Stuff of legends: Cirque Du soleil does greek mythology
We all have our own visions of the circus, but Quebec based Cirque du Soleil has revolutionized them all, and they’re on their way to Colorado. Varekai, a story about wanderlust, will be performed at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland from May 1 through May 4, and May 7 through May 11 at the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield.
Icarus, the main character in the production is performed by Mark Halasi from Hungary, who has been performing this role in Varekai for eight years.
“I had many different directors, so all of them brought something new to the show and all of them had different ideas of how the should like,” Halasi said.
Halasi attended circus school in Hungary, where he learned the basics of performing for the first four years and then select a specialty for the rest of the duration.
In Varekai, Halasi performs “The Fall of Icarus” which is also called the Net Act. If there are two shows in one day, Halasi said he will spend the better part of the day at the arena preparing for the shows.
“I have to do my make up, if we have any meetings about the show or any changes to the show I have to be involved. I basically warm-up — so it takes about 40 minutes — then I put on my costume and I perform the show,” Halasi said. After a short break between shows, the process starts again for the next run. He added that relaxing is a big part of preventing injury during performances.
In addition to Halasi, the show includes 50 other musicians and performers that come form 18 different countries. “The Fall of Icarus” is accompanied by traditional circus acts like clowns and juggling as well as the “Russian Swing,” balancing acts and more.
“I get to see the world, and also I have friends from all over the world like people who I wouldn’t have a chance to work with or even to meet them,” Halasi said of performing with Cirque du Soleil.
“I really enjoy being on stage and showing people something they can’t necessarily do,” he said.
Varekai is one of Cirque du Soleil’s many traveling arena shows. The company also has a traveling big top as well as several shows permanently stationed in Las Vegas.
