Minggu, 17 Juli 2011
Minggu, 10 Juli 2011
Quad God Miguel Remains Alone in His Greatness; Other Would-Bes Fly Short; Latest Candidate Ivo Silva, Jr., Has 5, Vows to Soar for More ...
29 years ago today in Tucson, Arizona at 8:44 PM -- Miguel Vazquez accomplished his first quadruple somersault in performance!
Miguel Vazquez returns to flight, Las Vegas, Nevada, October 2010, assisted by David Vazquez. Photo from "The Last Great Flyer," courtesy of Philip Weyland.They and we waited and wondered, could another trap star achieve those near-impossible four revolutions en route from fly bar to catcher's hands? Seems not to have happened. This was to have been the season of Ivo Silva, Jr. of the Flying Caceres. He flew for the Big Show, landing the quad during the season-opening engagement in Florida land, landing another four across the season, but mostly flirted with an elusive dream. I saw him give it a try when Ringling-Barnum hit Oakland last summer. He did not fly impressively close to hitting the intended target, a firm pair of waiting hands, which left me with a distinct impression of an artist likely chasing an impossible dream. Fate can be cruel. Or maybe it's a matter of "luck," when it strikes, being just as cruel, fooling the recipient into a hopeless addiction, like a slot machine Johnny down to his last penny.
It's not all bleak. Trapeze is being reinvented in China and other lands. Even the Caceres, to their credit, delivered a terrifically rich and varied routine, as I recall. Ivo, who did not enjoy the emotional support and continuity of a family, as do most other great flyers, is Ringling history. He has left the troupe to appear with Cirque du Soleil at Orlando, and he has not given up on his quad quest. Read his comments left here, in his own words!
Phil Weyland, at work on his documentary, The Last Great Flyer, about legendary quad god Miguel Vazquez, need not fret his title being trumped and bumped by the Next Great Flyer, wherever he/she may be.
Maybe it's a matter of context. Aerial art, I fearfully assume, has lost much of its luster here in the U.S. as Americans in general seem to prefer glancing away from hazardous airborne acrobatics. Lots of reasons: mechanics strangling the lifeblood out of daredevilry; a new class of anti-daring circus trick snob; the rise of the sensual silks lending welcome complexity and elevated sparkle to the new school of circus ballet -- nothing potentially messy, please! (We won't discuss how hazardous the bed sheets, too, can be.)
The quad is a "trick" just like the triple. And even three somersaults seem a less sure thing than they were 20 years ago. As often as not, they are dramatically announced, giving the circus who touts them the muscle it may not possess. Which is why, I suppose, rare it is these days to witness a flyer, having failed the first attempt, going for a second. I remember when they ALWAYS went back.
On Circus Vargas, across four visits in recent years, I vaguely recall watching the act it links, in rimgmaster verbiage, to Monte Carlo gold turning a triple just once; every other time, they did not even try to, nor did they try much else. But, oh, can they posture!
Meanwhile, the Weyland interviews continue apace, with more film shoots set for Vegas. Phil estimates a wrap up around this time next year. I'm hoping he can turn his Big Theme into TV documentary gold; and maybe, then, he'll turn his lenses onto other aspects of Spangleland. We got the depressing PBS take on Big Apple Circus realities; we got Arsenic for Elephants. Let's hope here comes something better.
7.10.11
Sabtu, 09 Juli 2011
Jumat, 08 Juli 2011
Minggu, 03 Juli 2011
Zarkana Reviewed Looks Like a Winner: Cirque du Soleil Returns, if Submerged in Makeup and Narrative Nonsense, to its CIRCUS Roots
Update, 7/5/11 From the New York Post, this from Frank Scheck's 2-1/2 star review reflects a nagging undercurrent of impatience through most of the notices:
"At this point in our relationship with Cirque du Soleil, familiarity is beginning to breed contempt. "Zarkana," set to occupy Radio City Music Hall until the fall, is the prolific troupe's latest attempt to establish a semi-permanent beachhead here after taking Las Vegas. But while this is no slip-up like the Cirque's "Banana Shpeel," it offers little we haven't seen before.
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/theater/cirque_is_too_square_sEYyoNh2eKTXzPuralZPFL#ixzz1REnCLqcu
End of update.
Just a brief update here. I looked at a few major Gotham reviews, Time to New York Times. Usual grumbling about obtuse allusions to a vague story, but overall, the notices I've ready are fully embracing show's solid circus offerings, noting with relief, not another Banana Shpeel.
Next up: Iris in Hollywood.
"At this point in our relationship with Cirque du Soleil, familiarity is beginning to breed contempt. "Zarkana," set to occupy Radio City Music Hall until the fall, is the prolific troupe's latest attempt to establish a semi-permanent beachhead here after taking Las Vegas. But while this is no slip-up like the Cirque's "Banana Shpeel," it offers little we haven't seen before.
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/theater/cirque_is_too_square_sEYyoNh2eKTXzPuralZPFL#ixzz1REnCLqcu
End of update.
Just a brief update here. I looked at a few major Gotham reviews, Time to New York Times. Usual grumbling about obtuse allusions to a vague story, but overall, the notices I've ready are fully embracing show's solid circus offerings, noting with relief, not another Banana Shpeel.
Next up: Iris in Hollywood.
Sunday Morning with Fred Bradna: No Deadbeats in His Greatest Show on Earth
"He must be at once a showman, a stage director, a martinet, a diplomat, a family counselor, a musician, a psychologist, an animal keeper and a weather prophet. Since horses are the keystone of circus entertainment, he must be an accomplished equestrian. He must know sufficient about all circus techniques [tumbling to tight wire] to discern at a glance whether specialists in these areas are shirking and, in the case of animal acts, whether the sin of commission or omission is the fault of the human or the animal star."This is not just theoretical. A carton by Mr. H.T. Webster, originator of 'The Timid Soul.' was pasted on mirrors in Ringling dressing tents for years. It depicted two aerialists standing on a high platform in the big top. One says to the other: 'If I thought Fred Bradna wasn't looking, I'd skip the next trick.'"
From his book The Big Top. Bradna served as equestrian director for Barnum & Bailey and then Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, retiring at the end of the 1946 season.
