Just when you thought you had seen it all, Cirque du Soleil’s newest show comes along and blows your mind once again. LUZIA: A Waking Dream of Mexico has landed in Toronto with a colourful and mesmerizing production.
The show takes you on a dream-like journey with visions of Mexico with its natural beauty, music, culture, and soul. But it’s not the Mexico portrayed as we know it. This Mexico is created with dreams, memories, experiences, and encounters that are deeply rooted in Mexican identity. Air, earth, water, and living creatures play important roles. And like a vacation, LUZIA encourages you to abandon the outside world and escape even if it’s just for a couple of hours.
Cirque du Soleil’s mission in all their shows is to “invoke the imagination, provoke the senses and evoke the emotions of people around the world.” The foundation of their shows, which began in 1984 and was formed by a group of Quebec-based street performers, is to showcase the acrobatic talents of humans, and today they have performers from all over the world with 19 different shows currently running.
If you’re familiar with their productions, you may wonder what they could possibly do that is different? Under LUZIA’s “Grand Chapiteau,” performers pique our curiosity once again and show us how incredible the human body can really be. Performers soar in the air, balance on sticks and masterfully contort on the ground. They juggle more than two-hands full and swing like you’ve never witnessed before.
But there are definitely more surprises in this production and that’s what the creative team at Cirque du Soleil kept in mind when they were building the acts. For example, water serves as an incredible source of inspiration that has never been seen before in a Cirque du Soleil show and had us wondering, “how did they do that?” once again. Water is found in all shapes and forms in Mexico – rain can be refreshing showers or torrential downpours and keeps this show flowing.
There are so many great acts to see! A delightful ‘Football Dance’ is a really fun act that plays tribute to the highly celebrated sport in Mexico with a friendly match which doesn’t stop even when it rains.
The solo male contortionist surrounded by candles is like human taffy. Pulling and knotting his body in all sorts of unimaginable ways that you have to see for your own eyes.
Swings delight when two of the cast are mounted on a moving turntable stage, having performers fling from one to the next –another first for Cirque du Soleil.
Of course, Cirque du Soleil comedic acts are always well-loved. From beach clown to dancing cactus to clown scuba diving, they are welcome breaks from all the other moments when we collectively hold our breath.
The stage itself is a feat of design with its parts moving in all different directions, offering great sight lines in the tent. Set designer, Eugenio Caballero, wanted to make sure that everyone in the audience would have a great view of the acts as well as the grandeur of Mexico’s monumental wonders. The focal point is the huge disk that towers over the stage. It represents the sun, moon, and Aztec calendar and moves in all directions. Speaking of the views, the air-conditioned tent seats approximately 2,600 spectators. So, there really is no bad seat in this house!
Cirque du Soleil’s LUZIA is now under the Grand Chapiteau at Toronto’s Port Lands until October 16, 2016. For more information and tickets visit www.cirquedusoleil.com/luzia
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