Cirque Du Soleil has arrived in Portland for the next month performing one of their great shows called Totem. TOTEM tracks the intriguing quest of the human species from their initial amphibian condition to their greatest aspiration to take flight. The personalities blossom on a platform evoking a large turtle, the representation of the beginning for several ancient civilizations. Prompted by many founding myths, TOTEM demonstrates, by way of a visual and acrobatic language, the transformative development of species. Somewhere within knowledge and legend TOTEM looks at the connections which join Man with other species, their aspirations with his fantastic endless possibilities.

The Show

The show started off with the Bars. A huge turtle on center stage signifies the lineage of existence on this planet. The creature’s shell is taken to disclose a bubbling society of amphibians as well as fish that dwells underneath its carapace. They jump in to a spirited parallel bars number, with performers embodying frogs launching their bodies in the air swinging from a bar to another, criss-crossing in mid-air having inches to sacrifice. Following the Bars, the next act was Rings Trio. This is a Bollywood-inspired popular music which occurs with a couple of men while they compete keenly against one another on rings—until female shows up and demonstrates to the men how it’s done.

Then came probably the most popular part of the show; the Unicycles and Bowls. The prosperity of autumn is symbolized through the harvest colors as 5 unicyclists juggle metallic bowls in a incredible highlight of nimbleness, stability, synchronized control as well as natural elegance, throwing their bowls with their feet—sometimes over their shoulders—and catching them on their heads without the need for their hands. This part of the show was simply amazing & they also received the largest applause from the crowd.

So Many Performances

There were just too many performances to go through each one; the Devil Sticks, Fixed Trapeze Dou, Foot Juggling, Hand Balancing, Hoops Dancers, Manipulation, Roller Skates, and the Russian Bars, that you have to go see for yourself how great and talented the performers are. Cirque Du Soleil TOTEM in Portland is as good as any show in Las Vegas or New York, so if you’re in the Portland area go grab yourself some tickets while the show is still in town. TOTEM will be in Portland the whole month of April, but don’t wait, the tickets are going fast & the more word spreads about this show, the harder those tickets will be to find. For parents, this is a great family show too, no need to worry, you can bring the kids too…that is if you want to.