The Stage

34th Monte Carlo International Circus Festival

Published Monday 25 January 2010 at 10:45 by Liz Arratoon

Programme One

An expectant audience gathers in Monte Carlo for the 34th International Circus Festival and its first four days of competition for the prestigious clown awards open with a saxophone solo played by the famous Franco-Italian white-face clown Yann Rossi.

Granted a place at the festival by Princess Stephanie after appearing on French TV show Incroyable Talent, Acro Trio kick off the performances. Two attractive girls and a tiny, super flexible child perform hand-balancing, banquine (hand-boosted somersaults) and hand to hand in many interesting and different configurations.

Sabu’s cousin, Alain Allegria, puts on a seriously scary trapeze Washington display, balancing precariously on a swinging trapeze raised to the heights of the cupola. With no lunge, only his skill prevents him from falling in this nerve-wracking and nerve-tingling display.

Andrejs Fjodorovs has an extremely attractive act with mixed breeds of pigeons, doves and a dwarf rooster, which flutter from their perches on canes to perform a series of birdy tricks, including pirouettes, skipping and walking up his arms. They also become objects he juggles with.

Czechs Duo Stykan are super strong and execute hand to hand and head to head moves with style and elegance, all set to Eastern-inspired music. Monika looks slight but is clearly made of steel as, like a statue, she hand-balances on Anatol’s upturned foot or head-stands on the back of his neck while he stands on his hands.

Silver winners from 1995, Petra and Roland Duss dress smartly in grey/red and barely give a direction to their four Californian sea-lions in this party-feel number. It is seamless and as slick as the sheen on their pelts, as the intelligent creatures perform perfect tricks with balls on noses, stand on their flippers, scoff lots of fish and often applaud themselves.

Traditional musical clowns the Rossyanns - Yann, Hector and Victor Rossi - are considered to be some of the very best in the business. Name any instrument, they can play it, from sax to xylophone, clarinet to trombone, banjo, guitar and even a jacket with hidden horns or a pair of squeaking bellows.

Cirque du Soleil’s style is imitated everywhere and has, maybe, influenced the Hangzhou Troupe’s equilibrium routine. It opens with historical figures coming to life and supporting the main feature, namely one man, Yuhui Zhou, with incredibly strong neck muscles, who carries a massive revolving figure of eight construction on his head in which two girls in egg-yolk yellow strike balletic poses and perform acrobatics.

Then comes Cirque du Soleil itself, with the Russian bar number from one of its best shows, Alegria. Three expert flyers turn intricate somersaults on three bars, constructed from pole-vault poles, as easily as if they were on trampolines. So thrilling to watch and performed flawlessly, it won the public vote and surely deserved a Gold Clown.

American Rob Torres has a silly suit and wig, and a silly laugh, but is a far from a silly clown. He works the audience expertly, quickly taking control. Once in his power, they don’t desert him, as he feigns a series of injuries to illicit kiss it better moments from a glamour puss at ringside. And his cup-juggling is pretty good too.

Being a vintage act, the Garcias’ aerial rocket caused much muttering, but Pablo and Vicky perform some thrilling, not to say foolhardy, moves - including a scintillating neck spin and toe-hang - while suspended from the revolving missile and it is all elegantly done with no safety measures.

A silver winner from 2000, Britain’s Martin Lacey Jnr - a bit Vegas Elvis - opens the second half with 12 lionesses and a lion, who sits looking down on the action. Film sequences about his life are played on vast screens above the cage. The animals look in peak condition and show real spirit, and often their claws. There are mock attacks and thrilling leaps against the upper limit of the cage. The spectacular act finishes when Kasanga descends and hangs out casually with Lacey, who returns with white lion King Tonga to stand proud on a giant revolving mirror ball.

Finland’s La Salima on corde lisse and a series of aerial loops has to be one of the low spots. Ratty hair and a costume of cutout jeans and a torn top, plus some bad music, do her no favours as she thrashes about ineffectively.

