Review and photos by Amanda Lee Starkey

In recent years circus performances and acrobatics have made a come back on the stage as performers find new ways to twist and turn their bodies in an effort to amaze audiences. Most of the time these performances are just physical feats that stun and amaze.

In the Circa production of When One Door Closes we are given a performance that allows the viewer to be taken on an visual journey of sorts, the acrobatics a backdrop to the story telling. It begins with the separate visual stories of three different women, each seemingly haunted by demons and tormentors. As they toss and turn through a series of acrobatic tumbles its is through movement that we envisage some kind of emotional pain being experienced. Symbiotic relationships with men and the struggle for power in a visual tug – of- war destroying and them and sending them insane; contorting their bodies in unimaginable ways.

Bodies entwine, limbs entangle as the three women Hedda, Nora and Julie battle with emotions, eventually the women coming together as their parallel worlds collide in the spectacular climax to the performance.

When One Door Closes is a unique creation that allows viewers the pleasure of using their imaginations to fill in what is transpiring before us. It is the dynamic use of music and sound that convey the story, replacing dialogue with acrobatics and movement. Each tumbling routine is timed perfectly with choreography that is both creative and emotive.

The ninety minute spectacular breaks out of the conventions of traditional theatre allowing for creativity rather than just a plot line and cast of characters that viewers would be more accustomed to seeing. If you let your imagination be creative the performance can be almost anything that you want. Some saw humor where others did not, some only saw the incredible acrobatics on display;the beauty of the free form nature is that you can take away from the show what ever experience you choose.

Performance: When One Door Closes
Presented by La Boite & Circa
Venue: Roundhouse Theatre, Brisbane

Performances throughout April 2016
Details at:
La Boite Theatre Company, Brisbane – http://www.laboite.com.au/
Cast: Circa Ensemble – http://circa.org.au

Review and photos by Amanda Lee Starkey