Cirque du Soleil is largely credited with taking circus entertainment away from a form of base, childhood fun and moving it toward high-class art. Less animals and sideshow, more physical spectacle and fantasy, the Canada-based troupe has essentially conquered the world, and in the words of comedian Patton Oswalt, they’ve created “catnip for old people.” Cirque Éloize is a lesser-known and newly partnered group of Cirque du Soleil, and their newest show iD is currently making its U.S. debut in Chicago until May 8. While the show features less of the high-flying theatrics of Cirque du Soleil, iD makes for a highly diverting and entertaining, if not wholly satisfying production.
iD is a mix of circus acts, gymnastic showcases and dance performances combined into a series of linked vignettes centered around the idea of a city. At its best, the show recreates the hustle and bustle of modern metropolitan life while capturing routines and quotidian activities with a deft and playful atmosphere. A scene set at a construction site places jugglers, a cyclist and a dancer on rollerblades moving around and through dancers costumed as hardhat workers carrying around panes of glass. It manages to accurately capture just how hectic a city plagued by constant construction can be, and serves as an interesting parallel for the never-ending Sheridan Road debacle.
Those choreographed scenes are close to breathtaking, but the most impressive acts maximize visual spectacles and physical feats. Tumblers, contortionists and gymnasts make the peak scenes of iD soar with glee, but those high points cast a long shadow over the weaker points. The most dance-heavy sequence pits rival gangs in a jump rope competition. It not only lacks excitement, but the garishly bright costumes and graffiti set design are misplaced attempts to represent street culture that ends up coming off as a cross between the Step Up series and Save the Last Dance. The tepid moments don’t complement the amazement and wonder created by the physical feats too well, but they can’t possibly ruin the show.
Fans of Cirque du Soleil or last summer’s FuerzaBruta will find a lot to like in iD, with some nice comic elements thrown in amidst all the dancing and tumbling. The lighting and set design also deserve special recognition for turning the theatre space into multiple cityscapes. iD isn’t running on all cylinders during every scene, but it features the same types of awe-inspiring sensory overload that modern circus is well known for, and any fans of that type of theatre won’t be disappointed.
Cirque Éloize iD runs through May 8 at the Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre. Tickets range in price from $20-75 and are available online.