Wolf performed by Circa Contemporary Circus and directed by Yaron Lifschitz displays fast-paced acrobatics with fleeting glimpses of vulnerability. It celebrates its world premiere at Chamäleon Berlin from 20 August 2024 to 5 January 2025.
They fly. They smile. Their toes move like fingers, clasping a rope or a piece of hanging fabric, as their bodies morph seamlessly in the air. In fact, all of their body parts are like dexterous hands with eyes. Their bodies stretch and contract like malleable clay. The audience claps and shouts after each impressive scene.
As I watch Wolf unfold, I witness precision and strength and the ensemble of circus performers’ masterful use of weight to create momentum and counterbalance that produce superhuman-like sights. Their virtuosic technique, however, hinging on making the extremely difficult look both perfect and easy, doesn’t speak to me. I find their attempts at creating theatricality with their facial expressions unconvincing, and at times awkward. The smiles of the performers make me wonder if they are truly joyful, or if (as in ballet and jazz) they are trained to appear that way.
The moments that move me are when the performers’ bodies radiate humanity that breaks the facade of their superhumanness. In particularly challenging acrobatic acts, I sense a body language of uncertainty in a performer that in turn creates tension in the ensemble. Their muscles visibly shake. Seeing a moment of near failure towards the end feels thrilling, as does catching two performers exchanging an intimate look in the midst of a whirlwind choreography. In the breathless waves of movements carried by the relentless tempo of the music, it is only in the scenes where I witness the performers’ vulnerability that the time slows down.
©Andy Phillipson
The program notes that Wolf “creates intense choreographies of acrobatics and dance, overflowing with raw energy and astounding physicality”. As a viewer who engages primarily with experimental dance and multidisciplinary performance, I wonder how the Circa ensemble—a contemporary Australian circus company driven, in its own words, by the question “what is possible in circus?”—is defining ‘dance’ in this piece. Is it to be a master of one’s body? Is this the ‘freedom’ that ‘dance’ pursues? Although the spectacle of bodies continuously transcending limits surely invokes a sense of respect and awe in me, I find myself looking for moments that conjure an emotional response.
One scene that touches me with tenderness is a short duet that takes place in a back corner of the stage, while another pair moves more dynamically under a spotlight. The two performers in the corner hold each other closely and sway from side to side, as if slow dancing. Without any theatrical layers, their bodies show affection and reassurance for one another. I am stirred to a physical memory in which another’s closeness stops time, the wish to absorb all of them, quieting even a hectic surrounding. My heart softens with a vague longing. This magic breaks when the duet explodes into acrobatic choreography.
During the curtain call, I feel the intensity dissipating from the performers’ bodies. In their beaming smiles, I search for their human elements—something I can connect with beneath the veneer of their perfection.
Wolf (performance: Circa Contemporary Circus, direction: Yaron Lifschitz) premiered at Chamäleon Berlin from 20 August 2024 to 5 January 2025.
