Cirque du Soleil’s Alegria at the Royal Albert Hall – review

Cirque du Soleil are back at the Royal Albert Hall with a show that first appeared 30 years ago. It’s had a refresh since then and this production is billed as the European premiere of the new iteration, which is subtitled ‘in a new light’.

It hits a lot of the Cirque trademarks; vaguely mythical themes, ethereal music, and patchy clowning. Actually, that’s a bit harsh, as the clowns here – Bogdan Zavalishyn, who plays a kind of court jester, and Spanish double act Pablo Bermejo and Pablo Gomis Lopez – more than earn their place.

But, of course, it’s really all about the acts, and here we get a solid selection of gymnastics and trapeze that generate plenty of wow factor. These include some fine balancing on acro poles, a cyr wheel from Ghislain Ramage that turns him into a human spinning top, a Samoan ‘fire knife dance’ from Falaniko Solomona Penesa, and a hula hooper (Yan Zhuang) who briefly transforms into a neon-lit slinky.

Ensemble numbers come in the form of the ‘powertrack’, two intersecting trampolines that emerge from the stage floor to facilitate a blur of tumbling, and the show’s climax, a stunning trapeze act that sees the performers catch each other after frankly biology-defying somersaults from the rafters (my ten-year old’s gawped expression was priceless). I should also give an honourable mention to the coup de theatre blizzard scene, which briefly turns the Hall into an enormous snowglobe.

The show, which is directed by Jean-Guy Legault and lavishly designed by Anne-Séguin Poirier (set and props) and Dominique Lemieux (costumes), is notable for its music. René Dupéré’s accordion and pop-infused score is beautifully sung by soloists Sarah Manesse and Cassia Raquel, while it pulsates under the sticks of percussionist Anthony Prochilo, who is wheeled out to give a virtuoso accompaniment to the fire dance.

Although Alegria doesn’t quite hit the same adrenaline-inducing heights of last year’s Kurios, it’s nevertheless another fine-tuned example of a company still top of its game 40 years after its founding. Having said that, with new, smaller circuses bringing thrills in more intimate ways – and at more accessible prices – Cirque du Soleil will need to innovate to avoid becoming passé.