If there was ever any doubt rules were made to be broken, Show Pony proves the point.
Experienced circus performers Lena Ries, Romy Seibt, Anke van Engelshoven take the audience through the rules of circus.
Some – like looking weightless, portraying mystery, and doing things others can’t – seem solid.
But the one they really want to rail against is being young – and with all the talent on show you can understand why. Yes, they are still performing, but the loveliness of the Norwich Playhouse is still some distance from a Cirque du Soleil Vegas residency.
Their objections are presented through a mix of biography, comedy, and performance: always creative and entertaining. Whether recreating a childhood phase of high board diving suspended from the top of a rope, the vulvic gaze of the contortionist, or a care home version of the splits, this is clever, physical, political, and funny. There’s definitely no reason for them to be pensioned off.
The tyranny of age, especially for women, is by no means constrained to circus – but it’s a medium that allows them to make that point while tricking us to a smile.
- Show Pony continues at Norwich Playhouse as part of the Norfolk and Norwich Festival until Saturday 17 May 2025.
