Audiences at the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden are being presented with a marvelous, colorful and vibrant make-believe world in the production “Wintuk,” performed by Cirque du Soleil. The production, sponsored by Delta Airlines, presents a young man who lives in a city where winter has come but without snow. Snow is something that this young man wants so badly that he goes on a journey to a place called Wintuk to find the snow and bring it back to his city.
A female narrator takes him on the journey to Wintuk, along with a girl that he likes. It is an everyday thing to see skilled acrobats performing on skateboards, roller skates and on bicycles, but the somersaults, twist, turns and splits that you see will have you amazed and mesmerized. These performers are aerialists and high-wire walkers. They can balance on all types of objects–there is one man who can balance on as many as nine different objects piled on top of one another, several of the objects being round cylinders that are actually moving from side to side as he proceeds to mount and balance successfully on top of them.
At one point I knew things were going to get phenomenal when the stage moved and a long trampoline was revealed. Countless performers leapt, hopped, somersaulted, and did splits and all types of moves aided by the flexibility of the trampoline. They looked like they were having a great time.
Another part of the show featured a contortionist who was dressed in a doll’s costume. Two clowns flipped her body in so many ways that you would have thought they were really handling a large doll. One leg would go one way, while the other went totally in a different direction.
The best way to describe this show is that it is a pure delight.
“Wintuk” is a world with imaginary giants and lovely, tall birds, and it’s a place to realize your dreams. On its beauty alone, this show is something to experience.