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47 of 50 found the following review helpful:
 Out of this worldDec 05, 2004
By Laura De Giorgio
"hypnotherapist"
The acrobats are amazing, costumes and music make you feel as if you were dreaming. As stunning as this DVD is - it makes you want to see the whole thing live, and as awesome as the entire production of the show, so is the supplementary DVD containing interviews with the artists as well as all the challenges and hard work that went into producing this masterpiece.
The drama of this performance takes place deep within a forest, in an extraordinary world where just about anything is possible. The story begins with the fall of Icarus (from Greek mythology), where a romantic interest develops between him and one of the inhabitants of this world - a caterpillar who by the end of the show turns into a butterfly. While they are attempting to be together, numerous inhabitants of this world attempt to stand in their way, though in the end they manage to get married and there is a big celebration.
The entire production, including all the creative elements is a fruit of teamwork, where each artist contributed not only acrobatic skills, but also creativity.
Beside the extraordinary acrobats, dancers and musicians, from all over the world, there are several humorous and very creative clowns - the one that introduces the show is in a way an overseer of the inhabitants, an inventor, and quite a character.
29 of 32 found the following review helpful:
Simply SublimeAug 16, 2003
By CodeMaster Talon
My sister surprised me with tickets to see "Varekai!" in San Francisco a couple of months ago, and even though I love Cirque du Soleil and have seen many of their shows I was still totally blown away.
"Varekai!" has many of the familiar trademarks of the Cirque; the juggler, the comedy relief, the girl doing insane balancing tricks on some sort of pole/stand/etc. But this time around things are distinctly more colorful. The sets are designed to mimic a tropical rainforest, and the costumes are a cross between the brightest insects and animals of nature and Venice at Carnival time. There is also a heavier emphasis on dancers, particularly Gypsy and Romanian dancing. The results are spectacular.
While the full impact of the show cannot be felt by watching the DVD (there was one stunning sequence involving waltzing fireflies that simply does not come across on video), it is still well worth buying. The comedy is hilarious (we can thank the Cirque for actually making clowns funny instead of vaguely disturbing) and the music several notches above past Cirque endeavors. "Varekai!" is my favorite Cirque show (I've seen all of them except "O") and I highly highly recommend buying the DVD if you can't go see the actual show. Three cheers for a job well done and for a circus that continues to provide innovative and enchanting entertainment.
18 of 19 found the following review helpful:
Amazing, incredible, breathtaking....Dec 29, 2004
By Michelle S.
I got this DVD for Christmas and I can't stop watching it. My favorite of any Cirque show I've seen period. It's portrayed amazingly well on DVD, unlike other Cirque shows I've seen through DVD. The show alone would be worth the price of this DVD, but what's awesome about this is you get an entire DVD of extras! In-depth interviews, Meet The Artists, A preview of the Fire Within Series, The documentary "The Making of an Angel"...it's great! I love this show! I'm driving with my parents 11 hours away this January to see Varekai. It's that good and I'm absolutely in love with it. The acts are amazing and I love that it actually has a story line...and the story line is fabulous.
Icarus falls from the sky into the world of Varekai inhabited by strange creatures--some that want to help him on his journey to regaining his mobility and ability to fly again, and some that just want to weigh him down. And, on this Journey, he finds love, a caterpillar girl. But the creatures wanting to cause him harm, take his love away from him and put her in a cocoon. And, at the end, she comes back at the end as a beautiful butterfly and they finally are able to be together.
And, of course, this being Cirque, there are amazing acts to go with the story line:
Flight of Icarus: Beautiful. This is where Icarus struggles in a net that holds him captive. Anton Chelnokov expresses his emotion so well on this act, it's breathtaking. One of favorite acts on in the show. I nearly started crying just watching it on DVD.
Icarian Games-- Amazing! An act where one man juggles another with his feet. This is the first time I've ever seen foot juggling and it's definitely a sight to see. Another one of my favorites.
Water Meteors--Really fun to watch! An act where three young boys do tricks with what is called a water meteor. They're so talented! I can't see how they never hit each other in the head with one of the meteors or drop them. lol A wonderful act.
Triple Trapeze--This is the act where the Caterpillar girl, Olga, Icarus's love, is taken away from him. It's a test of his love for her through the temptation and beauty of these beautiful spider creatures. 4 girls do a sort of ballet dance on a big trapeze with three parts to it, hence "triple trapeze". This act is beautiful. The strength that these girls must have to hold each other like this for that long of time is astounding.
