Race Horse Company, Finnish circus troupe debuting at the Fringe, bring their internationally applauded show Super Sunday to Underbelly’s Circus Hub. This gravity-defying spectacle is worth every minute and every penny.
Forget everything you have presupposed about circus so far. Instead of sequins, gloss and nimble dancers, six dudes in Hawaiian shirts deliver one of a kind entertainment, embellished with both unbelievable acrobatics and black humour. Some jokes are rough, some even might be controversial when the performers turn a crucifix into a Russian bar – a circus act combing a balance beam, a trampoline and a swing – and put on a show of which Madonna herself could be envious. However, the artists laugh primarily at themselves, therefore their daring yet unaffected and natural sense of humour is truly contagious.
On one hand they deliver almost a parody of a circus, ridiculing its signature attractions such as juggling, dancing or gymnastics, dressed as horses or teddy bears. On the other, however, they enravish the audience with an exhilarating set of acrobatics. A double trampoline act, human catapults, flights from a teeterboard and the final act – Wheel of Death are just names that don’t convey a mind-blowing and jaw-dropping circus show.
What is even more mesmerising than the circus skills of Race Horse Company, is their teamwork, support and trust, essential to build this kind of a spectacle. The show is done without a director and thus requires the performers’ constant involvement but it is therefore so unforced and deprived of a typically circus razzle-dazzle. The acrobats’ love and passion for what they do immediately stand out and are one of the things that make Super Sunday so special. Both the audience’s screams, laughter and well-deserved applauses bring them a huge pleasure and they don’t even try to hide it.
Probably not a family show but parents can sneak out to the Circus Hub after the kids go to bed and take a trip down memory lane, however a childhood image of a circus is definitely going to be twisted. Super Sunday will make any day of a week super amusing. A dazzling entertainment.
Main Image Credit: Petter Hellman
