‘Like a spark of life shining’

‘Like a spark of life shining’

The mystical Cirque du Soleil has cast a spell over the Santa
Monica Pier with ‘Alegria,’ a magical world where nothing is what
it seems. Director Gilles Ste-Croix tells the powerful ‘story of
emotion’ behind Alegria.

By Jennifer Richmond

Daily Bruin Staff

Before critics could think of their questions or get out their
pads and pencils, Gilles Ste-Croix, Artistic Director of Cirque du
Soleil, began his interview. He insisted on starting the press
conference by explaining the new show. His main concern: the
production’s story.

It seems that every new production has a type of theme. The
original Cirque was based on various street and circus arts; so,
taking this idea, Ste-Croix expanded the show to include a story
and a flow that no other circus can lay claim to. Now, 10 years and
four new Cirque shows later, "Alegría" still has that Cirque
trait: a story filled with emotion. It’s this emotion that
Ste-Croix believes is behind all the attention the show has
received. "We always try to make shows that have some type of
emotion lurking behind the acrobatics," he said. "The acts are
already close to inhuman, but the performers take it one-step
further by pushing the limit of their capability. That’s why we
like to go see circus shows," Ste-Croix continued, "because we’re
always pushing that limit of capability.

"When a performer gets on the wire and does a jump 20 feet in
the air, at that moment he’s defying death and through him we live
that moment of uncertainty as to whether or not death exists
because the performer’s able to defy it," Ste-Croix explained.
"That’s why we reach such emotion with circus acrobatics and why
this will always be the skeleton we work from."

But while past Cirque "skeletons" have had relatively clear
story lines, "Alegría" is slightly harder to follow. Amidst
the acrobatic chaos lies the theme of a younger generation pushing
out their elders.

"In this particular production we focused on what our concerns
of today were," said Ste-Croix alluding to the changes currently
taking place all over the world.

"This change has brought some confusion as to where the power
stands. Even though we live in a democratic society with elected
officials who would make our lives easier, we feel that today’s
power is rather ambivalet about its position," Ste-Croix
explained.

"If we look at a time when there was a kingdom with a king, the
people could easily identify who the ruler was and whether or not
he was doing things correctly. But now-a-days, it’s very hard to
tell who is doing right and who is doing wrong."

Similarly, this year’s theme leans toward that idea of democracy
and a time without a king.

During the production, six rulers show up every so often,
believing they have control over the situations, but as the other
acrobats make imminently clear, the rulers have no control whatso
ever. "The old birds, as we call them, are very concerned with
their appearance and so are always checking mirrors to see if
they’re getting older because they are afraid the younger
generation is going to pass them by," Ste-Croix explained.

The conflict of old versus new unfolds exactly this way.

The "younger generation," as represented by a "young and
energetic" angel and slimmer, younger foul overtake these
"old-birds." Through their acrobatic feats, these child-birds push
the show along, while pushing, literally, the older birds to the
way-side. Every time a set of young-birds sets up to perform their
next death-defying feat, the "old-birds" shudder in fear or run and
hide.

But in the middle of these two opposing worlds is a central
character Ste-Croix calls the "buffoon" — the the king’s fool.
This jester represents a time when there was a ruler. "So, this
kingdom doesn’t have a king, but it’s got a fool who’s trying to
keep a balance between the two opposing views," he continued.

In many ways, Ste-Croix himself performs a similar balancing act
by keeping this Cirque show in tune.

But while Ste-Croix confesses to philosophizing about the
production, he admits with a smile that "it’s still a circus show
with acrobatics."