The Rossyanns return as hat-juggling commedia dell’arte characters and then Troupe Yakubovi, clad in traditional Kazak outfits, perform a strange number on a series of aerial straps. Their trademark move is running up two vertical straps like monkeys. They balance and slide on them and build a sort of inverted human ladder.

Sonni Frankello puts his three completely unadorned and rather leathery-looking African elephants through their paces. Their clever tricks include dancing, balancing and one lying on his assistant. It ends with various children from the audience riding round fearlessly on one of their trunks.

Then the nine-strong and sexy Mongolian Blue Sky Girls take to the ring on three circular platforms. This act, directed by Brit Mike Brown, brings the art of contortion right up to date, with smoky cabaret music and stylish cut-away costumes. The gorgeous Bond girls form exquisite tableaux, limbs entwined, before ending like an exotic flower, all balanced on mouthpieces in synchronised Marinelli bends.

Russia’s huge Chernievsky Troupe, former gold winners, have also modernised their teeter-board routine. Dressed as if they’re off to a thirties garden party, they turn somersaults - doubles and triples, sometimes on stilts - with insouciant grace, before Alexander Gorbatov lands an incredible triple into a chair supported high up on a system of poles and bearers.

Programme 2

Pixie-like Frenchman Court Circuit - or Short Circuit - almost steals the whole festival by trailing a huge train of 18 helium-balloon horses from his hat, which gallop silently around the big top. It is one of his many purely visual entrees involving inflatables, many of which are delightful.

As African troupes go, the acrobatic seven men and three girls of the Zulu Troupe make this one of the better ones. Seen with Zippos Circus this Christmas at London’s Winter Wonderland, they throw themselves into every manner of human pyramid with speed and enthusiasm, even forming human hoops for others to dive through.

Frankello repeats his elephant act before Starbugs - three good-looking street-style clowns, who use exaggerated sound effects and a variety of music clips - act out the first of some highly physical scenarios. Superb break-dancers with perfect timing, they score a huge hit with those who haven’t seen similar routines before.

Veteran aerialist Natalia Hertz’s idea of introducing a long piece of white silk into her swinging trapeze act does not pay off. Images of the Andrex puppy come to mind and the repetition of a few tricks made safe by a lunge make this a weak number.

The Rossyanns may look simply beautiful, white-face Yann coming out in ever-more gorgeous sequinned suits, but this entree, involving smashed plates and a bullet being caught in Hector’s teeth, seems sadly pedestrian.

For most of Glen Nicolodi’s act he balances on his hands, walking, then hopping up and down a flight of steps, sometimes just on one hand, and while he takes a breather, his sweet little acrobatic dog apes his moves.

The Dusses return in nautically-themed costumes for a second outing, then China’s 21-strong Shandong Troupe closes the first half with a Risley-based act of great complexity and skill. Dramatic and heavily choreographed to stirring music, there are bodies flying in all directions and precarious somersaults landed feet to feet and in columns. But the moves are often messy and the extraordinarily bad costumes ruin the aesthetics.

People return after the interval to find Lacey’s cage has been erected for a re-run, after which Brazil’s Flying Michaels - one catcher and two male/two female flyers - bring a carnival spirit to the flying trapeze. Double front and back somersaults are thrown with ease before Marlon dons an unconvincing black-out hood for his final triple. But fans of the discipline will be disappointed by the lack of flying as their release into the catcher’s hands is more of a handover.

Neat and precise, and so sure-footed, Julien Posada dances like a sprite, flamenco-style on low wire, as well as somersaulting both backwards and forwards. Being French, his nimble moves bring the house down.

Russia’s Zebras incorporate some amazing banquine moves into their number, created by Alex Grimailo. But their zebra suits are less than attractive, and their moves so tightly choreographed to recorded music that nothing missed can be re-attempted.

Kyrgystan’s proud and fearless Eshimbekov Troupe performs jighit or stunt-riding - daring acrobatics and flips on the backs of galloping horses. Sometimes they are literally dragged behind the steeds and one clambers round under the belly, his head just missing the thundering hooves. This is thrilling and dangerous, and executed by masters.

