Mystical Nomads

Cirque Éloize’s mystical show, ‘Nomade – At Night, the Sky is Endless,’ invites audiences on a surreal journey of the imagination.

By: Susan Van Dongen

Cirque Éloize will perform Nomade – At Night, the Sky is Endless at McCarter Theatre Jan. 16-18.

   It takes more than practice, physical dexterity and guts to be an acrobat or trapeze artist in a 21st-century circus. You also need an intimate rapport with the person who is going to catch you when you land.
   Watching the fantastic feats of the artists of Montreal’s Cirque Éloize is so mind-boggling, you forget that these are human beings. Their precision makes them seem more like beautiful machines. But indeed, these are mortal bodies that could break very easily if the partners didn’t have a mental connection as well as acrobatic prowess.
   Guillaume Saladin is one of the "hand-to-hand" artists in the group, which will be coming to McCarter Theatre in Princeton Jan. 16 to 18. Mr. Saladin’s specific art form is balancing on the hands of another performer, a talent he discovered just 10 years ago and honed through the help of his significant other — trapeze artist Karine Deloize.
   "There’s something spiritual about it," says Mr. Saladin, speaking by phone from a stop in Hershey, Pa. "It’s not just a relationship or a duo, there’s another level of connection. This balance is something that you can’t see, you have to feel it. It’s almost sacred or mystical."
   Cirque Éloize’s latest show has quite a mystical flair to it as well. Titled Nomade — At Night, the Sky is Endless, the production invites audiences on a surreal journey of the imagination.
   Created in 2002 and directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca, Nomade captures the essence of Cirque Éloize. The storyline is an homage to man’s wandering spirit and quest for adventure. As the sun goes down, the darkening sky casts a spell, giving the players a sense of the metaphysical possibilities of the night.
   A community of performers stages a carnival filled with song, dance, music, juggling and acrobatic feats. These nomadic travelers wander through their dreams to a place that is lyrical yet boisterous, and strangely familiar. The spell ends as the sun rises the next morning.
   The troupe was founded in 1993 by seven young performers from Quebec’s Magdelan Islands, all graduates of the National Circus School in Montreal. Cirque Éloize took its name from the flashes of heat lightning seen on the horizon off the islands, which symbolizes the heat and energy that feeds the company’s spirit.
   Success has come quickly for the group. In the past decade, the company has staged more than 1,000 performances in some 200 cities and 20 countries worldwide. The artistic sensibility, originality and virtuosity of Cirque Éloize’s performers have earned international accolades and the company continues to develop innovative, inspirational productions.
   As with Cirque du Soleil, also from Quebec, they’ve broken with tradition, creating a whole new concept of what a circus can be — more theater and rock ‘n’ roll than old-fashioned big-top spectacle.
   "In Quebec, our circus history is very young, it’s only about 20 years old," Mr. Saladin says. "That’s why we don’t have the old concepts that close our way of doing things. Like Cirque du Soleil, we’re free to do what we want, without (adhering to) the old traditions like animal acts, for example.
   "Also, our artistic director, Daniele Finzi Pasca, has (shown us) how to be more like a family — how to be sensitive on stage, not just thinking about the big flash and showy technique, but trying to find other ways to present a circus."
   Like the title of the production, Mr. Saladin is kind of a nomad himself, who, as a child, followed his anthropologist parents across Canada — particularly into the Arctic region of Nunavit, among the Inuit people.
   Mr. Saladin’s youthful experience among and compassion for the Inuits has led him to launch the Artcirq project, designed to bring the discipline and expressiveness of circus arts to the native people, who have a high suicide rate among their youths.
   "I grew up around this culture and this is a way I can give back some of the beauty I received when I was a kid," Mr. Saladin says. "My dream is to create a show and make a little tour around Nunavit. Their youth generation is lost, they have big problems with self-identity and self-esteem. You can feel (the sadness) when you’re among them.
   "We feel that circus is a language they can use to express themselves. Sometimes words won’t accomplish the same thing. But through circus, everybody can understand because it’s a universal language. In China, in Africa, whether it’s children or elders, everyone can understand and that’s very important. It’s another medium of communication."
Cirque Éloize performs at McCarter Theatre, 91 University Place, Princeton, Jan. 16-17, 7 p.m., Jan. 18, 2 p.m. Tickets cost $31-$37. For information, call (609) 258-2787. On the Web: www.mccarter.org. Cirque Éloize on the Web: www.cirque-eloize.com