Cirque du Soleil’s “Corteo” mesmerizes and enchants

By Stephanie Wright Hession
Arts and Culture Writer

Under a grand royal blue and sunflower yellow striped tent, Cirque du Soleil opened its latest production “Corteo” on Friday, Nov. 11 in the parking lot at SBC Park in San Francisco. Staring at a sheer curtain draping the front of the stage, featuring a mural with a clown surrounded by other circus artists, angels, horses and a ship, audience members waited in eager anticipation. Elegant candelabras in the foreground and three grand chandeliers in the background hinted of things to come.

Corteo means cortege in Italian, a ceremonial procession. And Cirque du Soleil’s “Corteo,” created and directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca working with designers from both Cirque du Soliel and Pasca’s Teatro Sunil, focuses upon just that. It starts with The Dead Clown (Mauro Mozzani) imagining his own funeral, complete with a parade of whimsical friends.

However, it’s far from morose and in fact contains mostly playful and humorous elements. The look of the production harkens back to an early 20th century circus with clowns and the customary tightrope and trapeze performances. But there’s also the magical artistry so associated with Cirque du Soleil and it’s illustrated through a series of vignettes.

It all takes place on Jean Rabasse’s revolving set, with Martin Labrecque’s gorgeous lighting, Danny Zen's acrobatic rigging designs and Dominique Lemieux’s costumes-ranging from the exquisite, traditional circus style of The White Clown’s (Tara Shevchenko) ensemble to the more simplistic designs that The Dead Clown wears. Composers and musical directors Philippe Leduc and Maria Bonzanigo provide the score with singers Paul Bisson and Estelle Esse performing the vibrant vocals. It's all under the artistic leadership of director of creation Line Tremblay and Cirque du Soleil’s guide, founder Guy Laliberté.

“Chandeliers” proves the most visually stunning. Amid the amber glow of these fanciful lights, four women (Évelyne Allard, Julie Dionne, Marie-Michelle Faber and Helena Sadanha) wearing alluring lingerie in hues of pink, apricot, ice blue and plum perform thrilling aerial acrobatics high above the stage on three chandeliers, twisting and spinning.

“Bouncing Beds” elicited many giggles from the crowd as men and women (Mitchell Head, Gustavo Lobo, Edi Moreno Barata, Mary Sanders, Ciprian Veres and Omar Cortes Gonzalez), donning pink and blue child-like pajamas sprung and flipped wildly from the headboards of two gigantic beds, illustrating their wonderful coordination and skill.

“Cyr Wheel” demonstrates the remarkable strength and agility of Stéphane Beauregard, Yuliya Raskina, Jérémie Robert and Petar Stoyanov. Balancing their bodies within luminous, silver rings they magically spin at an angle just above the floor.

The most charming scene occurs with “Helium Dance,” when the tiny, blond Valentyna Pahlevanyan floats thanks to a bouquet of six white balloons. With a gentle push from Mozzani, Pahlevanyan drifts over audience members who nudge her along-amid her squeals-until she’s returned safely to the stage.

In the ethereal “Artist Marionette” a puppet (Rebecca Jose), wearing a colorful striped dress with frayed rags on her hands and feet, appears before Mozzani as he searches for a wayward beach ball. The interaction between the two makes for an engaging scene.

One of the most dramatic vignettes occurs during “Teeterboard,” when Stéphane Beauregard, Jérémie Robert and Petar Stoyanov partake in a macho, duel of sorts. With each precise catapult from the large board, they gain velocity and reach exhilarating heights.

“Corteo’s” pace gets bogged down in “Teatro Intimo,” a scene containing a miniature theater set and a snippet of “Romeo and Juliet,” starring Valentyna Pahlevanyan and Grigor Pahlevanyan. It depends too much on their cuteness and seems out of place with the style of the rest of the production.

Veronika Teslenko gives a thrilling and graceful performance in “Strap Act” when she wraps ribbon-like bands around her body and flies through the air. Teslenko's especially strong and fearless when she dangles precariously by her foot from a single band.

“Corteo’s” magnificent finale includes the breathtaking “Paradise,” showcasing the astonishing might of Elena Dobrovitskiya, Rebecca Jose, Marat Khakimov, Volodymyr Klavdich, Taras Shevchenko, Sviatlana Taparkova, Roman Tereshchenko, Halyna Tyryk, Andrei Vassiliev, Asya Vorobyeva and Jamar Young. Working between three Korean frame stations placed far apart and above an oblong, trampoline-style net, women trapeze artists make their work look effortless as they tumble and fly through the air with elegance and beauty. The men, standing on platforms on the Korean frames, illustrate their precise timing and Herculean strength as they catch and toss the women.

“Tournik” follows with Omar Cortes, Kanukai “KAJ” Jackson, Gustavo Lobo, Julie Panel, Yohann Renne, Halyna Tryk, Fredric Umali, Ciprian Veres and Yury Tikhonovsky passing each other in a flurry on numerous horizontal bars, demonstrating their incredible athleticism and gymnastic skills. As the pace becomes more furious one tensely hopes for no collisions. All in all “Corteo” enchants, amuses and mesmerizes.

“Corteo” plays through Jan. 8 in the parking lot at SBC Park, Third Street at Mission Rock Street in San Francisco. Ticket prices range from $31.50 to $85. For more information call (800) 678-5440 or visit cirquedusoleil.com.