Two factors explain the massive crowds this past weekend for “’Twas the Night Before,” the new seasonal attraction at the Chicago Theatre. One is the abiding pull of a family visit to the Loop to absorb some holiday atmosphere, a reminder of how, even in this age of Amazon, we’re still attracted to historic urban centers as harbingers of meaningful togetherness. The other is the power of the brand known as the Cirque du Soleil.
So is the show, a world premiere headed to New York, any good? Santa Cirque’s got a mixed bag. And he’s not yet fully in control of his, or our, emotions.
Some of the issues are a consequence of Cirque not being able to fully control its own environment at the Chicago Theatre, where the watchword is security and crowd control, not adding to the sweetness of your Christmas. You are not, dear reader, to be transported in the lobby to some kind and magical place, especially if you follow through the metal detector a smidgen too close to your loved one. And once you’re in the theater, you’ll be beset by acoustic problems severe enough to render much of the show’s recorded narration unintelligible. Reports of this vexing sound issue filled up my mailbox prior to my own attendance on Sunday afternoon. They’ll have fixed that by Sunday, I thought, as I read the missives between bites of turkey. Nope. Still a problem. Tricky joint for speakers, the Chicago. But others have figured it out.
Let’s move on to the good stuff. Despite the title, “’Twas the Night Before” is not a literal or sentimental show for little kids, but a sophisticated entertainment that should also work well for ‘tweens and even cynical teens, mostly due to a cool design pallet and a very interesting soundtrack mashing up traditional Christmas music in a highly contemporary fashion. If you are a churchgoing person, your eyebrows might rise at a certain disconnect between sacred lyrics (“Oh, night divine!”) and, say, a scantily clad aerialist, but for most folk, the accompaniment, when it stays away from the Mannheim Steamroller school of seasonal arrangements, is distinctive enough to work. And everything is ecumenical and family-friendly.
In essence, Cirque has taken traditional circus acts and given them a holiday-style presentation, including rollerbladers, aerialists, an aerial-straps duo, a block juggler, tumblers, diabolo wranglers and hoop divers. In most cases, the circus professionals are clad in holiday themes; the hoop divers are Santa’s reindeer, for example, and fine prancers they are. As you’d expect from Cirque, these international acts are top drawer — the show has to be heavy on the silks because there is not enough room on the shallow Chicago Theatre stage for a full-blown trapeze, but silks happen to be my favorite and you won’t lack for “oohs” or “ahs.” If you are a veteran of Cirque attractions, you’ll notice more legit choreography in this show; it’s very much in the vogue of the network holiday special, but the dancers are among the show’s strengths and the movement is fresh and fun.
The biggest weakness of the piece, which is written and directed by James Hadley, lies in the main frame, which revolves around a girl, Isabella (played by the adult Michele Clark) who turns on her iPad when her dad (Alexis Vigneault) tries to read her the traditional poem in the title. She then is transported on a journey inside the poem. Or something like that.
Any parent will be down with an idea that tells kids to turn off their electronic devices, but the emotional connection between the two leads (and their audience) still needs a lot of work — you don’t feel either the problem they are having or its resolution, mostly because the emotional truth of the narrative doesn’t get enough attention. It’s weird. Many of the circus people in the show (such as the aerialist Tuedon Ariri and the skaters Rosie Axon and Adam Jukes) come with sophisticated emotional presentations, as has often been the case at Cirque, but the leads, whose faces often look blank, don’t create the crucial overarching roadmap of vulnerability and mutual need. I think they could fix that before New York.
Given the quality of much else of the artistry, I’ll wager you and yours will still have a good time. I would not drop $200 bucks a person on this show (which is the price of some of the peak tickets now), but you should be able to find a cheaper entree if you peck around the seating plans. The show is short enough to allow for dinner, shopping and whatever else you traditionally do in our grand old city at this time of year.
{ SOURCE: Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune }
