My usual mantra concerning clowns are that they are always, at best, a necessary evil. In my experience the humour is low-brow, annoying, and ususally serves as padding to the superior action that goes on stage elsewhere in performance. That said, my friend had told me great things about Slava's Snowshow, and I'd previously seen a segment of the act in Cirque du Soleil's Alegría. I know that since I was never going to see snow in London this year, Slava's Snowshow was probably being the closest thing to living in the real thing.
The chorus of forlorn clowns (Source: Slava's Snowshow).
Concieved and written by Slava Polunin, the piece is a series of sketches that are loosely tied together through various esoteric symbolism and themes of loneliness. The humour of the clowns is surprisingly charming, and very sweet, not relying on the usual toilet humour or slapstick. The talent of the performers is awing, who move with adorable choreography and endearing innocence. There is no real language spoken, and instead choreography and music dictate the mood while the performer's movement and the audience laugh. Only one or two sketches are devoid of humour, the rest are wonderfully original, endearing and whimsical. Particularly entertaining scenes included a hilariously dramatic, repetitive falling off a seat to Mozart's Requiem and the capsizing of a ship which involves sharks doing floor dives among the mist on stage. The piece de resistance is the finale, after a tender and somewhat sorrowful display an elderly clown causes a thunderous snowstorm which sweeps the space with thousands of cut snowflakes. It really is gorgeous and truly magical, and needs to be lived to be believed.
Clowns in a boat sketch (Source: Wikipedia).
Attention could be easily lost in a large theatre but there is also a fair amount of audience interaction, which is just enchanting. A giant spider web passes over the audience, snow falls and sits among the seats and giant spheres lumber across the space, moved by the hands underneath. It's wonderful to watch, but my issue with the piece was that due to where I was sitting it was impossible to be immersed into the action. The piece is clearly made for smaller theatres, since much of this interaction doesn't reach people sitting in the nosebleed seats. While I had a bunch of awful children sitting behind me, I felt bad that they didn't get to be caught in the grand finale and feel any snow, and likewise, everyone who handled the giant bouncing balls had no sense of space and kept hitting them back to the front.
The lighting is gorgeous and sensual, suitably matching the moods of the sketches on stage. The music is also fitting - simplistic, quirky and sweet, however somewhat occasionally tacky. The use of Carmina Burana in the finale is a bit jarring since it feels like some original scoring that isn't so bombastic could have enhanced the magic even more.
It's slow to take off - and at times I wondered why I was there - but at certain points in the piece there is a wonderful whimsical charm to the piece, and once it draws you in you are kept firmly engaged. If you are going to see the piece, make sure you see it up close and in the middle - staying at the side really removes you from the action and it's somewhat disappointing to be watching the spectacle rather than living it. A lot of things contribute to making this an enchanting piece of theatre, and it's easy to see why so many people have been swept away by it.
Slava's Snowshow performed at the Royal Festival Hall from December 17th - January 7th.
My rendezvous with Flipside Circus was unfortunately not realised when I got lost in Paddington after The Oxford Girl. I managed to get myself to Roma Street by 6:30pm, and as it turned out I had time to make it to the Gremlins' Gravity is Only the Beginning.
The premise of the show is that a family of Gremlins are about to launch their new budget no-frills airline and realise the Gremlin dream of flying. While ticket sales are going well and the maiden voyage is scheduled to take place, they've run into the hurdle that they're yet to actually build the plane.
I don't have patience for clowns and the art of clowning. The most contact I've had with them have been from Cirque du Soleil productions, and even then I've always thought that clowns, at best, are a necessary evil. Having an entire performance based around the physicality and comedic timing isn't something I particularly enjoyed or something that I'd like to experience again.
Saying that, the text, jokes, and one liners that were included in the script were very smart and witty, and the troupe is in fine form - they parade around with youthful and endearing exuberance, and the three principals Röxoff, Møfball & Botölf seem to never tire or waver in energy. With the exception of the patriarchal Röxoff, the entire ensemble perform in an impressive imaginary language. There were several segments that were excellently choreographed and orchestrated and some very nice moments. I also greatly admire the sly business strategy of getting the entire audience to walk through their sponsors shop.
I can see the appeal, and I appreciate that a lot of people were really enjoying their time. Just not something I can enjoy or can discuss at great length.
Tickets for 'The Gremlins: Gravity is Only the Beginning' are from $12 (if you want a $12, make sure you ask for one, otherwise it's a default $14 - plus a $1.95 booking fee), and is showing at Anywhere Theatre Festival until May 19th. Duration of approximately 35 minutes. Book by visiting Anywhere Theatre Festival's website.
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