The legendary Cirque du Soleil is showing “Luzia” in Vienna until 29 May 2023. The show celebrated its Vienna premiere in the presence of numerous invited celebrities and in a packed circus tent. What to expect – and whether you should go – we reveal here.
The Plot of “Luzia”
Unlike many “normal” circus shows, the choreographers of Cirque du Soleil like to embed the artistic interludes in a coherent story. A clown usually leads the way through the plot as a common thread between the individual elements. In the case of “Luzia”, a traveller jumps out of a plane – and lands in the fictitious “Luzia”, a place in Mexico. There he meets mysterious beings, cheerful people and experiences amazing things.
This is how the Vienna premiere of “Luzia” was
The Vienna premiere of the production, which celebrated its world premiere in 2016, was attended by invited celebrities as well as numerous curious circus fans. The tent was full to capacity. Burrito appetisers, champagne, beer and popcorn were served to set the mood. A mariachi band sang “Guantanamera” (what else?) on the forecourt. And then the show started. As cliché-laden as the artistic Mexico trip could have become, it remained pleasantly far away from that.
After landing in “Luzia”, the clown first stumbles into a place where colourful little birds jump through hoops on giant treadmills. It moves on to a fascinating dance that is probably best described as “ballet acrobatics”. Hoops, balls, juggling clubs, high ropes, seesaws – the artists draw from the full circus repertoire. Accompanied by excellent live music and perfect visual effects, you feel more like you’re in the middle of New Marxico than in Neu-Marx.
Cirque du Soleil “Luzia” Highlights
It is difficult to pick out a highlight from among the many elements. The show is too fast, too fulminant. But what will certainly be remembered are the performances that have to do with water. Cirque du Soleil actually brings a waterfall onto the stage. While a curtain of water tumbles from the stage sky, Cyr-Rad acrobats spin below at breathtaking speed. The trapeze artist (Enya White) dominates the trapeze at incredible speed and high above the stage floor. Her colleague meets an imposing creature at the waterhole – a small pool in the middle of the stage floor. On ropes he whirls through the air above her.
In total, 6,000 litres of water crash onto the stage at every performance. These flow through 95,000 holes in the stage floor via pipes and hoses into a tank outside. There it is cleaned, treated and warmed to 28 degrees. After all, the acts are demanding enough without freezing artists. The stage cleaning between the water acts takes some time. Meanwhile, the clown – our traveller – provides distraction.
Is Cirque du Soleil “Luzia” any good?
“Luzia” follows last year’s production of “Corteo” (due to Corona) about half a year apart, which is why the memories of that show are still very present. What is immediately noticeable is that the story is much more cheerful. “Luzia” has none of the melancholic undertones of “Corteo”. And that is good. After all, summer is coming. We want party and lightness.
Corteo” in the Vienna Stadthalle was also a wonderful event. But the atmosphere is different again when the artists can be seen in their “natural” environment: in a circus arena. We had incredibly good seats (section 200, row 13, M and L), sitting frontally in front of the stage, somewhat elevated. In fact, it almost doesn’t matter where you sit. Because, as always with Cirque du Soleil, “Luzia” is no exception when it comes to stagecraft: it plays all the pieces. The stage rotates constantly so that you have a good view from everywhere.
Cirque du Soleil “Luzia” review
The show is remarkable – all the more so if you know a few details about the technology. For example, the images on the falling waterfall are not projections. The images are created by 174 individually controllable nozzles; they play with drops and empty spaces. A total of over 1,000 costume parts are used. When it comes to lighting, too, they really do rely on manpower. At a height of around 15 metres, two spotters provide illumination by hand.
47 artists from 26 nations are in action. Three chefs cater for them. A live band plays backstage. And all the circus equipment was specially made. The Cyr wheels were covered with bicycle tyres for more grip, the trapeze is covered with wood. After all, the element of water is one that does not necessarily make acrobatics easier. “Luzia” is fast, breathtaking, a brilliant firework display.
Should I go see “Luzia” by Cirque du Soleil?
Yes. Do that. You won’t regret it. Apart from the fact that it was far too warm in the circus tent at times, there is nothing we could criticise. Sure, here and there the performance was not quite clean, but hey – we are sitting far away from any danger to life and limb on our seats, drinking beer (if we don’t forget about it for the sake of amazement) and probably couldn’t even stand as artfully as the artists. So who are we to judge?
Luzia” was conceived by Daniele Finzi Pasca. It is under the creative supervision of Guy Laliberté. He is the man who created Cirque du Soleil in 1984. The show is also suitable for children, but goes on relatively long in the evening. So if you want to come with the kiddies, choose an afternoon show instead. Oh, one more fun fact at the end: “Luzia” is a compound word made up of “luz” (“light”) and “lluvia” (“rain”).
Now hurry up and get your tickets!
