Varekai: the world in our dreams

“Impossible is only a word.”

Cirque du Soleil’s Varekai production proves it. Witnessing this world for the “nomadic soul” was truly a magical experience for me, all thanks to Sun Life Financial, one of the official sponsors for the touring show.

My big sister and I attended the weekend performance last June 25 at the Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) across the Quirino Grandstand at Rizal Park. The show started at exactly 3:30pm, and went on for two hours with a 25-minute break. Two performers in red suits started to roam around the VIP seats and dragged people who asked for directions to the centre stage. I thought they were foreign ushers amusing the crowd before the show, but they were actually Joanna and Steven already pulling off one of their hilarious clown acts.

Varekai portrays an interesting story of a mysterious world “where something else is possible.” The act started with the Skywatcher, a mad scientist collecting and transforming sounds using his junk invention. He immediately reminded me of Mr. Bean with his funny pantomime acts.

Then came the fall of Icarus into the world of Varekai, and I suddenly remembered our Mythology lesson about Icarus and his father flying away from their prison, the labyrinth using their improvised wings, and how Icarus fell into the depths of the ocean after getting too close to the sun and melting the candle wax that held his wings together.

The adventures of Icarus began to unfold, with The Guide and the rest of the creatures of Varekai teaching him to get back to his feet and fly again, and the Betrothed capturing his heart and guiding him as well.

Varekai has 13 marvelous acts. The Aerial Hoop almost made us fall off our seats with the acrobat’s graceful, precise and flexible moves while she used the hoop as her only support.

The flight of Icarus was equally jaw-dropping as he portrayed his entrapment by suspending high into the air using a net. We would all shout in surprise when he curled himself up with the net’s support and rappelled all the way almost instantly until his face was nearly an inch away from the stage floor, while still keeping that graceful and dramatic gestures.

I admired the Water Meteors act, where three young acrobats whirled ropes with metal meteors attached to the ends. Then they would throw the ropes high into the air, perform acrobatic moves and catch the ropes in a much synchronized move and accurate timing.

Water Meteor

The serene act of the Handbalancing on Canes would make your heart stop as an acrobat gracefully balanced herself on strategically placed canes, while the Solo on Crutches would touch your heart as the physically-challenged acrobat darted his way on the center stage and performed with amazing agile and graceful moves.

Handbalancing on Canes

In between the breath-taking performances came the entertaining Clown Acts, which literally locked my jaws for laughing so hard, especially when Steven delivered a serene song with a spotlight emphasizing him, and then it would be placed on another spot literally out of his reach. In the end we found out it was Joanna who comically manipulated the spotlight in different directions.

Clown Acts

My big sister and I enjoyed the Icarian Games, where members of the same family performed the ancient discipline of circus of human juggling. We were also amused by the Georgian Dance portraying their struggles to gain freedom, and the Slippery Surface act where acrobats intertwined with each other into majestic plants and flowers and skated onto the specially designed sliding surface.

The Juggling Russian Swings seriously made us all go crazy, as acrobats propelled in two Russian swings, literally flew like Superman and landed on a cloth canvas. Our screams just got louder when the acrobats even soared from one swing to another.

We all made a standing ovation after the show and when the Cirque du Soleil performers all came out and bowed. I remembered how my palms itched in pain for clapping but I didn’t stop as the Solo on Crutches,who was just almost five feet away, smiled at me.

Solo on Crutches

Such intricate and elegant detail on the performers’ costumes, especially on the Slippery Surface act added to the almost-real existence of Varekai, making me believe I’m in the unknown world myself. The live music, with a hint of Latin culture inspired by the 2002 Varekai production gave an overwhelming emotion that even though you didn’t know the language used you could still understand it.

Slippery Surface

Truly, impossible is only a word. Aside from Cirque du Soleil’s never-before-seen performance, it’s simply amazing that this world-class show is a Tower of Babel story with a happy ending, with 130 cast and crew of 25 nationalities, namely Canada, China, Russia, Brazil, Australia, USA, Spain, Italy, UK, Ukraine, Georgia, Germany, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, France, Argentina, Netherlands, Hungary, Belgium, New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico, Serbia and Sweden.

Dominic Champagne

Varekai is written and directed by Dominic Champagne, performed by the world-class Cirque du Soleil of Canada and produced by Nitin Sawhney.

We all want to go to a world “where something else is possible.” Varekai is a show of a lifetime you certainly don’t want to miss! Get your tickets online now at www.hoopla.ph or visit the on-site box office at the Grand Chapiteau across the Quirino Grandstand. For more information, contact 775-0939, 881-0947, 0919-4508125 and 0917-4436463. The show runs from June 22-July 24 only.