Not Cirque Du Soleil: Cirque Dreams Opens On BroadwayWell, I'll be a monkey foot manipulator percushroomist!
Those and other wild characters springing from the imagination of impresario
Neil Goldberg will be on full display as
Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy opens at the Great White Way's
Broadway Theatre.
It should be noted that this show
is not in any way associated with the world-renowned Cirque du Soleil.
The limited engagement opening tonight is scheduled to run through August 24 before heading out on a tour of Canada and the United States.
Choreographed by
Tara Jeanne Vallee,
Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy boasts a company of 25 acrobats, aerialists, contortionists, jugglers and musicians. The cast includes
Uranmandakh Amarsanaa (Contorting Lizard and Aerial Bird),
Marcello Balestracci (Adventurer),
Jared Burnett (Soultree Violinist),
Zachary Carroll (Jungleboy),
Jill Diane (Mother Nature),
Lauren Diblasi (Bee and Ensemble),
Iryna Dmytruk (Bee and Ensemble),
Ruslan Dmytruk (Frog Juggler),
Ivan Dotsenko (Trapeze Owl),
Vladimir Dovgan (Balancing Giraffe and Snake Roller),
Nataliya Egorova (Monkey Foot Manipulator),
Judah Frank (Unicorn and Ensemble),
Buyankhishig Ganbaatar (Aerial Bird and Contorting Lizard),
Erdenesuvd Ganbaatar (Aerial Bird and Contorting Lizard),
Stefka Iordanova (Blackbird Hairialist),
Denys Kucher (Vine Swinger),
Vitalii Lykov (Vine Swinger),
Lee Miller (Percushroomist),
Odgerel Oyunbaatar (Contorting Lizard and Aerial Bird),
Sergey Parshin (Butterflyer and Jungle King),
Pavel Pozdnyakov (Jungle King and Ensemble),
Glenn Rogers (Jungleboy),
Naomi Sampson (Butterflyer and Ensemble),
Konstantin Serov (Emu and Ensemble),
Carly Sheridan (Trapeze Owl),
Serguei Slavski (Jungle King and Monkey Manipulator),
Alexander Tolstikov (Jungle King and Monkey Manipulator) and
Anatoliy Yeniy (Balancing Giraffe).
Will critics proclaim this a production fulfilling their wildest dreams, or will their reviews be downright nightmarish? Find out tomorrow as I provide my critics' capsule.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Related Stories:Broadway: What's Next (June 20, 2008)
Labels: Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy, Cirque du Soleil, Cirque Productions, Opening Night, Special Theatrical Event
Broadway: What's NextNow that the Tonys are history, it's time to focus on all the plays and musicals set for Broadway's 2008-09 Theatrical Season.
According to my count, there are a total of 19 shows that have either confirmed berths on the Great White Way or announced plans for the upcoming year. They include six new musicals, two of which can be deemed completely original (imagine that -- not based on
anything, including a movie); four revivals of musicals; five revivals of plays; and -- most shocking given that the past year on Broadway was all about the plays -- only three new ones have been announced.
The 19th production is a most curious one. Let's place this one squarely in the Special Theatrical Event category since it certainly can't be considered a musical or play.
Already in previews,
Neil Goldberg's
Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy gives the impression of being a
Cirque du Soleil wannabe with its cast of 25 acrobats, aerialists, contortionists, jugglers and musicians all jostling for position.
Cirque Dreams is set to open June 26 at the
Broadway Theatre for a limited run through August 24 before heading out this November on a 39-city tour of North America.
Guess Goldberg must be figuring if he can get enough press on his Rialto venture, folks will be lining up across Canada and the United States to see the upcoming tour.
The production of
Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy is described as:
...an exotic encounter inspired by nature’s unpredictable creations that are brought to life by an international cast of 25 soaring aerialists, spine-bending contortionists, acrobats, jugglers and musicians.
The astounding feats performed in this action packed Cirque Dream are enhanced with over 150 spectacular costumes and set in a fantastical jungle ignited by striking visual effects. From the breathtaking aerial ballet of butterflies to the balancing giraffes, gigantic flowers and trees, this world-class explosion of athleticism, theatre and imagination will exhilarate the entire family.
In the ongoing tradition of extravagant touring shows, Neil Goldberg and Cirque Productions continue to blend European artistry with circus and Broadway theatrics in a dramatic fashion that transcends imagination and leaves its’ narration to the eyes of the beholder making Cirque Dreams: Jungle Fantasy a Broadway first.
To be honest, I have never heard of Goldberg or the Pompano Beach (Florida)-based
Cirque Productions. Somehow, just somehow, they've managed to be eclipsed by the nearly quarter century old Cirque du Soleil.
Call me a cynic, but isn't
Cirque Dreams just a brazen attempt to cash in on the "Cirque" craze among unsuspecting theatregoers? Not to take anything away from Goldberg's performers, whom I'm sure are talented, but I'll bet many a ticket buyer will automatically assume this is a genuine Cirque du Soleil production.
Despite what the
courts may have ruled, isn't the rather transparent goal here to be able to usurp the good name Cirque du Soleil has established by now being able to market the announced tour as "seen on Broadway"? Am I wrong here?
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Labels: Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy, Cirque du Soleil, Cirque Productions, Special Theatrical Event
