Air Play Review | A balm for the soul

While outside, the cold bites and the news grips our hearts, a warm and comforting wind blows in TOHU. It is worn by two New York artists who have decided to make the power of air their main subject.

This moving tandem bears the name of Acrobuffos. Seth Bloom and Christina Gelsone have taken their suitcases to the biggest stages in the world. They land in Montreal for the Holidays with a show of great beauty entitled Airplay and intended for ages 5 and up.

Here, no dialogue or great acrobatics that send shivers down your spine. We are in pure poetry, that of strong images that stick to the retina and lighten the heart. We are still and above all in the laughter of the children, who go into ecstasies in front of a balloon which flies or in front of two colored fabrics which perform the most fantastic aerial ballets. In the era of screens and large-scale films, causing hilarity with a simple balloon is no small thing!

When the friends find themselves in the middle of flying umbrellas or twirling snowflakes, the public lets their wonder be heard. When, on the contrary, they slip into two giant balloons, it is the frank laughter that prevails over everything.

Before Airplay, worries fly away and lightness takes its rightful place. Thank you for this to the two soft-hearted clowns who work on stage for almost an hour. These two have a rare talent for establishing a bond with the spectators, regardless of their age. As long as we have kept a small part of his child’s heart, we will be charmed by their candor, their antics. Small children (and even very large ones) do not hesitate to go on stage when they are invited.

Music also plays a major role in this candy show. We go from Puccini (the Nessun Dorma of Turandot) to Nancy Sinatra (the timeless bang bang) with joy. Each piece adds to the enveloping atmosphere of the show.

There is in Airplay a poetic wind reminiscent of the deliciously quirky (and imaginative) universe of the clown Slava. In less grandiloquent, certainly, but with the same charge of happiness. The means are more modest, but we come out of it with an equally happy spirit.

It should come as no surprise that when the two artists joined the public in the hall of La Tohu on the evening of the premiere, the children crowded around them, as if they were old acquaintances. Children are not fooled and easily recognize pure hearts. And the artists of Acrobuffos are among them.

Airplay

At TOHU.Until 1^er January 2023.

8.5/10