Experience the magic of Cirkopolis in Dubai

Showing for the first time in Dubai, this fantastical world of dance and circus will sweep you away.

HAVEN'T WE ALL dreamed of running away to join the circus? Well now you don't need to run very far, just to the Dubai World Trade Centre. After visiting more than 70 cities in 20 different countries around the world, Cirque Éloize's latest production, Cirkopolis, is being presented for the first time in Dubai, till September 26.
Step into a world that combines the drama of theatre, the beauty of dance and the magic of the circus. Ten acrobats and multidisciplinary artists will perform on a completely unique stage design, accompanied by an original musical score and video projections. Cirkopolis is Cirque Éloize's ninth original production, co-directed by Dave St-Pierre and Jeannot Painchaud. It tells the poetic and timeless tale of coming into ones own and breaking the chains that bind us.
Aaron DeWitt, one of the newest members to join Cirkopolis, is a hand-to-hand artist that has been preforming for almost thirteen years. He explained that Cirkopolis is a combination of beautiful storytelling and performance that will leave its mark on audiences.
"It's definitely an experience. There's so much to take in, we are only ten artists and we are what you call generalists so we do alot of disciplines," he says, "that means the show is full of circus, full of crazy stuff. You can't come to the show and say that you didn't like it. You're going to come and see something you love, no matter what. No doubt in mind, you'll leave happy."
Cirkopolis is a story-driven performance set in a strict and robotic world that runs as a factory with no individuality. The city and all its horrors are seen through giant gears and dark portals that act as metaphors that crush individuality. As the story unfolds, characters challenge the system and break the rules in this fantastical and sculptural universe through audacity, fantasy, music and humour.
Juggler Joris de Jong, who has been performing since he was seven says there is much more than meets the eye when audiences are enveloped into the world of Cirkopolis.
"You have an amazing technical level of tricks," Joris says, "and for me there is an extra layer of poetry that binds together this story of the character we follow, combined with all these techniques. You aren't only going to see a show with lots of tricks, we aren't showing off. It's all part of the story we are telling, I think that's an important part for me and that's what's special about the show."
The ten multidisciplinary artists featured in the show will juggle, jump, soar and dance to rebel, reinvent themselves and challenge the limits of the factory-city. The lines between fantasy and reality are blurred not only through the story, music and lights but by the energy of the performers as well.
"When I'm on stage and I share my energy," Joris adds, "I'm a juggler so the fun I have with it, I share with the audience. In that moment we are connected and you like it and I like it and we are all having a good time. That is the most amazing feeling. It gives me energy to do it again and again."
While the juggler braves the space and wows the audience, a contortionist is lifted by her companions in a surge of inspiration and aerial artists defy the height of the skyscrapers. The show is pretty flawless and that doesn't only take careful lighting and timed movements but teamwork and a shared feeling of trust among the cast and the technical crew.
"I think that's something the public often overlooks because it's not something they get to see," Aaron says, "for example right now the whole set up and checking the lights and spacing on stage and making sure we are together and comfortable in the area and that we trust each other is important. There is an insane amount of costume changes, there is one costume that has so many layers and in every act there is a little detail change or a layer is removed. You have to be quick. There are a lot of details that you might not see as a spectator but it's all important."
Experiencing Cirkopolis is watching the imagined and real world collide into a mesh of fantasy. The show is driven by amazing music and what we all love about the circus, physical feats, humour, and a bizarre extraordinary world that we all can awe at no matter where we are from.
"On all fronts it's incredible. There lots of happiness, sadness, beauty, laughter, it has everything, it's a perfect mix," Aaron says, "if you're coming to see a story, you'll see a great story. If you're coming to see a circus you're going to see a great circus. Even if you want to see dance you'll see some dance. You'll get everything, it's what's interesting and original about the show."