REVIEW: Cirque du Soleil’s ‘IRIS’ is a fitting tribute to the silver screen

LOS ANGELES — Cirque du Soleil’s near-perfect track record for dazzling audience members with death-defying acrobatic acts, ebullient theatricality and bright, vibrant colors continues with its latest show, IRIS, currently playing the Kodak Theatre in the heart of Hollywood. The spectacle is a beautiful tribute to movie history, which only seems appropriate for Tinseltown. With a score by Danny Elfman and multiple acts that result in well-earned “oohs” and “aahs,” the show is one of the strongest entries in the company’s growing (and ever-creative) repertoire.

When watching the two-act event, one will call to mind Baz Luhrman’s Moulin Rouge! The sentimentality and dedication to finding true love are very similar in both projects. In IRIS, we are led through the visual maze by Buster, a saddened composer in search of energy, happiness and, most importantly, tender love. The object of his desires is Scarlett (you got to love these character names), a young actress with hopes of making a name for herself in Hollywood. Their love story provide the show with its outline, but as any Cirque expert knows, the meat-and-cheese of this circus sandwich is varied, nonlinear and sometimes disconnected from the overall theme.

The actors and performers fill the voluminous stage of the Kodak Theatre with ease. This is one of the few shows to feel at home beneath a massive proscenium (Cirque du Soleil’s Zarkana would be another example). Running around the set is a cadre of clowns, dancers and oddball characters. One performer’s head is replaced by an old movie camera, while another spins a film reel around her torso like a dress. The costumes and makeup are finer and more intricate than most Broadway musicals.

The “circus” part of this Cirque show gets off to a high-flying start. Two acrobats soar through the air on aerial straps, instantly producing wide-eyed stares, both for the beauty and danger of the act. The performers are well-matched in the Kodak Theatre, and they provide different visual pleasures for the many balconies of the theater. If one sits in the orchestra, the duo flies right above your upturned head. For the balcony patrons, the aerialists seem to propel from the stage’s heights like a boomerang.

Other acts include an impressive contortion scene, plus a hand-to-hand sequence that finds two porters launching their partners high into the air. Throughout these creations, director Philippe Decouflé brings the audience back to the overarching theme of movies gone wild. A nice choreographic act features performers advancing though a filmstrip, giving the illusion of continuous movement. Decouflé, a choreographer himself, keeps many facets of IRIS focused on dance moves and movement.

The Icarian Games, where performers balance acrobats with their feet, is a nice addition, while one of the highlights of the show is the expansive trampoline act that features a gaggle of gangsters dropping to the stage, only to fly back up to the rafters. The rooftop trampoline sequence, which looks like an old film noir, is probably the best connection to the overall tribute to movies and filmmaking.

And, of course, the finale is big, beautiful and overflowing from the stage.

The show, which will continue in Hollywood for several years, features as much technical skill backstage as it does on stage. Jean Rabasse’s set is the work of a great artist. There’s a true feeling of vertical and horizontal design. Every last inch of the Kodak Theatre’s space is utilized to full effect. A suite of projections helps transition from one act to another, and Elfman’s orchestral music is a perfect glue for the two-hour-15-minute evening.

Decouflé goes beyond mere air-traffic controller. These performers don’t just offer their talents and then move out of the spotlight. Everything and everyone feels connected, with one scene progressing perfectly into the next.

IRIS proves that Cirque du Soleil still has many tricks up its sleeves. The Canadian-based company doesn’t accept mediocrity, and thank goodness for that.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• IRIS

• A production by Cirque du Soleil

• Written and directed by Philippe Decouflé

• Original music by Danny Elfman

• Running time: 135 minutes

• Currently playing at the Kodak Theatre at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles, Calif. Click here for more information

• Rating: