Ovo amazes

By Bethany Williams

The circus has come to town and Docklands is well and truly in the thick of all the action.

Cirque du Soleil’s Ovo is currently amazing audiences in Docklands as it plunges into the colourful, lively and entertaining world of insects.

Ovo begins when the everyday life of a creepy-crawly community is interrupted by the arrival of a strange and unidentifiable insect carrying a large egg.

Immediately the foreigner falls for the local ladybug, setting in place the theme of love, which carries on throughout the show.

What follows is an insight into the insect world through a series of amazing acts including unbelievable aerial feats, impressive acrobatics and astonishing slackwire stunts.

At the Docklands premiere the audience was astounded by flowers unfurling from the roof, ethereal butterflies taking flight, crazy crickets climbing walls and quirky ants juggling more than just food.

Some of the acts in the show were literally jaw dropping.  It was hard to comprehend the level of precision, skill and agility exhibited.

An eight-piece band performed live, with a musical score that encompassed bossa nova, samba, funk and electro.

Composer and musical director Berna Ceppas even sampled actual insect sounds to incorporate into the musical score.

57 artists feature in Ovo and are supported by a staff of about 350, some who travel with the show and others who are hired locally.

According to Ovo company manager Rob Naumann a show like Ovo takes up to two years to bring to life.

“Cirque du Soleil tries to make sure every show is different and every show is better than the last,” Mr Naumann said.

He said Ovo was the best family show that Cirque du Soleil had ever done.

After seeing the show it’s clear Ovo is a crowd pleaser.

The two-and-a-half hour show (including half-hour intermission) is an amazing visual experience and one that looks set to draw big crowds to Docklands over the next few months.

Ovo is showing at The Grand Chapiteau in Docklands until March 24.

Tickets can be purchased at http://www.cirquedusoleil.com.