 |
|||||||||||||||
 Las Vegas Correspondent "Zumanity" is a sexual treasury of libidinous fantasies. It is all at once romantic, hot-blooded, naughty, funny, and voyeuristic. Billed as an adult show, the latest Cirque du Soleil production at New York-New York in Las Vegas, Nevada, explores human sexuality using mood, dance, acrobatics, and scenes that play out in artistically lustful couplings. From the moment one enters the theater one's sensual senses are aroused. On the walls, deep, rich reds bleed to burgundy with patterns reminiscent of dark watermarks. A large oval window fish-eyes towards the lobby, and a beautifully dressed, provocative woman or transvestite, depending on your take, slowly rotates in a comfortable circular chair. The setting is interesting, pleasant to the eye, a mental aphrodisiac that will help prepare the audience for the extraordinary show they are about to witness. Once inside the1,259 seat Zumanity theater the atmosphere is charged with sexual electricity. There are love seats for two, cabaret stools, and traditional seating. The ambiance is a mix of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and a European masked ball. Lighting is soft so that one can adjust to the scantily clad French maid serving the pianist a flute of champagne while an oversexed male in silks and brocade grows more and more amorous with select cast and audience members. A very voluptuous waitress climbs over theatergoers offering them tasty hors d'ouvres. There is action before the action, and if you've brought your Zumartini or a glass of champagne, you'll be all the more ready to let your hair down. Zumanity was written and directed by Dominic Champagne and Rene Cry, two accomplished theater directors from Quebec. Explaining their vision in the program, they write, "Since the dawn of time, the joining of bodies, that thirst for each other, has always been the highest rapture, the most joyous mystery, and the greatest revolutionary force. Eroticism is a cry for ecstasy, for freedom, and we have chosen to celebrate it joyfully, naturally, with splendour and humanity. With pleasure we offer you a bead of sweat, a seductive wink, a torrid kiss, a racing pulse, a flushed face, a curious hand, and feather-soft fingertips - a love letter from us to you. May you thrill with desire, may your eyes be filled with wonder, may your hair stand on end, and may you tingle in every pore until you quiver with delight - that is what we wish for you". And that is what the team delivers. There are signature Cirque du Soleil acts such as the pretzel man, a contortionist so double-jointed his movements defy conventional anatomy, the high-flying dwarf and the Princess performing aerial acrobatics, and the voluptuous plus-size juggling twins. The show opens with a group of Puritans whose leader is shocked and reviled by anything carnal. As the evening progresses the Puritans become caught up in the fun other sexually charged characters are having, and they take on the role of clowns. This is an effective device that has them all losing their inhibitions by the end of the show. The music by Simon Carpentier, as with all Cirque shows, sets the tone. Performed by nine musicians and two singers, the original score flows from deep and gutsy to light and airy plucking decadent chords along the way. Luc Lafortune's brilliant lighting makes the theater warm and welcoming, then transitions into complicated illuminations that compliment each number. Hosted by the Mistress of Seduction, a Latin transvestite, Zumanity is designed to open one's mental windows, letting the air of opportunity and experimentation titillates the libido. Like visiting a banquet of temptation there are the lithe dancer/swimmers who find lesbian love in an oversized champagne glass, the dwarf and the princess whose acrobatics prove that size doesn't matter, or the black muscle man whose most prized member is a calling card for every woman he meets. There are several dramatic vignettes that capture the dynamics of relationships through dance and acrobatics. We watch the desperate cheerleading wife trying to pry her husband's attention away from the football game on TV, and the homosexual couple who say it all using poignant choreography. The show is multicultural with 50 cast members in the "human zoo". Famed designer Thierry Mugler is credited as a creator as well as a costume designer. It is an all-star cast of Cirque du Soleil wizards that have veered away from their tried and true family formula to explore intimate areas of the human psyche. They have succeeded in all but one place. At the end of the show, after the Puritans have been undone, and everyone is on stage in an artistic, orgiastic circle, the "Mistress of Seduction" announces that we are all going to "come" together. Suddenly fantasy is displaced by reality. Hundreds of inner voices are screaming, "No!!! Stop!" Reaching a group orgasm would be better accomplished through dance, lighting and music. After recovering from the "group climax" the show continues with a few very pleasant, upbeat surprises. Overall, Zumanity is a wonderful show. They have been refining it since its soft-opening in August 2003, and they will presumably keep making changes. If you are celebrating anything to do with love, or you simply find this seductive theme fascinating, Zumanity is a hot ticket. Prices range from $55 for cabaret stools, $75 for theater seats and love seats for two that are sold exclusively in pairs. Duo sofas for two are per person. For tickets visit www.zumanity.com or call 866/606-7111. |
 Las Vegas Entertainment Editor Are drag queens sexy? There's a whole subculture built around alternative lifestyles, but since I'm not familiar with it, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to react. Zumanity is Cirque du Soleil's newest Las Vegas show. Its erotic theme is intended to produce a much more sensual "adult" experience than its more gymnastic predecessors "O" and "Mystere", and in this effort it largely fails. Don't be scared off by the weird, grotesque appearance of the show's advertisements; the show looks nothing like the ads. Instead, it is built around beautiful, athletic bodies (and a few "pleasantly plump" ones), exotic costumes, some nudity, live music, comedy, fancy choreography, a few men in drag, and impressive acrobatics. That's the problem, in fact: Zumanity may be "a different side of Cirque du Soleil," as the ads read, but its contents are nothing new to Las Vegas.
The venue, New York New York's Zumanity Theater, is opulent and decadent. Walking past the many bars and sofas in its dark foyer and into the even darker theater, I felt as if I should be doing something illegal. If you can't stand the thought of an armrest between you and your date, you can reserve a sofa or love seat for two instead of normal theater seats. Zumanity's theme overemphasizes alternative lifestyles. However, two of the three most sensual acts in the show involved same-sex "partners." In one act, two men danced in a tightly choreographed, artistic duel that was somewhere between wrestling and ballet. In another, a man and a woman performed an elegant trapeze act in which they pursued each other through the air and on the ground, while romantic music played. My favorite act for uniqueness and visual appeal took place in a large, clear bowl of water. Two women cavorted gracefully in the bowl and performed gymnastic balancing acts on the rim. The show needs more of these classy performances and less of the bawdy, cabaret-style atmosphere that pervades most of the show.
|
||||||||||||||
     |
|||||||||||||||
