Cirque du Soleil: Saltimbanco

The Canadian New Age circus gives us an even bigger big top

Comments (0) By Julia Ramey Thursday, Jul 16 2009

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Cirque du Soleil: Saltimbancohas visited 75 cities on five continents beneath its travel-friendly big-top tent since its creation in 1992. But even if you've seen it once, twice or thrice, it's worth heading to the Toyota Center today to see a Saltimbanco that's been reconfigured as an arena show, meaning everything's, well, bigger. None of the magic has changed: Saltimbanco is still a zany, enchanting adventure into an imaginary city full of strange characters. It just so happens that these tumble, contort, juggle, balance hand-to-hand and launch themselves into free-flying acrobatics from a Russian swing. But the Cirque pays just as much attention to character detail as to aerial stunts: In a nod to the city's edginess and even the macabre, Saltimbanco features an "erotic satyr" as well as the black-cloaked embodiment of Death, who roam the stage alongside the carefree jester, the goofy Ringmaster and, of course, the faceless masses. Still, we challenge you to keep your eyes off the feats of strength, gravity and agility; even if they're enrobed in fantasy, the multitalented performers of Cirque always impress. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 1 and 5 p.m. Sunday. Through July 26. 1510 Polk. For information, call 866-446-8849 or visit www.cirquedusoleil.com. $40 to $95.
July 22-26, 2009