FRINGE REVIEW: Sequence 8

POSTED: Friday, September 21, 2012, 4:55 PM

Filed Under: Arts | Dance On the Fringe

Every year, there's hundreds and hundreds of performances at the Philly Fringe and Live Arts Festival, and unless it's one of the big shows, it's sometimes hard to tell what you're going to get. Here at Critical Mass we're sending writers to as many shows as we possibly can for 75 pocket-sized reviews over the course of the fest. Check back in with us at On The Fringe every day for real talk on what these things actually are!

SHOW: Sequence 8

GROUP: Seven Fingers

GENRE: Dance

ATTENDED: Tue., Sept. 18, 7 p.m.

CLOSES: Sun., Sept. 23

BRIEF SELF-DESCRIPTION: The Montreal-based circus company creates circus on a human scale—placing the extraordinary element of circus in ordinary contexts. In extreme close-up, Sequence 8 features aerial hoops, rings, Korean board, cigar box juggling, Chinese acrobatics, and incredible feats of balance and beauty—all by performers whose basic human desires and qualities audiences can relate to.

WE THINK: With Sequence 8, Seven Fingers takes the adage about art imitating life to heart. Throughout the show, the company employs circus arts as metaphors for expressing ideas about elements of human life. The teeterboard, for instance, relates to the search for balance. A trapeze artist makes a number of attempts before getting his act in gear. Coincidental actions continually have consequences to others in the cast, which comes off like a bunch of good friends. It’s all very endearing, and risky, too. When a guy plunges down a tall pole, head first, stopping just inches from the ground, you get a real jolt of adrenaline. Other times the circus arts, though difficult to master, are presented in such as way as to make you want to jump on stage and join in what’s happening. These amiable performers truly connect with the audience, and that’s the neatest trick of all.

—Deni Kasrel

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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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