A flashback on Cirque du Soleil’s Varekai in Manila (July 2011) – with my husband’s stage act!

I don’t really have a bucket list, but one of the many things I would like to experience is the thrill of witnessing live acts in the sophisticatedly mad world of performing arts. I am not at all a knowledgeable critic of the arts. I am just an average person who appreciates it and likes to be highly entertained. So when I learned that Cirque du Soleil was coming to Manila, I grabbed the chance to experience a world-class circus spectacle live. The touring production that came to Manila was “Varekai”.


Promotional ad by BDO

Before I purchased tickets from the Cirque du Soleil website, I first read from it on what Varekai was about. I learned what the word “Varekai” means, how the story would go, who the characters were, and of course what circus acts were to see. The CDS website also has a video preview that got me more excited. I also looked for reviews from those who have already watched the show.

After gathering such information and reviews, I chose the Premium seats on a weekday, which was priced at PhP 6,500 per ticket. Because our tickets were for a weekday instead of a weekend, we were able to save PhP 1,100. I contemplated at first on purchasing Tapis Rouge tickets (priced at PhP 10,500 each) which had the same seats as the Premium tickets but with access before and after the show and during show breaks to the Tapis Rouge for cocktails and hors d’ouvres by Manila Hotel. But I realized that I had just left my old job during that time and I would be happier with popcorn anyway.

Our show date was July 6, a Wednesday. Pol would be coming from his (then) work in Makati and I from home in Quezon City. We met at the LRT UN Avenue station, where from there we could have walked to the Luneta grounds near Quirino Grandstand but we took a cab instead because it was drizzling. Finally, we saw the Grand Chapiteau (The Big Top).



Outside the Grand Chapiteau

Souvenir shops and waiting area inside the Grand Chapiteau



We were probably thirty minutes early before the audience could enter the theater of the tent. So meanwhile, we bought popcorn for snacks and lined up for a free photoshoot at the photobooth courtesy of the event’s major sponsor Sun Life Financial. We had to like the Facebook page of Sun Life Philippines first though in order to have a shoot. At least we had a free souvenir of the show since taking photos inside the stage room was not allowed (which explains why the photos in this post are of low quality since I didn't bring my camera anymore and just made use of our camera phones).



Our free Varekai souvenir photo care of Sun Life Financial



It was time to enter the theater. Pol and I were seated very near the center aisle and just about three meters right in front of the stage. It was the most perfect view and angle. Our section for Premium seats was the least occupied that we could count the seated persons with our fingers. The Level 3 tickets, the most affordable ones, had seats located from the far sides of the stage. It was the most occupied section and it was still worth it to be seated there because the theater was very small and the stage was round, giving everyone in the audience a very good view from any angle. Because the theater was so small, the atmosphere was very intimate. If only we knew, we would have purchased Level 3 tickets instead. But this regret of mine disappeared when Pol became part of the show with his own act! I’ll tell more about it later in this post. J

Finally, the show began. It was an overwhelming feast for the eyes, even for the ears. Aside from the colorful and tastefully designed costumes and makeup of the characters as otherworldly creatures, and of course the breathtaking circus stunts that we lost count of our rounds of applause, I didn’t expect to fall in love with the show's live original eclectic music! I was so hooked that I downloaded the Varekai soundtrack as soon as I got home.

Just to recall some of the acts that drew me into the enchantment of the show, it was my first time to see some of the stunts of those acts: The Flight of Icarus made use of a suspended net to perform aerial dives and contortions; the Icarian Games showed men foot-juggling one another; the young acrobats of the Water Meteors act had to catch what they threw up in the air as they performed acrobatic stunts; the Georgian Dance was a difficult dance because of the quick repetitive turns along with quick repetitive kneeling and standing; the Solo on Crutches performed by the Limping Angel was unique because it’s hard to imagine a limp person fly around with the support of crutches. My personal favorites were: the Triple Trapeze because it has my favorite song in the whole show called “Kèro Hiréyo”; the Aerial Straps because the two suspended men flew all over the theater and not just on stage; and the death-defying Russian Swings at the end of the show.

Triple Trapeze act
Song entitled "Kèro Hiréyo", sung by Zara Tellander and Mathieu Lavoie
Video clip from the official Varekai DVD (filmed 2002 in Toronto)
Uploaded by mcirque in YouTube

In addition to the blast I had with the amazing stunts that stood center in front of us, there was a surprise that was waiting specially for Pol and me. In between the acrobatic acts were a few short breathers wherein there were Clown Acts. One of these little acts was the Magic Act where the voluptuous lady clown picked a volunteer from the audience, and it was Pol whom she was flirtatiously winking at. And that was where everything started with how Pol became part of the Grand Chapiteau stage. The rest of the story is too long and complicated for me to narrate, and I could just say that the two clowns made professionally entertaining fun of him for about five minutes and their orchestrated act made my laughs the most special among the audience. ♥

I asked Pol later on how it felt like and how he was able to actively participate while on stage, and he told me that the clowns were whispering to him what to do. And he couldn’t really see the audience from the stage because of the bright lights that may have been purposely set up to not distract him while performing his act. As I remember that special part of the show, I couldn’t help but smile and feel kilig. I really wished taking photos during at least that short Magic Act by the Clowns was allowed because there were no dangerous stunts anyway. Pol on the other hand would still be embarrassed every time he remembers it. He even told me not to take Premium seats anymore the next time, but he was not really angry. He was just really embarrassed. J

Magic Act by the Clowns and a male volunteer from the audience 

Video clip of the from the official Varekai DVD (filmed 2002 in Toronto)

Uploaded by mcirque in YouTube

When the show ended, Pol told me that he already understood why the tickets were priced that much. I was glad that he liked the show very much, that he wanted to watch another Cirque du Soleil production again but not with Premier seats anymore. I agreed that we can just be seated in other more affordable sections because we now learned that all angles of a CDS production stage would still have fairly nice views that wouldn’t lessen anyone's enjoyment at all.



Before leaving Le Grand Chapiteau: Photo of "The Betrothed" doing hand-balancing on canes



Before leaving Le Grand Chapiteau: Photo with Cirque du Soleil logo

Before we bid the Grand Chapiteau goodbye, we bought a Varekai souvenir program and went to Mister Kabab along West Avenue for a very late dinner. It was a very memorable night for us that will forever be in our hearts especially that Pol became part of the show. This experience was something we would proudly tell our future children and grandchildren about. J

At Mister Kabab, reading the Varekai souvenir program


As of this writing, another production by Cirque de Soleil called “Saltimbanco” will be coming to Manila this August! Pol and I will try our best not to miss it!