There’s a metal tree in the middle of the circus stage. It’s definitely a tree because acrobats are climbing on it. Other members of this multi-disciplinary crew are mixing with the gathering audience. The lines between worlds are blurred, subverted, who is on which side of the circus ring’s boundary is unclear. And that’s just how NoFit State Circus likes it. An amplified voice bellows: “The revolution is coming and I’ve nothing to wear!” And we’ve slipped into the show proper as easily and smoothly as into a warm bath.
Some subversion works more clearly than others, with the early appearance of a copy of George Orwell book giving only a hint at the later animal masks’ significance. And a couple of instances of political slogans shown in English being a bit confusing, standing as jumping off points that don’t feel jumped from specifically. But these are just a few points within a much large collection of moments of sawdust and wonder.
The live band (who are worth the price of admission alone by the way) soundtrack with blue grass and blues, by way of traveller encampment and gravel-voiced scat. And as much as they stand alone to one side for a lot of the show, instances see them cross over into the circus ring too, joining in the bits, blurring lines of demarcation, and marking everyone as one rambunctious crew.
I find out later that the carnation flower represents socialism in Italy. Which makes sense for this world premiere show, quietly and noisily bringing us all into the very same world together for a few magical hours.