Gorgian Dance-- Three men do a Gorgian dance...a sort of competition. It's really fun to watch and they look like they're having so much fun. Involves dancing, sword fighting, and fire. The boys of the household will like this act. lol
Body Skating-- Acrobatics performed on a slippery surface making it look as if they were 'skating'. This act is so much fun!! It seems like such innocent fun and the outfits are so amazing!! The music of this act is my favorite. Very upbeat and you can tell the singers are having a fun time. I watch this act sometimes just for the music. And when Icarus goes down the "drain"...I love it! LOL
Acrobatic Pas De Deux--A man and woman perform acrobatics with a feel of romanticism. This is an impressive act, but not really my favorite. I usually just skip over this one. The performers do a wonderful job, though!
Solo on Crutches-- A performance of the Limping Angel on crutches, "fighting" what has Icarus's wings and is trying to hurt him. Not my favorite act, but it definitely has a lot of meaning to the story line. Seeing as the Limping Angel is crippled and doing all these things, it inspired Icarus that he can walk again.
Aerial Straps--Two twins perform an aerial act with straps. One of my favorite performances....one of the best performance I've seen from Cirque period, actually. It's amazing how much strength these men have.
Juggling--I love this juggler!!! He has so much energy jumping around and smiling all the time. He juggles everything from pins to vollyballs, to sombrero hats, to ping pong balls with his mouth! I love this act!
Hand balancing on Canes-- This is where Olga, the caterpillar girl, comes out of her cocoon as a butterfly. She hand balances on canes and also does some of her act on the floor. I love this act. It's really sensual and beautiful. Olga Pihkinko expresses emotion of her character so well. This act Icarus's love performs inspires him to walk again. And they finally get together after all the obstacles that were in their way.
Russian Swings--Acrobatics using two Russian swings. This is an awesome act! How high they could go, risking their lives....it's amazing. This act is performed in celebration of Icarus and Olga finally being together and getting married.
An amazing show with amazing music. The costumes and make-up are spectacular, and The characters are wonderful. My favorite would be Icarus, Olga, and The Skywatcher. I have to say, John Gilkey does an amazing job at portraying craziness. lol If I could give this DVD 10,000 stars I would. Buy this DVD! If you love Cirque, I know you'll love this!
10 of 11 found the following review helpful:
Extraordinary!Dec 26, 2005
By Manny Hernandez
"@askmanny"
I have seen two Cirque Du Soleil videos and one of their live shows in my life. Only they can top themselves, and with "Varekai", they did it once more. The show is based on the Greek myth of Icarus, imagining what may his life have been like after he fell during his flight, upon getting too close to the sun. The magical combination of clowns, dance, acrobatics, gymnastics and music in a fantastic stage filled with surprises, inevitably draws you in and captivates you throughout the entire show, which lasts short of two hours.
If the show is not enough for you, the second DVD is loaded with interviews with the artists (lots of whom are Russian, in case you want to know), the making of the show (a 45+ minute long documentary) and many more features that make this DVD set well worth your time and money.
7 of 8 found the following review helpful:
I give it a 5 because of the DVD featuresOct 19, 2003
I have seen all of the Cirque shows- some in person, all on video. Without a doubt, Quidam is my favorite. Varekai comes in a close second, tied with Dralion. Interestingly enough, a LOT of what's in Varekai are acts from Dralion and Quidam. It's obvious they would put Olga's hand balancing into the show, since that's her forte', but the hand Acrobatic pas de duex- I recognize a lot of those moves right out of Quidam. Just about all Cirque shows have some sort of arial strap act (which honestly bores me), some sort of trapeze act (which I can never get tired of), some sort of hand balancing act, and a juggling number (also love them). They really did a great job at the music, and the costumes (especially in the body skating) are fantastic. Regarding the clowns, the guy is really funny, the girl (can't think of her name) brings nothing to the act. Hopefully she'll mold into a more interesting character role later. Don't get me wrong- the things I pointed out here don't make this less than an excellent show, I'm just pointing them out because this is a review. The acts are flawless and incredible, and the music and costumes are fantastic. Anyway, I gave this one a 5 because they FINALLY figured out what the DVD format is good for- extras. There's an entire second disc of extras! They packed a lot of great stuff in there- personal interviews with some of the talent (I find it amusing when John Gikley says he doesn't consider himself a clown), and making-of featurettes, multi-angle performances, etc. Bravo on the DVD features!
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