Water Fools (Fous de Bassin)
A spectacle from France's Ilotopie, performed on Lake Michigan—think of it as Cirque du Soleil Goes to Sea.
By Tony Adler
Jack Ng Khek Hian
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Please note that this event has been postponed due to the threat of severe weather. New performance dates given below
Think of it as Cirque du Soleil Goes to Sea. Or Venetian Night Meets Salvador Dali. Or just plain Very Similar to Certain Cool Things Redmoon Theater's Done From Time to Time. Like, for instance, Redmoon's 2004 performance in Ping Tom Memorial Park, with its river-borne lantern procession, this spectacle—to be staged on Lake Michigan by France's Ilotopie—combines fire, water, strange conveyances, and eccentric characters. But judging by the images in a highlights video, the mix is notched up considerably in Water Fools. Where the dominant mood of the Redmoon piece was quiet and dreamy, the feel here is dreamy with how'd-they-do-that tech effects and loads of explosions. A woman in a red ball gown skims along on what appears to be an enormous gerbil wheel. Someone in a nightshirt rows a bed. A car and trailer ride the surface of the water. A clown bikes it. And seemingly everywhere, fireworks shower the night with sparks.
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While it is great that this is happening in Chicago, The Sunday performance was attended by a good number of people who had trouble understanding "remain seated." Maybe next time an announcement over the speakers right prior and the threat of expulsion, would stop people from being rude and ruining the experience for others.
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