Cirque Du Soleil TOTEM Opening Night Review 2015

The first time my Cirque Du Soleil cherry was popped was a few years ago with the opening night of OVO. Since then, no circus has been able to compare and often has me yawning.

That was until I saw Cirque Du Soleil TOTEM, and my jaw was once again being picked up from the floor.
From my seat though it was a little hard to see the entire show as my view was partially blocked thanks to the big top poles. But none the less I got to see the majority of the show even if it meant ducking and weaving to each side of the pole.
Firstly I will let you know what TOTEM is about and then I will let you know my faves, and what I thought over all of the show. About TOTEM Written and directed by Robert Lepage, TOTEM traces the Fascinating journey of the human species from its original amphibian state to its ultimate desire to fly. The characters evolve on a stage evoking a giant turtle, the symbol of origin for many ancient civilisations.

Inspired by many founding myths, TOTEM illustrates, through a visual and acrobat language, the evolution progress of the human species. Somewhere between science and legend, TOTEM explores the ties that bind Man to other species, his dreams and his infinite potential. Featuring a cast of 46 acrobats, actors, musicians and singers, TOTEM is an uplifting array of athleticism, comedy, heart felt emotions and surprising visual effects.

STAND OUT PERFORMANCESUsually I would easily be able to pick just the one scene that worked the best for me, but with Cirque Du Soleil it is all the more harder as all the scenes are amazing and had me on the edge of my seat. So the one I have picked is;The Roller skates scene had half of me in complete awe and the other one holding my breath with hands semi covering my eyes hoping that they would not fall. It was perfect tying in some beautiful romance like that, and really drawing your emotions into the show. 

I don’t want to give too much away but it was a man and a lady Indian that was playing hard to get at the beginning and then at the end were madly in love with each other. This is what was apart of the show- Bars (Carapace)Jonathan BUESE, Umihiko MIYA, Roman PONOMAROV, David RESNICK, Caoliang WANGA fantastic way to start off the show, which had me instantly on the edge of my seat watching them spin, twirl, balance and bounce on poles like they were nothing. Hoop Dancer (Part 1)Eric HERNANDEZRings TrioYann ARNAUD, Vladimir NOVOTNY, Gael OUISSE, Alevtyna TITARENKO, Olli TORKKELThe upper strength these three would have to have would just be phenominal! They have the bodies of Gods/Godesses as well, which had me wanting to secretly become a rings performer in hope I could have a body like theirs haha.Unicycles with BowlsBAI Xiangjie, HAO Yuting, HE Xuedi, WU Yurong, YANG JieI cant even juggle bowls when doing the dishes, let alone juggle and throw bowls on a unicycle (which may I add I cannot ride either haha). These ladies have a talent that is out of this world and makes your wonder how on Earth they can get so damn good. Clown (Fisherman)Philippe THIBAUDEAUI think this would have had to be my favorite “Clown” he was just so adorable and I wanted to take him home in my bag to entertain me endlessly. The lighting and special effects really make this performance work. Hand BalancingPavel SAPRYKINFoot Juggling (Crystal Ladies)Marina TSODIKOVA, Svetlana TSODIKOVAI have no idea what these ladies were juggling but they looked like fancy handkerchiefs, that would have been darn hard to spin and do what they were doing with them.Monkey Business (Evolution Walk Transition)This was both Matt and my all time favorite way to introduce the intermission, just concluded the first half so well. - INTERMISSION-Devil Sticks/ToreadorMarkus FURTNERFixed Trapeze DuoGuilhem CAUCHOIS, Sarah TESSIERThis is an act where you just look and really appreciate the costumes in the entire show. I realised the hours and hours of work the dressmakers would have put in and the tiny pieces that would have had to be sewn onto the costumes was extravagant. ManipulationChris CHIAPPINIClown Act (Speed Boat)Jon MONASTERO, Philippe THIBAUDEAUThese clowns honestly make the show, and are very well placed. Although this one did confuse me a little as to how it fit into the show.. I didn’t really get this one but never the less it did make me laugh. Hoop Dancer (Part 2)Eric HERNANDEZ, Shandien LARANCERoller SkatesDenise GARCIA-SORTA, Massimiliano MEDINIThis is exactly the act I was talking about as my favorite act! Russian BarsDzmitry BARSUKOU, Aliaksei, BUINIAKOU, Veaceslav CEBANU, Tamir ERDENESAIKHAN, Zhan IORDANOV, Alexander Laschenko, Aliaksey LIUBEZNY, Alexander Mikhaylov, Alexander MOISEEV, Nikita MOISEEV
The clowns are always winners and have everybody in stiches from laughing WAY too much. I love the clowns (even though they look nothing like traditional clowns, but I don’t want to give that away; you’ll just have to see the show for yourself JOVERALL OPINIONI would be more then happy to pay to see this show again and every dollar is worth it. Even though this show was amazing and really tested the skills of the entertainers in the show I think I would still have to say OVO is the favorite.

I think the next time around, I might take Miss 6 to see the show as I think this is something she would thoroughly enjoy and then go away wanting to be an acrobat. Don’t ever think of Cirque Du Soleil as being a circus either, as it is far from this and should be an Olympic sport or something- these performers need and award! I could only ever imagine the hard work these performers put into putting their act together as well as they do. There is always the thrill factor as the performers aren’t harnessed in and accidents can easily happen, as we saw on the night. The roller skate performers must have had something on their platform and the blades got caught and they took a tumble, it really goes to show they are human and will also make mistakes.
For more information, visit www.cirquedusoleil.com/totemCIRQUE DU SOLEIL - TOTEM – 2015 AUSTRALIAN TOURMelbourne – On now at Flemington Racecourse
 and will run until 29th March! Brisbane - From April 10 2015, Northshore Hamilton Adelaide - From June 11 2015, The Plateau in Tampawardli Perth - From July 31 2015, Belmont Racecourse

So what are you waiting for? Head to their site and purchase tickets NOW before they are gone. https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/totem/tickets/melbourne.aspx
PHOTOS thanks to OSA IMAGES