly shifting and changing: a forest of waving arms, ethereal sea spirits caressing the performers, buttterflies flitting across a rich green field alive with growing leaves. Also, for a good segment of the show, the entire stage was suffused in the most perfect shade of deep purple, with intermittent shots of luxurious turqouise.

And, oh, the drums! Pulsating, throbbing rhythms, viceral and hypnotic. And then the dancers, mixing so many different dance styles with their sharply angled movements and fluid grace, gyrating or leaping, seeming uninhibited by gravity. I was particularly enchanted by the tango-like dance where there were 2 same-sex couples.

Oh, the pretty! Such pretty. My only regret was that the soundtrack hasn't yet been released, so I can't procure those heady drum rhythms yet.