★★★★✰
On a dark January evening, Revel Puck Circus are here to bring magic with their show The Wing Scuffle Spectacular. In a consistently impressive show, this young circus troupe aim to challenge our fears and create wonder in a way that dazzles but sometimes lacks in coherent structure.
Each acrobat brings something beautiful to the show, be it falling through the sky on wires, changing a hula hoop into a literally dizzying display of skill, or balancing on a gigantic rola bola. There are multiple fist-in-mouth moments of genuine fear, though fewer than a show directly based around exploring that concept might suggest. The strongest moments are either when the performer’s skills are brought to the fore (as in a foot-crushing tightrope act) or combined with comedy (in the juggling sequence).
If there is a plotline, it is that of Arielle Lauzon’s clown whose conflict with a lion of varying sizes forms the heart of the piece, and adds a touching moral of confronting and then befriending your fears. It also acts as a palette cleanser, as well as reassuring the audience we are in good hands. However there are a few caveats to the piece’s success: terrible sound issues prevent any pre-recorded narration from being heard and so diminishing our knowledge of what the piece is about (although realistically we aren’t here for the plot). There are a few too many low-energy moments that slow the piece’s pace, or sequences that go on for too long- we can do without an endless clowning sequence tacked onto the impressive seesaw moment.
But regardless of these flaws, what Revel Puck Circus do is unique and brilliantly realised: they infuse traditional circus skills with talent and modern-day stylings, referencing and undermining the legends of the big top to confront the audience and performer’s fears. If you don’t think too hard about the connections between the themes and the show, it is difficult to find a better 21st century circus show.
The Wing Scuffle Spectacular was performed from 15 December-8 January at Beckenham Park Place.
Words by Issy Flower
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