Opening Night: KOOZA - Cirque Du Soleil in Singapore

Unfiltered. Shot by my mum who was my delightful plus one.

I love circuses.

They are a playground for imagination that's larger than life. And when the circus comes to town, everybody knows.

Kooza was no exception. While it may be showing for the first time in Singapore, this fifth Cirque du Soleil production in Singapore made its arrival known with its gigantic, huge yellow tents at Bayfront Avenue which took up to 9 days to put up. That in itself was a spectacle to behold.

The show debuted in 2007, Montreal and has since staged over a 1000 shows worldwide. Consisting of 19 nationalities, the Kooza troupe brings to life the story of the Innocent whose journey is joined by characters such as the Trickster, the King, The Heimloss, the Obnoxious Tourist and his Bad Dog.

As explained by the show's director and writer David Shiner, "Kooza is about human connection and the world of duality, good and bad".

"The tone is fun and funny, light and open. The show doesn't take itself too seriously, but it's very much about ideas, too."

I can certainly understand the appeal of Kooza. The show is electrifying! It implores its viewed to open up their senses and explore the themes of identity, power and recognition through a series of memorable performances.

Kooza looks at the origins of circus performances by paying homage to its two main traditions of - acrobatic performance and the art of clowning. You'd be then presented with an eloquent balance of almost impossible human physical acts and slapstick humour.

A look at some of the scenes:

Credit: BASE Entertainment

And of course, in case you were wondering, the name Kooza is inspired by the Sanskrit word “koza,” which means “box,” “chest” or “treasure,” and was chosen because one of the underlying concepts of the production is the idea of a “circus in a box. Fascinating!