Circus Wow

2 weeks ago my parents took us to Eilat for a long weekend. Aside from enjoying the sand filled swimming pools and sea excursions, the hotel I was staying in hosted the WOW Show. I knew I'd regret not going so I took my dad to see it with me (while my mom stayed with the little ones). The stars were the China National Acrobatic Troupe and they didn't disappoint.

I wish I had written down notes during the show, but I think I remember most of the acts (at least I remember the memorable ones, obviously). Acts included a nicely choreographed diabolo ensemble, some amusing magicians doing lots of spoofs, some heavy metal trampolining, a tissue duo swinging over the audience, acrobalance and throwing around girls with bowls balanced on their feet, a great risley (foot juggling and flipping of another acrobat) act, and a trick bike routine culminating in a dozen girls on bike.

But for me, there were two acts that stood out. These are skills I'd seen on video before and would say are at the highest level of circus skill.

The first was a slackrope routine. Tricks included handstands, headstands, swinging, and riding a unicycle upside-down (shoulder on seat and peddling with hands). This was comparable to a routine I saw win either a gold or silver at the Monte Carlo Circus Competition some years back (I saw it on video). The Wow Show kid looked to be about 10 years old and truly exhibited world-class skills.

The second great act was a cups and saucers kickup routine. I'd seen Rudy Horn's classic skill performed live once before when I saw I Chinese circus act that came to Jerusalem many years ago. The improvement in this show was something I have on a Chinese circus video which is to perform the whole thing on top of a rolling globe. It was amazing to see it performed to perfection! Here's the best photo I could find online of the stunt (about halfway down).

Overall the show was definitely worth the money. The skills were pretty high level but I thought that the presentation had a lot to be desired. In some places they tried too hard and in others it seemed like they didn't hardly consider performance aspects. It was definitely worth the 59 shekels (special price for Isrotel guests).