There are two big circus trends nowadays in New York. You can hit people over the head with a loud, garish, pseudo-poetic extravaganza such as Cirque du Soleil’s recent Zarkana held at the Radio City Music Hall or you can go small and alternative, with irreverent young performers, often in street clothes – like the 7 Fingers company’s Traces, currently being held at the Union Square Theatre.
Between the two is the favourite Big Apple Circus, back at Damrosch Park for a 34th season with Dream Big.
The atmosphere here is old-fashioned and intimate. Because everything happens in or above a small single ring, there’s no need for binoculars to watch the acrobats, contortionists, aerialists, magicians and clowns. This is circus the way it’s meant to be: a fun experience for kids young and old. The Big Apple Circus stays sharp by spiking big-top traditions with novel additions – such as this porcupine.
Dream Big may be its most eye-popping production yet, thanks to director/ choreographer Renaud Doucet and set/costume designer André Barbe, both of whom have extensive experience in opera.
The concept this time around is that an “imagination machine” allows people to dream up the show’s act. Mainly this is an excuse to have everybody cavort in colourful, downright nutty outfits. Many look straight out of a Tim Burton movie: Russian juggler Dmitry Chernov has an Edward Scissorhands vibe, and China’s Shandong Acrobats look like extras from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Even the animal routines have a twist. Horses prancing around are fairly common, but when was the last time you saw an African porcupine, a Vietnamese potbellied pig and a capybara do tricks? The last gets the show’s biggest laugh, which involves the Taio Cruz hit Dynamite.
That’s quite a feat right there, considering the stiff competition. A welcome addition to the troupe is Dutch jester Muriel Brugman, a dizzy blonde who teases audience members and plays a hilariously dopey assistant to magician Scott Nelson. And of course there’s Grandma the clown (Barry Lubin), for 25 years the iconic face of the Big Apple Circus.
The bad news is that Dream Big is Grandma’s farewell show. The good news is that once again she proves that you can’t go wrong with classics. Spitting water on unsuspecting victims, indulging in pratfalls and mugging: You don’t need to tart up this stuff – it just doesn’t get old.
The show runs until next January 8.