We went to see Cirque du Soleil's Corteo this afternoon. It was a very good show, of course: they do beautiful work.The last time I saw Cirque du Soleil was in 1991: Nouvelle Expérience in Atlanta, to which my mother invited me. That show was a revelation to me. It was also a very different time for that organization: just a small circus company, not the "entertainment empire" as it is described today. Then, it was just one touring show; now it has fourteen touring companies and six resident shows.
It was also distinctly non-English then, with very few words spoken at all, and the French nature of the show very distinct. Today they sing and mumble in a eurotrash polyglot (which probably reflects the many nationalities involved) and speak in English. It somehow now feels safe where the show used to feel somewhat subversive: two nearly naked men doing a hand-to-hand show was practically a felony in Georgia, and although speaking French hadn't yet reached the depths of infamy it later did, it was certainly different for that place and time.
Inevitably, that which is good and cutting edge eventually becomes mainstream. Even when the quality remains the same (or gets better, to be perfectly honest), it often doesn't feel that way. After all, middle age is when nostalgia blossoms. But age has some consolations: at least I no longer affect a little black fez with gold embroidery (some photos will never be scanned).
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