This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Dec. 12, 2012 - Some pairings seem odd. Certainly, at first the coupling of the St. Louis Symphony orchestra with Circus Flora may have raised an eyebrow or two.
After all, how often do symphony presidents authorize a high wire to be stretched above the stage where the orchestra performs?
“Logistically, it is a big operation, but oh so worth it,” Symphony president and CEO Fred Bronstein said. “We are not a theatrical space, so we do not have the theatrical devises common in production theaters like the Fox, Grand Center’s venues and others.”
Everything — from the high wire to the rest of the backdrop elements of a theatrical stage — must be built. Clearly, the mere preparation of this balancing act struck chords of anticipation, if not full-on excitement.
But when first tried last year, it worked.
“One of the great things about working here is that I know we have really fine professionals and know they’re going to make it happen,” Bronstein said.
Though he admitted to moments of skepticism last year. “The first time I saw the high wire in the hall,” Bronstein said, “I thought, ‘Are we really doing this?’”
In this second round, he said he knows everything will be in top form, even when he sees workers attaching the high wire. “I know they are professionals,” he said. “And they will do it right and do it safely.”
Along with the high wire act, Geoff Hoyle, a noted actor, clown and mime, will add his comedic touch, Circus Flora’s Executive Director David Balding said. Hoyle, who trained with Marcel Marceau’s teacher, Etienne Decroux, was the original Zazu “The Lion King” on Broadway and has clowned with acts including Pickle Family Circus, Teatro Zinzanni and Cirque du Soleil.
Balding has promised quite a few surprises and bits of whimsy along the way in addition to Hoyle. As Bronstein noted, a lot more families come in December and it is the time for fun and frivolity.
That spirit was what Bronstein and Balding had in mind when they developed this year’s collaboration. To provide a storyline foundation, they selected Dylan Thomas’ famous holiday prose “A Child’s Christmas in Wales.”
The combined effort will bring a wide range of talent to the audience, and the result promises to be extraordinary.
“In this performance, we have all sorts of music from the ‘Nutcracker Suite’ and other well-known pieces that will engage the audience and work with the story and Circus Flora’s themes,” Bronstein said.
The circus performers will bring a stunning visual element to the symphony, Bronstein emphasized. “Circus Flora is a show of broad appeal that cuts across generations,” he said. “It has something for everyone; and families come together to see shows like this and to spend time together.”
Audiences will have the chance to experience the entire poem: the cats, the tipsy aunt, the snowballs are all there, and the music and the acts are wonderfully unified, Balding promised.
“I think there is something about the circus and the majesty of Powell Hall,” he said. “They somehow reinforce each other.” And the results will be eclectic, as well as electric.
Balding said Thomas’ writing provided tremendous inspiration and room for interpretation. “It is really exciting. Thomas’ lyric language offers so much,” he said. In fact, phrases like “sleek and long as jaguars” will be illustrated by a domestic cat act, Balding said.
But more than the visual makes this performance, he said. In large measure, Balding credits conductor Alastair Willis and the musicians for their virtuosity.
“Circus Flora performers are accustomed to having a band follow them, but with the symphony it puts the pressure on and makes everything very sharp,” Balding said. “Alastair Willis is open to improvisation and holding notes longer than normal to make everything precise.”
And back to that high wire. For this performance, the Flying Wallendas will be donning the original costumes worn by ancestors who first performed together back in the early 20th century in Germany.
And while the costumes offer nostalgia, Aurelia Wallenda brings beauty and grace to that high wire stretched above the stage. Her performance is breathtaking, Balding noted. “She is lovely and talented,” he said. “I have seen her perform since she was a child, and she is truly awe-inspiring.”