Though there is a lot of repetition for those who see both programmes this year, there are some real highlights too. Cirque du Soleil is outstanding and there are some new-style acts - including the simple humour of Court Circuit - keeping things fresh.

Liz Arratoon

A full list of all the prize-winners

Clown d’or

Martin Lacey Jr - Presentation de Fauves

Troupe de Shandong - Numero d’Icariens

Clown d’argent

Les Flying Michaels - Trapeze volant

Les Anges du Cirque du Soleil

Troupe Eshimbekov - Djiguites

Petra et Roland Duss - Presentation d’Otaries

Clown de Bronze

Les Garcia - Duo Aerien

Les Rossyanns - Clowns Musicaux

Sonni Frankello - Presentation d’Elephants

The Blue Sky Girls - Contorsions

Prix Special du Jury

Troupe Chernievsky - Numero de bascule

Coupe de SAS la Princesse Antoinette (au plus jeune artiste du Festival)

Acro Trio

Prix Speciaux

Trophee Louis Merlin

Troupe Yakubovi - Numero de sangles

Prix de la Ville de Monaco

Troupe Zebras - Acrobates

Prix de l’association monegasque des amis du cirque

Andrejs Fjodorovs - Presentation de pigeons

Prix du Journal Nice-Matin

Les Anges du Cirque du Soleil

Prix Jean-Louis Marsan

Les Anges du Cirque du Soleil

Prix TMC Monte-Carlo

Troupe de Hangzhou - Perche avec double cerceaux

Prix Special du Blackpool Tower Circus

Les Garcia - Duo Aerien

Prix de la Revue du “Cirque dans l’univers”

Les Flying Michaels - Trapeze volant

Prix de la Societe des Bains de Mer

Duo Stykan - Main a main

Prix de la Societe des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique

Les Rossyanns - Clowns Musicaux

Prix Special Spencer Hodge

Court Circuit - Comedie

Prix Emmanuel Bellini

Glen Nicolodi - Acrobate

Prix Erich Rozewicz

Troupe Zulu - Troupe Acrobatique

Prix Special ZPR de Varsovie

Natalia Hertz - Trapeze

Prix du Fairmont Monte-Carlo

Alain Alegria - Trapeze Washington

Prix Special Marsupilami

Sonni Frankello - Presentation d’Elephants

Prix Special Emilien Bouglione

Troupe Eshimbekov - Djiguites

Prix Special Gesellschaft Der Circusfreunde EV (Association des Amis du Cirque d’Allemagne)

Sonni Frankello - Presentation d’Elephants

Prix des Amis du Cirque Italien

Les Rossyanns - Clowns Musicaux

Prix Special Studio Grimailo Moscou

La Salima - Corde Verticale

Prix Special de European Circus Association (ECA)

Andrejs Fjodorovs - Presentation de pigeons

Prix special du conseil national

Troupe Chernievsky - Numero de bascule

Prix du Jury International HSBC

Starbugs - Comedie

Prix Special Jerome Medrano

Starbugs - Comedie

Prix Special Gran Circo Mundial

Martin Lacey Jr - Presentation de Fauves

Prix du Cirque Nikulin Moscou

Starbugs - Comedie

Prix Gran Teatro la Fenice di Venezia

Julien Posada - Fil de fer

Prix Special Stardust Circus International

Troupe de Shandong - Numero d’Icariens

Prix Special Moira Orfei

Martin Lacey Jr - Presentation de Fauves

Prix Special Gandey

Rob Torres - Comedie

Prix du Grand Cirque d’etat de St Petersburg

Petra et Roland Duss - Presentation d’Otaries

Prix du Bolshoi Circus

Glen Nicolodi - Acrobate

Prix du Kobsov Circus

The Blue Sky Girls - Contorsions

Prix du Rosgoscirk

Petra et Roland Duss - Presentation d’Otaries

Prix du Public

Les Anges du Cirque du Soleil

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