standing on one hand,
a glass of water balanced
on her small raised foot
The Golden Dragon Acrobats, regarded by many as the premiere Chinese acrobatic touring company, have traveled from the other side of the world to our little town of Fairfield for a theatrical production of breathtaking skill, spectacular costumes and enchanting music. Tickets have been sold out for three weeks. We got some of the last seats in Sondheim Theater, in one of the side balconies, close to the stage. Before the show begins, many of the children in the audience are playing a kind of Chinese folk toy that expands to great length with the flick of a wrist and then collapses.
Each of the Golden Dragon Acrobats acts features different costumes, props and feats of flexibility and balance. Here, a troupe of girls in vivid, skin-tight costumes tilt and rotate inside colorful wheels, some single, some double.
Two cloaked and hooded figures walk out on stage, then drop their cloaks to reveal eerie masks and body suits. Standing on a round platform, they move slowly into different poses, balancing on each other in a display of incredible strength and balance.
Six gorgeous ladies in golden crowns move their long golden fingers in synchronous waves. Viewed from head on, the lady in front looks like a goddess with six pairs of arms.
Girls in traditional Chinese costumes whirl and toss golden spools on cords, then form a living pyramid.
Six men juggle hats from one head to the other. Each man removes the hat on his head, tosses it to the next man, catches a hat from another man, puts it on his head with perfect timing. They also form a "caterpillar" with their bodies linked together.
A man in white tights and a purple vest is carried ceremoniously on stage, lying prone above the heads of six men. On a stand in front of the stage, this man carefully stacks one chair on top of another other, climbs each one and does a hand stand. While his assistants lift the next chair up to him on a long pole, he stands on the chair, breathing heavily. When he reaches the top, level with the balcony where we're sitting, he rests for awhile, then asks the audience, "One more?" Of course we all applaud. From backstage a voice announces, "This is extremely dangerous. Don't try this at home." For his final feat he balances a chair on two legs, then does a hand stand on top of the top of the precariously balanced chair.
Spotters surround each of the performers who are doing something particularly dangerous. I keep wondering how many times they drop a prop, miss a hoop, or fall from a chair or another body before they reach this level of mastery. Truly amazing.
