What is it about La Clique that makes everyone, without exception want to pack up their normal and seemingly dull lives to run away with the circus and live in a world of weird and saucy technicolour wonder. This is an event which is head and shoulders above the rest of the Fringe. I say event but there is no sufficient word that can fully explain the vivid experience and atmosphere that La Clique have created within the Spiegeltent.
A circus with a difference La Clique have been touring internationally and become true aficionados at marveling audiences with their mixture of traditional acts and vaudevillian/burlesque style. La Clique consists of talent from around the world, Scandinavia, Britain, Spain, Romania, America, all brought together by a shared love of circus and a want to infuse it with the beautiful and debauched, the absurd and strange. Do not be fooled by the name - although they are a tight knit family they will accept anyone for who they are and inspire us all to follow our dreams, however weird they may seem. Although they each impress with their individual talents this is not a bitchy place to be and the traveling community culture is very prevalent within the evening, creating a show which is clearly always under the ‘La Clique Family’ banner.
Along with the glitz and the glamour La Clique weave true moments of emotion and affection into the entertainment. Two years ago they ended with a woman on a trapeze mournfully singing ‘Send in The Clowns’ and this year they do not disappoint with an ending which is brilliant in its simplicity and delights in the wonder that each of us can create if we just learn how. And this is the key to La Clique’s magic, although these are all incredibly skillful performers who have taken years perfecting their craft, they do not come across as cold and as polished as say Cirque de Soleil, they are people who have dreamed a dream and live it and who suggest that you can live it too. This is what makes them so appealing and the event so inspirational.
As they draw us in from the rain to a purple and red Moulin Rouge Can Can crescendo of expectation our Compare commands: ‘Don’t let the weather dampen your spirits. Leave all of your troubles, leave the rest of your festival at the front door’ and although I am determined not to give away any secrets for fear of ruining the delightful surprise within this piece, I can guarantee that La Clique will transport you into a wondrous world where anything is possible. This is where you will be charmed and welcomed by incredibly brilliant performers who will whirl you around and win your through a mixture of breathtakingly stylish aerobatics, juggling, puppetry, queen songs, the sexiest bath I have ever seen, a magically missing red hanker-chief and a huge sprinkling of burlesque style charm.
[Honour Bayes]
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