Circa showcases their youngest talents in a circus show filled with delight and heart.
Finding a place as an artist must be difficult. After trying a lot of things and finally choosing a discipline, there are years of training and development they will have to endure. It’s even more difficult to continue to grow and learn the different aspects of your craft on your own and without the help of a mentor to guide a young artist in the right direction. Thank goodness there are places like Circa Zoo, who have produced a show starring young performers filled with potential, 'A Little Wonder’.
‘A Little Wonder’ is the latest show from Circa Zoo: a performance program based in the Judith Wright Centre dedicated to training young people wishing to develop circus skills. The show features 15 young artists, ranging from ages 8 to 19, showcasing skills including trapeze, acrobatics, table sliding and tumbling to tell a story about growing up and finding one’s footing in the world.
The skills on display by the young cast are dazzling. They flip, fly and slide across the stage with an amazing amount of energy. The group works together to pull off feats which defy gravity, making their steps appear so light that they are hardly touching the ground. There are some slight fumbles and missteps which lead to tricks not quite landing, but the performers never let this bother them as they shrug it off with a smile full of jest and regroup. Watching them try again without feeling down on themselves is heartening to watch, as it’s another step forward in their development.It’s not all just impressive acrobatics; each of the performers put their individual personalities on display to charming affect. It is delightful to watch as they smile and laugh as they perform some risky manoeuvres; they are genuinely having fun, and increases how much fun the audience is having in their company. It is encouraging to watch these artists take the first stage in their development, and even more so they are doing so with each other – a strong support network is important for artists, and it shows they have one from their mentors and each other based on their rapport. ‘A Little Wonder’ is a misleading title, as the title has so much wonder, it is wonder-full.
'A Little Wonder' performs at the Judith Wright Performing Arts Centre until 11 December.
