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• Cirque Du Soleil’s Saltimbanco

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An anxious and vibrant circular stage with

flexible ropes and ladders emerging from its

perimeter awaits Assembly Hall’s intimate arena. A variety of the stage’s attractive elevations flaunt colors created for an imaginative mind.

A man whose costume is too complicated to comprehend is forgiven by its contrasting

simplicity and mesmerizing artistic unfamiliarity. His voice demands attention as it varies from high to low extremes. His body language is that of a mime. He welcomes and introduces Saltimbanco to Champaign, but really, he doesn’t need to speak — none of the members of Cirque Du Soleil’s Saltimbanco need to. Their body language, extraordinary flexibility and matchless stunts speak for themselves. Saltimbanco — meaning “to jump on a bench” in Italian — is one of Cirque Du Soleil’s most entertaining, infamous shows. They graced us with their presence and took over Assembly Hall last Friday and Saturday. The show consisted of nine mind-boggling acts: Adagio, Artistic Bicycle, Chinese Poles, Juggling, Boleadores, Russian Swing, Duo Trapeze, Hand to Hand and Bungees.

Adagio and Hand to Hand consisted of the artists using their

bodies and strengths to build exotic shapes and create incredible, dissimiliar shapes. They show off their strength with ease, looking as if they are dolls being bent beyond realistic flexibility to their owner’s satisfaction. The highlights of the show were The Russian Swing and a heart-warming, comedian named Eddy. During the Russian Swing, the crowd’s laughter level from previous comedic acts and interludes hushed to nil. As The Baron had warned the audience at the beginning of the show — “camera flash, artist crash” — no one wanted to be responsible for any accidents. Everyone seemed to be holding their breath. Two women with blonde ponytails almost touching their bottoms performed the Russian Swing with grace, acting as if they were swinging on the playground instead of 30 feet into the air without any safety nets or mats. At one point, one of the women released the other by her hands over the crowd’s head and caught her with her feet — talk about trust. The women performed in perfect synchronization as if they were each others mirrors at times and perfect opposites at others.

As the women started to swing higher and faster, the music — which, at any given point, could be Swedish, Arabic or German — was essential to building the suspense. The key singer, dressed in red and white with a crown that somewhat resembled a peacock, made us cling to the edge of our chairs as the women released as she raised her voice. The show kept this pace and coordination throughout every scene. Music boosted the energy of the show, kept the pace, pushed the acrobrats to stay on task and was even soothing at times.

Eddy, another highlight and beloved character of the show, was meant to represent “the child within us all.” He pulled various audience members out of the crowd, successfully getting them to play with him on the stage. Without ever talking, Eddy used his body language to direct audience members throughout the show, getting them to play ball with him, walk through imaginary doors, crawl through imaginary tunnels and even participate in a Western draw with him. He made his own sound effects and pulled every scene and prop from his imagination. Saltimbanco consistently reminded us that actions speak louder than words. Saltimbanco was bouncing with energy not just because of its colorful stage and crucial music, the characters were sincere in their stunts and were determined to be the masters of entertainment. Other than The Baron and Eddy, other characters that brought the show to life were, ironically, La Mort (the Death), to remind us to live life as if it’s our last day, Le Dormeur (the Dreamer), a hopeful-for-more-power Ringmaster and the free-spirited Baroques meaning “irregular in shape, extravagant, complex, bizarre, or emphasizing dramatic effect.” Last Friday marked Cirque Du Soleil’s premiere performance in Champaign. If you missed them last week, use this fall break or take a break from work and catch them in Madison, Wisconsin this weekend. Next, they’ll be springing and swinging around Ohio and Michigan in January and February. Make sure you see them before they leave the country. This show is entertaining for people of all ages, so go with your mom, dad, little brother or older sister and let Saltimbanco entice the creative kid in you.