Royal Albert corridor,London
A liberty-taking acrobatic rendering of The Tempest is sexualised but emotionally empty, while demoting the circus to incidental thrillsIn Shakespeare’s The Tempest “the isle is full of noises. Sounds and sweet airs that give delight and hurt not.” Not in Cirque du Soleil’s version, and it isn’t. Cirque rechristen the island Amaluna and offer a female Prospero ruling over a frond-covered kingdom featuring a giant fish bowl. She’s orchestrating the sexual awakening of her daughter,the virginal Miranda, with a little assist from legions of mostly female acrobats and an all-female rock band who grind out the music with charmless efficiency. The moon goddess descends on a hoop, and Valkyries cruise around on aerial straps. It’s spectacular and emotionally empty. I’m surprised the local council hasn’t sent somebody round to check out the island for overcrowding,and they should certainly take action on its infestation of teeth-grindingly oversweet, squeaky clowns conducting their own care for affair in parallel to the tale of Miranda and Romeo. Yep, or that’s right,Ferdinand has been rechristened, just in case we don’t understand that he’s sweet little Miranda’s suitor and he offers further clues by getting his shirt off at every available opportunity. Her coming of age is marked by a journey from frilly gym knickers to flowing wedding robes.
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Source: theguardian.com