Fog settles on stage for a riveting performance of 'Nebbia'
Saba Naseem
Issue date: 3/27/09 Section: Lifestyles
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"The fog that would float down when we visited my grandparents would swallow up the entire house," Pasca said. "Standing on the living room balcony, I would spy on the void and when the sky was very low, I would see strange things. The waves of the sea licked the garden gate and hallucinations paraded along the row of poplar trees. I'd watch as lovers chased after one another. I'd see camels, elephants, soldiers returning from war…
"Once, I even saw myself float by," he said. "It was often, or should I say always, a carnival."
Following "Nomade" and "Rain," "Nebbia," the Italian word for fog," is the last part of The Sky Trilogy. Produced by Cirque Éloize and Teatro Sunil, the show presents a mixture of theater and acrobats.
"The show is both emotional and nostalgic," said Geneviève Dupéré, stage manager and the director's assistant. "This comes from the director's inspirations and memories of his grandparent's place in a small Italian village."
Cirque Éloize is the name for flashes of heat lightning seen on the horizon in the Magdalen Islands, according to a press release.
"This serves as the inspiration for the troupe's seven founding members, as this lightning symbolizes the heat and energy that feeds the troupe's spirit," according to the press release.
Founded in 1993, the company has presented six original productions in more than 30 countries around the world and has taken part in numerous prestigious international festivals.
Cirque Éloize expresses its innovative nature through theatricality and humanity, and combines circus arts with music, dance and theater in a break-through and original manner, according to their Web site.
The company began working on "Nebbia" in 2005 and has been on tour since December 2007. There are 11 performers who are talented in many different aspects including acting, singing, dancing and acrobatics.
"To tell my tale of childhood that is reinvented each time, I use geometries and the lucidity of acrobat theater danced on stage by an extraordinary group of performers," Pasca said.
Catherine Girard from Québec does the hand-to-hand acrobats, the trapeze, trampoline and guitar.
"I have done circus for 10 years now, and before that I did gymnastics and dance," she said. "I'm really happy I joined Cirque Éloize and enjoy working with the company."
The other artists involved in the production are Jean-Philippe Cuerrier, Evelyne Laforest, Gustavo Lobo Alves da Fonte, Gonzalo Muñoz Ferrer, Joseph Pinzon, Evelyne Allard, Stéphane Gentilini, Felix Salas, Andrée-Anne Gingras-Roy and Nicola Marinoni.
"'Nebbia' explores the world of dreams and the imaginary," according to the production's Web site. "In the fog, you get lost, you find each other, but above all, you are confronted with the unexpected.
"(It) will once again plunge you into a poetic and sensitive universe mixing acrobatics to theatre in subtle ways."
"Nebbia" will be performed at 8 p.m. tonight; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. tomorrow; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday at the Walton Arts Center. Tickets range from $20-40 and can be purchased by calling the box office at 479-443-5600 or by visiting Waltonartscenter.org.
The Walton Arts Center is also offering $20 student tickets to all of the shows. Seating is for balcony only and students must have a valid student ID.
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