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A breath-taking immersive circus experience that you will never forget!Summary
Rating
Unmissable!
Inside a white tent that looks like several bedsheets stitched together, I am lying on the floor, surrounded by people I have never met before. My eyes, wide open, stare for a second at those of the aerialist who is hanging upside down from the silks no more than two feet above me. In fact, there are two, entangling limbs and flying over us on the notes of “Bird Gerhl” by Anohni and the Johnsons – which repeats the words “I have been searching for my wings”. It’s a transcendental experience – they really look like birds from here, powerful and perfect.
Chicago-based company Aloft doesn’t incorporate many daredevil acts, but what make it so special is the artists’ willingness to invite us into their private space. Especially in acrobatics, the stage must be a safe place to perform and I am in awe of how gracefully they handle our presence in such close proximity. Adding the unknown factor of the crowd to already top notch circus raises the stakes to something incredibly brave. “You will be safe” – a recorded voice told us in many languages when we first arrived.
The show is steeped in camaraderie. The all-female cast of seven support each other, looking at one another for approval, and engaging the audience to help throughout. In fact, the tent isn’t even there when we start, and we all contribute to putting it up. Each act, whether Cyr wheel, aerial, hula hoops, balancing or juggling, is carried out with flawless elegance. In all my years of watching circus I have never seen something so empowering and charged with meaning.
If you like physical performance and you watch only one show at this year’s Fringe, Brave Space must be the one – what you’ll see you’ll never forget. “Immersive” nowadays has become an overrated word, often used to describe anything that even marginally engages the audience. But blimey it’s certainly the right word to use in this case!
Produced by: Aloft in association with Underbelly
Brave Space plays at EdFringe 2023 until 26 August, 11am. Further information and bookings here.
