There’s never a dull moment at London’s South Bank. And it’s here that for the past 4 years some of the world’s quirkiest entertainers have gathered for a celebration of the weird and the wonderful at London Wonderground.
Offering a heady concoction of circus frivolity, trendy fast food and a considerable number of bars for a fairly small site, London Wonderground is a post-work playground that you don’t want to miss out on.
At the centre of the action is the Spiegeltent in all its early-20th century mirrored glory, which is host to a number of shows, from risqué cabaret to baby disco.
But the main event for 2016 is Cirque Alfonse’s BARBU.
Meaning bearded in French, BARBU’s heavily bearded yet often scantily dressed French-Canadian male performers give sense to the name.
Throughout the 75 minutes of dramatic chaos that ensues, this circus troupe of 7 flex their acrobatically sculpted muscles in a fusion of traditional and contemporary circus routines that are interrupted by the eccentric antics of heel-wearing Lucas Jolly – the show's anti-ringmaster – who takes a back seat from all the impressive stuff.
Juggling, and, at times, heart-stopping balancing acts are demonstrated alongside some equally remarkable and cringey moves on a pole.
"It’s certainly an attack on the senses"
It’s certainly an attack on the senses.
In the background, some rather strange video footage will catch your eye when there's downtime on stage. And throughout, traditional sea shanty-esque folk songs played by the truly talented musicians support the action and help build tension.
But things don’t really get going until the clothes come off and we’re confronted with a semi-naked man in a disco ball outfit rolling around inside a Cyr wheel. From the front row, you certainly get a good view of the action…
Throughout there are moments of laugh out loud madness, and others that leave the audience a bit baffled. But overall it’s hard not to be astounded by the sheer strength and talent of these impressively strong individuals.
Make sure you look out for the hamster. And you never know, you could be in on the action too...
BARBU is showing until 25th September 2016 at London Wonderground next to the London Eye.
